Stylish Middle-Aged American Women from the 1960s

The inimitable Quentin Crisp described “[t]he object of having a style (as opposed to merely being stylish) is not to be different from other people, but to be more like yourself than nature has made you.”

Each of the women in these photographs has style, considerable style which they use to highlight who they are.

Unlike fashion, of which Mr Crisp said:

Fashion is what you adopt when you don’t know who you are.

Very few people have style today. Look at the army of denim and T-shirts that supposedly expresses personality through corporate branding. Or take a peak at our beleaguered Prime Minister Bogus Nonsense who has no style, unless it is that of a slob? How can anyone trust a man who is incapable of using a comb? Who can’t tuck-in his shirt properly or even wear a suit that doesn’t look like he’s had a night on the batter then slept rough in it?

I believe how we present ourselves denotes much about our character. I tend to wear a blue suit, blue suede shoes, a blue shirt, and have an unnerving sense of being a Smurf. I once asked Melvyn Bragg why he wore a suit? He said it was because a suit made him anonymous as he didn’t want to draw attention to himself when interviewing. I thought he had sold short his romantic good looks and damn fine head of hair. But there we go.

These stylish, elegant, and really quite beautiful photographs of middle-aged American women from the 1960s capture a time when people put an effort into presenting the best of themselves.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Via Neat Stuff Blog.