Fashion is Dead to Me

[cathschaffstump]

Bryon and I are a fairly romantic couple. This summer we've been married 23 years. February 17th marks the celebration of twenty-seven years together as a couple. It's been an awful winter, so we thought we'd do Valentine's Day big this year. We have reservations at an intimate Italian restaurant, where the desserts and the wine are exquisite, and the regular food isn't half bad.

It was my hope to buy something new and pretty to wear. But I have a small problem. Everything I see is either ugly or dowdy.

Okay, okay. I know I'm not in the fashion capitol of the world. I'm not even in the fashion capitol of the Midwest. Is it too much to ask, as a 44-year old woman that there is something to wear that is

1. Fashion forward.
2. Age appropriate.
3. Tasteful.
4. Flattering
5. Well-made.

I've seen a lot of flimsy, overpriced dresses that are just ugly. I'm wide, so I'm not likely to wear a dress made completely of rows of raised stripes. On the other hand, I have a waistline, so I don't want to wear a pastel sack with an overdress. I'm not about to wear a complementary shape done in a junior fluorescent color. This year, I'm not defaulting to pants, a tank, and an interesting jacket.

Note to self: plan ahead. You can't be spontaneous about clothes in Cedar Rapids, Iowa Also this: if I wanted to look like the mother of the bride, I would have had children.

Now that I have modified Crystal Vision vis-a-vis the readings that have come in so far (today's contribution to the writing world), I am going to two more stores. One of them is called the Dress Barn. Only in Iowa.

It's probably going to be Valentine's in the simple black dress and the peacock beaded jacket, which do flatter, but I wanted it to be else wise. The point? Why is it that we women "of a certain age" fall out of the flatter zone for designers?

Links to sites that prove otherwise are MOST welcome. I still want to dress up and look pretty. I'm sure others of us want that too.

Catherine

Mirrored from Writer Tamago.