Cultivate These 4 Traits to Get More from Fashion After 60
In a previous article, I asked the women in our community to describe their personal style in 3 words. I absolutely loved all of your responses! That said, I also realized that I may not have been specific enough about exactly how to develop your own personal style.
In other words, it’s great if you already know what your sense of style is, but, how can you develop it if you don’t?
To dig into this question, I recently sat down with Lyn Slater, the founder of a blog called Accidental Icon. She explained that there are actually 4 personality traits that every woman should cultivate to get more from fashion after 60.
I hope that you enjoy my conversation with Lyn. Please watch the video and join the conversation below.
Here are the 4 personality traits of fashionable older women…
Cultivate Confidence
According to Lyn, confidence is the first personality trait that will help you to develop your personal style and get more from your clothing at any age. Frankly, this is one of the personality traits that we should find easiest to fall back on as older women. After 6 decades on this planet, we have seen a lot. We have navigated careers and raised families, suffered and succeeded, loved and lost.
Confidence helps you to make fashion choices based on your own internal compass, not what other people think.
Here’s a quick exercise that can help you to feel better about yourself. Take out a piece of paper and write down 3 things that you love about yourself. Now ask 3 friends to describe your greatest strengths. How do the two lists compare? Are there any similarities? What are the differences?
Embrace Self-Awareness
Lyn says that we should always be honest with ourselves about the clothes that make us feel comfortable. Take a few minutes to think about your relationship with clothes, past and present.
When did you feel that your clothes were not good enough? When did you feel most comfortable? What were you wearing? Was there a specific context that surrounded you when you were wearing your favorite clothes? What does this tell you about yourself?
Adopt Open Mindedness
By the time we reach our 60s, we tend to know ourselves pretty well. The downside is that we may have also gotten ourselves stuck in predictable patterns. This is true in many aspects of our lives, including our clothing choices.
Turning 60 gives you the opportunity to cultivate an open mind. Take a look through your closet. Now, take out the clothes that make you feel stronger. How would you describe these clothes? Do they share a certain texture, color or style?
Lyn reminds us that our clothes amplify our personalities. So, choose carefully. Take the clothes that make you feel powerful and see if you can find more items like them to add to your wardrobe. At the same time, don’t be afraid to break old patterns and give away the clothes that no longer suit you.
Find Fearlessness
The final personality trait that Lyn suggests we cultivate is fearlessness. Ask yourself the following simple questions. Do you avoid certain types of clothing because you are worried about what other people might think? Do you hate having your picture taken? What one piece of clothing have you always wanted to own, but, you weren’t sure if you could pull it off?
You are an amazing woman and the world needs to see your unique style. I hope that this interview helps you to cultivate the confidence, self-awareness, open mindedness and fearlessness that you deserve.
Which of the personality traits mentioned in this article do you feel like you need to cultivate the most? What do you think are the keys to finding your personal style in your 60s and beyond?
