I am an avid fan of TLC's What Not to Wear, but have also been frustrated by the lack of attention that individuals in their 40's and 50's generate on the show. Many of us could use some fashion advice in remaining timely in our fashion selections considering age and body style. Like retailers, their missing the mark here, because generally speaking this age group has more disposable income to spend on looking good. I think women in this age group just give up when they cannot find appropriate clothing that is not only fashion forward but appropriate for their age group.

Right on. I totally agree. The 40, 50, and
even 60 age group should be included in this
show.

The show has a formula and that formula is to mo younger women who've displayed no fashion acumen, and who need to move from their collge clothes to a more professional image, although 40ish women have been mo's occasionally. Very occasionally, I think I have only seen one. But the bottom line is, they point out age appropriate clothing for all women and it's up to us more mature women to watch and learn. I also think "10 Years Younger" covers a lot of these bases. And..getting into your 40's and 50's might be a little hard on some women who have to come up with a whole new wardrobe in one insane week in NYC. But..I am all for it.

quote:

Originally posted by kt3691:
I am an avid fan of TLC's What Not to Wear, but have also been frustrated by the lack of attention that individuals in their 40's and 50's generate on the show. Many of us could use some fashion advice in remaining timely in our fashion selections considering age and body style. Like retailers, their missing the mark here, because generally speaking this age group has more disposable income to spend on looking good. I think women in this age group just give up when they cannot find appropriate clothing that is not only fashion forward but appropriate for their age group.

I agree with you. I am 48 but I try to take their advice and tailor it to my figure, height, weight, etc.
I could definately get an entire wardrobe for $5000.
kt3691, lets hope they read this and contact both of us for an upcoming show

I was probably their oldest makeover at 48. I dont really think they follow a formula, but have noticed that they took me to Dana Buchman and very, very high end places to shop. Of course that was a couple of years ago, and I havent seen many more like me. You can see my episode Marie on the downloads. It is a great experience especially for people our age. I think it might be a little wasted on people in their twenties, but thats my humble opinion. Have you tried to get on the show? My family submitted me, but I was a very big train wreck. Maybe you arent "bad" enough condition wise. Thats probably a good thing.

Welcome back Marie! Nice to hear from you. You were definitely one of the most inspiring makeovers - making the point to us women of a certain age that "professional" doesn't have to mean sad. I will never forget the look on your husband's face when he saw you at the reveal.
Beside Dana Buchman, what other designers did they buy for you?

Aw shucks, thank you. They bought Cole Hahn boots, Theory pants, some Italian shoes, and lots of items from Macy on 34th Street (the famous Christmas store). Since the show, though I have found really nice pencil skirts at places like Cato, and TJ Max. I am much more picky about the fit. And you would be amazed at what a good tailor charges (its real cheap). I live in Atlanta, and was not real good with new styles when they changed last year, so I went back to the rules (except for pointy elf shoes). But a lot of women our age come up to me asking for fashion advice (can you imagine???) But suits dont really make the woman, like they do with me. And I have not touched my hair with hair dye out of a box since the show. My husband would probably divorce me if I did.

Marie, I've only been watching for almost a year now and had not seen your episode. After reading, I downloaded it this AM. What a truly great episode. I'm 48. Dressed nicely in my 20s and through my mid 30's, then life took over, if you know what I mean and I just let myself go. Since, discovering WNTW, I'm caring, again, and even though I get something from all the episodes, it sure is nice to see the episodes with folks that are closer to my age.

I so agree with this "thread" (I am new to the world of chat rooms) The original show which was produced on BBC in England - Trinny & Susannah - did deal with older women and women who were fuller figured. I have been an avid fan of both shows and apply many of their styling rules to my own wardrobe. As to what you can buy with $5000 - let me say that you can even get Dana Buchman at a discount at a very famous NY discount clothing store. I also appreciate that they will pair a $40 sweater with a $200 pair of designer jeans. They will go from the SoHo high end stores to the H&M and even Filenes Basement. I do think that H&M may be a little too young for the over 30 crowd. Here's hoping to see more of our generation on the show - we just have to be pro-active in nominating ourselves and telling the producers know what we want - Aftre all - how many 20 & 30 year olds are home on a Friday night to watch the show?- they are out on dates and clubbing with their friends!

I think they miss the boat when they ignore our age group. Lets face it, we do hold the purse strings when it comes to discretionary spending. For shock value, think how dramatic the results are when the makeover target took, fifteen or twenty years to get the 'before' look. I would like to see them highlight more men and women our age. Many have posted here that the show just wont do it, though. They seem to think their target audience is the twenty and thirty somethings. Personally, I think they are sadly mistaken. You would not believe the numbers of people 'our age' that have agreed with you. I'm getting a little tired of the same old cookie cutter mold. They could really increase ratings if they took the real challenges out there (our age group), and showed people that 60 really is the new 40. Maybe they think we're all retired or half dead. I'm certainly not, and bet you arent either. Dont you get a little sick of hollywood dictating that anyone over 40 should curl up and die quietly somewhere?

Sorry, I got cut off. Anyone that's 40 to 60, or even older would just appear all the more dramatic with the reveal. Maybe the show doesnt know what to do with someone thats over 35 (you know that sign about not wearing miniskirts over 35?) Maybe they think we all have shrivelled up knee caps, our faces are covered up with massive amounts of wrinkles, and have ugly liver spots swarming all over our arms and legs. Please people, get real. Have any of them opened the cover of More magazine lately? This is not the 1950's. I dont know about any of you, but I am really proud of our age group.

Add my voice to those wishing they had some older folks. I too try to cull what I can from what I see for younger folks.

Yes, but that can be a little difficult when they frequently portray the college student type that wears too revealing clothing, or the mommy in sweats with the little baby. Dont you really need help with such items as "does this make me look fat" and "do I wear the platform heels or should it be flip flops?" Or here in Atlanta, when are you ever going to wear cashmere? Well, maybe tomorrow, but the real question is "do I go for the cargo long shorts, the bermuda shorts, or just forget it and wear a skirt? What are trends and what is fashion? Should we all wear white near our faces? Thats stuff we could use. Do nude pantyhose mark you one step away from the old folks home? Will you look ridiculous wearing what's in style or is there a way to pull it all together and look hot (or something like that)

I totally agree that they are missing the boat. I don't even bother to watch any more because all the MO's are so much the same that I'm not interested. I heard Clinton say once that trends are developed with 20- and 30-somethings in mind. That means the trends tell them what to do. It is the rest of us that could use help fitting the trends appropriately into our lives. I think there would be a lot more interest in the program if there were more variety presented as subjects of the make-overs.

I should have qualified my comment a little bit. I don't try for younger styles, but I do find helpful any information reqarding color combinations, or a proper fitting jacket, or a skirt style for a particular body shape, or the fact that dark straight jeans look best, or what accessories look good (esp colored bags and shoes). I think for the most part I know what looks too young or trendy for my age. And yes, you have to tailor their information to your lifestyle. I used to work in a corporate legal office and wore jackets with dresses or skirts (or, back then, rarely slacks) everyday, but the jacket came off quickly when working at my desk because I am hot-natured. Now, with all the relaxed business styles, I don't ever wear a suit jacket - even though I love the look of them - because they'd get me 5 minutes use and where I am now I don't need the look. Regarding cashmere or other sweater materials, I can't wear them because of my warm-natured-ness. I also found the book by Stacy and Clinton somewhat helpful, with the same caveat.

I tend to agree that who they think their target audience is may be off a bit, or at least somewhat limited.

They ought to give it a shot with someone over 50 - and maybe not even pencil-thin - and just see what the reaction is. They have so many reruns anyway, who would care that they threw in one "old" person?

Well, it is a business, though and the people that make the decisions are probably driven by what they think the audience wants to see. The average age of casting people is probably twenty something, and this is their culture. Who wants to see ugly old people, when you can celebrate youth? Although it surprises me that they arent more in tune with their advertisers. Macy and Bank of America certainly know that demographically we are the bigger spenders. It would be great to see some variety, namely some really big challengers. But then, it would require some real talent in shopping, hair and makeup design, and maybe they dont think thats cost effective. They would probably point out that they have the show Ten Years Younger. But frankly, not all of us want to undergo plastic surgery to look better in our clothes. Clinton's own father is a prime example of how a little hair styling and clothing savy would make him look much better. (Sorry Clinton's dad, but it is true). And I dont know about you, but enough with the sleeveless dresses. No way will I wear them, and I work out.

I agree! At 57, I need some new ideas. Since I suffer from RA and FMS, I really need help with footwear. No high heels for me. Also, hair and make-up tips for the older set. We've all seen the older woman with 5 lbs. of make-up and rouge. I don't want to be that person! And no sleeveless things unless there's something over it. I love the show and I'm doing better with matching colors but my 'pull-over' wardrobe needs help.

Where I live people over 40 can't even get jobs.....It's amazing all TV thinks is no one over 30 watches, when we actually watch more TV. Every show you turn on is filled with 20 somethings...

I think that the lady (forget her name) who owned the dance studio may have been older than 50 (she had the curly red hair).

Add me to the pile of women who thinks they should have MO's in their 50s and beyond. As a woman who is turning 50 this year, I know that there are a lot of great MO candidates in my age bracket. I can think of several women who would look 10 years younger and sexier with a MO. We aren't dead yet! In fact we are looking younger and younger all the time (50 is the new 40, or even 30, lol). I don't know why this show would forsake us when there are so many of us over 40 women here on their site. They have to know we're watching and spending. If they are trying to please their advertisers, I think their advertisers need to get new statistics. Over 40 women probably spend more money on clothes and other big ticket items than 30-something mommies or 20-something young'ns. We have the time and the money, plus our generation seems to be even more into the expensive, high fashion stuff than the youngn's are.

Mark my words, when the Gen Y-ers get to be over 40 there will be scads of over 40 makeovers on these shows because that generation has more of a sense of entitlement and have grown up thinking they should have these things. I hate thinking that my generation and those older than me are being shoved under the rug. It's just not right nor ethical, nor good business sense. I have ranted about this before and so have many on this site but they never listen to us.

That said, I just saw the description of an upcoming show and it's featuring a 45 year old woman. Hallelujah, I am going to pass out! Baby steps. Perhaps a 50 year old is not far behind!

I agree that the 40s/50s contingent is largely left out.

I am approaching 48 and I always feel the focus on the 30-somethings is fine -- but I cannot translate all of the looks in an age appropriate way.

Bring on the middle aged ladies, please! I nominate ME!

Very nice work, ladies! Keep this conversation going and who knows? Maybe someday they will do a show about someone that is facing the big 50, and wants to look great. Wouldnt it be refreshing if the target makeover has hair from the 80's, clothes from the 70's, and makeup that does nothing for her face? She walks around in suntan control top pantyhouse, thinks her bathrobe is a fine fashion statement, and loves her old sneakers. Lets add in a few extra pounds around her middle, and an attitude that speaks up to Stacy, and wham, we have instant drama. Let her give Miss Stacy and Master Clinton a real piece of her mind when they insist she show off her backside instead of draping her butt into a boxy looking bathrobe or gardening pants. It could have real comedy when she tells Nick, to back of with those scissors, sonny. I have had this hair since the 80-s and look better than you. It could be so funny, having some older people on, because they wont necessarily honor 'the sacred cows'. The 20 somethings for the most part are way too timid, or just vulgar. Older people are not afraid to speak their minds, and with Stacy and Clinton, it could get real rough. I would watch, with popcorn.

Add me to your 40-50 list. I'd like to see more of us on the show too.

quote:

Originally posted by ntuitive1:
I can think of several women who would look 10 years younger and sexier with a MO.

Maybe you should nominate one of them? Perhaps that is one of the problems. Maybe there aren't a lot of nominations for people over 40. Could be that the friends and families of women over 40 would never dream of nominating them for fear of hurting their feelings -- whereas younger people aren't as concerned about that and just get online and nominate like crazy.

They seem to do about one over 40 MO per season (I remember a few over the years), and I think the oldest people done were the mothers of the bride and groom in the wedding party episode awhile back.