I’ll never forget the day I realised that my wardrobe choices were making me look older. I was aimlessly scrolling through photos from my cousin’s wedding from the summer before last – a half-finished glass of pinot noir in hand – when I paused on a photo of our entire family, pointing and smiling for the camera. “Who’s that boring woman wearing that giant beige cardigan?” I asked myself for half a second before I sickeningly pieced together that it was me in the background.
There I was at 36 years old, looking like my mother’s less-glamorous sister, rather than her daughter. I didn’t exactly hop into action the next day and overhaul my entire wardrobe. In fact, what followed was a month-long spiral of research, panic-buying, style experimentation, countless egregious fashion fails, followed by some more research.
But if there was one thing that made me feel like I was finally getting somewhere? Learning about all of the little things I was doing wrong that were actually making me look older.
If I can stop you from making these same styling mistakes that I did – and yes, I’m talking to you wearing that tuul sweater from high school – then consider this your essential guide to NOT looking older, from someone who very well could have!
Baggy Clothes Alright, hear me out. When I first started making changes to my wardrobe, I read somewhere that one of the quickest ways to look older is wearing oversized, shapeless clothing. Ugh, I silently scoffed to myself.
But it wasn’t me – I wore sweater dresses and boyfriend jeans all the time! They were my “comfort clothes” – oversized jumpers, tees that could double as blankets, super-relaxed trousers, and baggy cardigans. The kind that looked like they’d pour down your shoulders in 2015?
Greatest. Trend. Ever.
Except, the reality was those “oversized-but-still-sort-of-fitted-on-me-enough” clothes were not doing me any favours. In fact, they were probably ageing me quicker than anything else in my wardrobe. Pieces with no shape were disguising the definition of my figure, rather than enhancing it.
Who wants to look like a soggy parchment sandwich when they could celebrate their natural silhouette? Thankfully, my bullish friend Emma convinced me to try on a form-fitting blazer while shopping in Brighton one Saturday. “Just try it on,” she practically begged me while I insisted it would highlight every lump and roll I owned.
The second I reluctantly strutted out of the changing room in that beautifully-cut blazer (she picked it out, don’t @ me), I knew my blazer-friendly life had officially begun. Not only did that jacket literally shape me thanks to the shoulders and fitted waist, but it also made me look instantly taller, slimmer and – dare I say it – years younger. I’m not saying you should live in skin-tight clothing.
But if you opt for something with no shape that can fit a bodybuilder friend of mine (thanks, squat days), then maybe it isn’t really suiting you. I try to look for jackets, dresses, and even jeans with either a defined waist or that JUST skim my body rather than hang off of it. Nothing drastic – just try tucking in the bottom half of your shirt, or throwing on a belt to cinch your waist.
Even going from 100% oversized to just oversized can make all the difference. If I don’t see at least some hint of my figure in a garment, it’s safe to say you’ll find that item in the donation pile before I even leave the store. Shop Our Fave Structured Blazers: Truly Age-Appropriate Clothes I know what you’re thinking: Ugh, Meghan thinks every woman needs to wear leather pants and arrive at work hungover on a cocktail ring.
Buuuuuut no. Hear me out. When I reached the big 3-5 I found myself shying away from clothing that I deemed “too young” for me.
Before I knew it I was half-heartedly browsing the heck out of boxy blazer sets and what can only be described as granny bibs. As I stood miserably in John Lewis one Tuesday debating whether or not to buy a tweed skirt suit that screamed Early-2000s Office Worker, the saleswoman chirped over, “That’s one of our most popular styles! Our customers love it – especially our mature customers!” Excuse me?
I’M STILL IN MY THIRTIES! Now, I’m not advocating running out and buying yourself a pair of distressed skinny jeans tomorrow. But maybe it’s time to take a step back and ask yourself if you’re really buying “age-appropriate” clothes…
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Or if you’re buying stuff that just doesn’t suit you?! I love adding one – or sometimes two – trendy items to foundation of classics in my wardrobe. Whether that’s opting for a modern silhouette, on-trend print, or styling a trendy accessory with timeless pieces.
Trust me, I look WAY younger than my teaching friends still wearing pleated trousers and polo-neck jumpers. Bonus tip: My Mum is the chicest 68-year-old I know and still slays that leather jacket I got her for Christmas five years ago. She’ll literally be walking around decked from head to toe in leather and I catch older women commenting on how cool she looks in hers.
Her go-to response? “Don’t worry love, I wear it because it suits me! And as long as you’ve got something that fits you well and makes you feel good, you’re not wearing anything too young.” Shop Our Favorite Leather Jackets: That thing you’re wearing that you love but is “too old”?
Time to update that silhouette, friend. Style Staples That Have Stopped Moving With The Times When did my style freeze-frame in 2012? Throughout my years of catastrophically bad style choices, one of the things I loved most was reverting back to old favourites.
The scrawny-ankled jeans I bought when I first moved to London, my trusty hole-y grey sweater, and those round-neck tudoresque knit jumpers I owned in every colour. They were all my shopping habits since discovering the joys of “classic” fashion. Then came my eye-opening conversation with my sister-in-law who works in fashion retail.
She sat me down and explained that although there are definitely style classics that withstand trends, how these pieces are cut and styled change ever-so slightly over time. The boot- cut trousers I was rocking? Too low-rise, pockets were too high, and the hem was cut too wide.
Major fail. I’m not saying you need to buy into every new fashion trend that rolls around (trust me, I still refuse to wear bike shorts no matter how many times they come back), but swapping out old silhouettes for their modern-day equivalent can work wonders on your overall style. My boot-cut jeans were instantly replaced by chic straight-leg trousers.
My crew neck jumpers swapped for sweaters with either a V-neck or subtle sweetheart neck. Not only did these subtle shifts make me feel more “now”, but they didn’t break the bank or make me feel like I had to change my entire personality. Trust me – these small, subtle shifts can make ALL the difference.
Shop Our Favorite Straight Leg Pants: Pointy-Toe Everything I don’t know about you, but every pair of shoes I owned fell into one of two categories: ugly-but-comfortable flat or clunky sandal. Flats were either plain-bloody-white sneakers or rounded-toe ballet flats I’ve had since college. Sandals were those glorified sneakers with crummy slides everyone wore in the early 2010s.
Basically, every single shoe I owned was either outdated at instant-age dodger.
It wasn’t until I was attempting to keep pace with Notre Dame spinster*, Chloë, wandering around Paris that I realised my shoe game was weak. I was limping across the street in my so-called “comfortable” shoes that were actually cutting my feet raw, while some of the chicest women I had ever seen sauntered by me in impossibly high pointed-toe stilettos.
I couldn’t believe my eyes. Where were all the cute shoes? Don’t get me wrong, I’m not suggesting you go out and buy Manolo Blahniks if you normally live in sneakers.
But my shoes went from literally falling apart at the seams to having a small heel (yes, even I wear heels now) and sleeker details. Pointed or almond toes instead of rounded, interesting straps instead of flat, and a slim block heel instead of flat or (gasp) platforms. The best part?
My feet actually liked my new shoes! I didn’t realise it until I saw a podiatrist for the insanely painful blisters I got during my sandal phase, but he told me that having no heel at all actually did my feet more damage. Who knew that slightly more stylish shoes could actually help you? !
Shop Pointy-Toe Heels: Shop Loafers: * Technical definition of spinster: Any woman older than me who can run up a flight of stairs without panting like a dying animal.
