5 minute read

I watched the first British PM leadership debate on Channel 4 with my sister and mother a few weeks ago. Not knowing very much about the three female candidates – Liz Truss, the last remaining woman in the race, Penny Mordaunt and Kemi Badenoch – we commented on everything from their posture and policies to their pithy retorts. I wondered out loud about the age of Liz Truss. The two other women I instinctively guessed were in their 40s, but Truss was less easy to place. Late 50s I guessed, maybe 60. But when I Googled her, I discovered Truss is, in fact, just 47 – a year younger than I am.

I felt ashamed and disconcerted that I had so casually aged her by almost 15 years. Why was this, I wondered? She’s not especially lined or wrinkled. Her hair is blonde, not grey, and styled in a sleek, contemporary bob, and she was as quick on her feet, both literally and figuratively, as any of her peers on stage that night. It was only when my mother rhetorically asked who had put Truss in that “awful-looking” blouse, that it twigged. The frumpy, Margaret Thatcher-esque cream pussyblow blouse she was wearing immediately pigeonholed her in a generation closer to my mother’s than my own.

According to much of the newspaper coverage the following day, it was Truss’s intention to align herself politically with the Iron Lady by mirroring Thatcher’s signature look. Whether this tactic worked for her among Conservative Party members, I’ve no idea, but sartorially speaking, she failed to get my vote on the night (for the record neither love nor money could persuade me to vote Tory if I lived in the UK). Women in midlife are continually told that dressing young won’t make them look young, but equally there are enormous pitfalls around wearing ‘old-lady’ outfits if you’re anyone other than Alexa Chung. Margaret Thatcher was 54 when she famously wore a pussybow blouse and black suit jacket for her 1979 TV election broadcast; seven years older than Truss in an era when women in midlife were older.

To put a more scientific spin on it, an article on CBS News in 2017 revealed research from Stanford University which explained that these days, women don’t transition out of middle age until their late 60s. Whereas in the 1920s, it was late 40s and in the 1950s, it was late 50s. So by this standard, Thatcher in her prudish pussybow blouse was much ‘older’ than Truss, who has another 20 years of midlife ahead of her.

The difficulty with wearing clothes that age you physically is that they infer your mind is as tired-looking as your outfit. Staid neutrals in old-fashioned styles also do their very best to obscure any hint of character, which is the first step towards invisibility. About a week after that television debate, I saw Truss arriving at an event in London. She was wearing a fitted shift dress in a vibrant shade of royal blue and she looked like a poster girl for women in midlife killing it. The dress framed her svelte figure beautifully, the pop of colour boosted her complexion and brightened her eyes, giving the impression of a dynamic individual with energy, presence, ideas and personality. The contrast was phenomenal.

Women in midlife have always been caught between a sartorial rock and a hard place. Don’t look old, we’re warned, but don’t look like mutton dressed as lamb either.

Interestingly, I read recently in The New York Times that this phrase was originally used to compliment not criticise attractive older women. The article explains: “The phrase is attributed in a lady’s journal of 1811 to the future king of England George IV, who, when still a prince, was asked at a ball if he found a particular girl pretty. He snorted with derision: “Girl! Girls are not to my taste. I don’t like lamb; but mutton dressed like lamb!” Like Chinese Whispers, the meaning of the phrase became muddled over time.

Liz Truss looking energised in a royal blue shift dress.

While Truss is treading a particularly fine sartorial line as she competes for the top job in the UK, for most women in midlife, our outfits don’t have to look as serious as our schedules or as joyless as a Covid celebration. The balance between gravity and whimsy is as important as the calculation of so-called mutton vs lamb. Even for Truss, that vibrant blue dress imbued her with an energy that suggested she was enjoying herself because she was being herself. I was much more convinced she was a credible contender for the role of prime minister then than when she was trying to emulate a woman who took office when Truss was just 4 years old.

While cobwebby notions of how women should dress as they age are long dead, there’s still a fear among many midlifers that interesting cuts, vibrant colours and statement silhouettes will make them appear outlandish rather than stylish. But today there are so many brands creating ‘age-appropriate’ clothes that still manage to prioritise and preserve individuality, vitality and a fashion-forward aesthetic.

Massimo Dutti, for instance, offers slick tailoring with a modern masculine cut. Traditional tailored pieces in unconventional colours look unexpected and modern, and this is where the brand excels – each season, the colour palette excites me. It’s a really simple, easy-to-wear way of looking sophisticated but not too classic, which can sometimes read as dull. Unfortunately, they only produce up to a size 14, although the items are roomy as I always have to drop down a size there. Cos, of course, has built a loyal following among midlifers who want restrained but detail-driven pieces in their wardrobes. Unique finishes – even subtle piping or unexpected ruching – can elevate a dress from ordinary to exceptional.

H&M’s premium selection is anchored around luxury fabrics, which are a far more successful ‘anti-aging’ treatment than any face cream in my mind. Jaeger at Marks & Spencer has the kind of sophisticated but interesting design aesthetic that Marks & Spencer should be trying to emulate, and just like the host store, sizes go up to a 20. At the luxury end of the market, Essentiel Antwerp is a wonderful source of bold silhouettes, colours and prints. Don’t let the often dramatic styling on the website put you off though. Whether you lean towards an interesting silhouette, a saturated colour or an avante garde print, one of these standout features alone can bring energy and individuality to your wear-anywhere basics like flared jeans, black tuxedo trousers or an LBD.

Last week I was shopping in Dunnes Stores when I spotted a woman who looked so fantastic I had to stop and tell her so. She had short spiked blonde hair and she wore a beautiful black draped dress with fabulous platform brogues. I ‘guesstimated’ she was about my age, but really she could have been ten years younger or older. She was ‘ageless’ because she owned every inch of her look, and my instinctive thought was, ‘Wow, she looks great’, without the qualifier of ‘for her age’.

Clothes can be a powerful alchemy, but we each have to find our own unique mix, just as Liz Truss has. And before anybody goes bagging up their pussybow blouses for the charity shop, they can look stunning if given a contemporary twist: choose one in a primary colour rather than a classic neutral, wear with a chic pair of high-waisted flared jeans, or try opening at the neck for a sensuous reimaging. Suddenly a fuddy-duddy blouse is transformed into a provocative piece of modern chic.

Marie Kelly, August 2022