5. Older women are more
interested in comfort rather
than younger counterparts
however they are still
equally as demanding when it
comes to fashion.
(belleau et al, 1997)
6. “Fashion and age sit
uncomfortably together.
Fashion inhabits a world of
youthful beauty, of
fantasy, imagination, allure
. Its discourses are
frenetic and frothy; its
images glamorous and
youthful. However age is
perceived as a time of
FASHION AND AGE:
greyness, marked by
DRESS, THE BODY & LATER LIFE ( 2013)
retirement. It is associated
Julia Twigg
with a toned down, selfeffacing presentation”.
7. PARIS FASHION:
A CULTURAL HISTORY (1998) “It was regarded as highly
VALERIE STEELE
unsuitable, indeed
ludicrous, for older
women to dress like young
women. Fashion played
various roles in women’s
lives, of greater or lesser
importance, depending on the
particular woman’s
immediate situation-her age
was as significant as her
class”
8.
9. “consumers increased their
purchase intentions by over 175
percent when they saw models who
reflected their age; in
particular, women over the age
of 35 increased their purchase
intentions by 200 percent when
they saw older models. When
models didn’t reflect their
age, consumers decreased their
purchase intentions by 64
percent.”
13. They have lived through
countless style eras;
why should they stop now?
14. References
• Binlot, A. (2012). Fashion Labels Bet Their Money on Maturity by Casting Older
Women in Ads. Available: http://www.blouinartinfo.com/news/story/814644/fashionlabels-bet-their-money-on-maturity-by-casting-older. [Last accessed 25th Jan
2014].
• Steele, V (1998). Paris Fashion: A Cultural History. U.S: Berg. p186.
• Twigg, J (2013). Fashion and Age: Dress, the Body and Later Life. London: A&C
Black. p1.
• Considine, A. (2011). Up Close: If Holly Golightly Had a Grandson. Available:
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/29/fashion/putting-fashion-cameras-focus-on-olderwomen-up-close.html?_r=0. [Last accessed 19th Jan 2014].
• Gibson, P (2013). Fashion Cultures: Theories, Explorations and Analysis. London:
Routledge. p.84.
Natalie Taylor, Lauren Theobald, Sophie Diggins and Amy
Mitchell
