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After The Storm

Judith Boyd by : Judith Boyd

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Tornado warnings.  Hail storms.  Torrents of rain.  It was difficult to catch an outdoor photo this week, but The SC and Daniel managed to enter an interlude of calm after one of many storms and to mirror the greens of nature with this thoroughly vintage ensemble.

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Thank you for your thoughtful, insightful and supportive comments in response to my post of last week.  I was touched by your thoughts on aging and have been thinking about our individual differences and the awareness that we are all in this together, regardless of our choices.

Obviously I am not “au natural.”  I color my hair.  I enjoy the accessory of nail polish. I wear make-up, and in fact, its application is a mindful ritual that I find calming.

However, at some point I may choose to join the ranks of those who embrace their white or grey hair, and enjoy the freedom and power of that decision.  I have many role models in my life in 3-D and blogland, who I admire and adore, who are gorgeous in grey and a continual source of inspiration.

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For today I’m enjoying my red hair and its contrast with green and the swirl of my estate sale vintage multicolored “skirt/pants,” for lack of a better description.  It’s voluminous fabric flows with each step, floating above the rain and leaf covered sidewalk.

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For today I’m reveling in laughter and my vintage green jacket trimmed with ruffles, which I purchased at my friend’s downsizing sale.  I suspect that means I’m upsizing, despite my attempts to unburden myself from some of the numerous pieces in my collections.

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For today I’m accessorizing with a vintage tricolored satin toque that was purchased at a consignment shop, a vintage powder blue necklace as bracelet acquired at an antique market, and estate sale vintage green beaded dangle earrings.

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For today the ruffle trim on my vintage suede green peep toe sandals plays nicely with the ruffles on The SC’s jacket and nude fishnet hose.

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Photos by Daniel

For today the vintage blue/purple suede wedges with gold trim harmonize with the colors of the pattern on my skirt/pants.  For today and the moment is all that we ever truly have!  So why not change my shoes in mid-photo shoot and accept the choices that I make for now.

Thank you to the gorgeous Sylvia of 40+Style HERE for including The SC in her post on “How to wear tunics or short dresses with pants.”  Sylvia’s blog is full of ideas for the adventuresome!

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42 Comments

  2. Since I began blogging, I have discovered several role models for aging with style, finesse, and joy! You are at the top of that list Judith! I am inspired each time I visit here! Have a wonderful week..stay safe in the crazy weather.

  4. I think they are called they are called palazzo pants.

    And you look beautiful with red hair, and would look lovely with white hair as well!

    Bonnie

  6. I love the outfit you have on in these pictures! The colors are perfect for you, and the hat really makes everything come together. I think the green shoes look best with the dress; the blue shoes kind of take away from everything else, in my humble opinion.

  7. You are an inspiration! Part of the reason you look so youthful has nothing to do with cosmetics, it’s your lovely smile. I hope we get to meet IRL someday. It will be a pleasure.

  9. I’m sure that when the time comes you will sport your grey or silver hair with the style and grace that you currently wear your lovely red locks. For today though, enjoy exactly the way you are, because you are amazing and such an inspiration. Society makes women feel that once we hit 40, we have to take a back seat but that’s such a ridiculous notion. Thanks to people like you, it’s proven that age is simply a number. I love your blog and thank you.

  10. I LOVE finding your blog in my inbox! Your sense of style and self are always a reminder that age is an attitude and a number. Good for you!! You are a reminder to all of us to live and enjoy each day- there is no guarantee any of us will see the sunrise!

  11. Love everything about this outfit, esp. the jacket and ruffle shoes! And the red hair! My mom dyed her hair red to the very end, so I say to each his own! 🙂

  12. As a fellow not-so-natural redhead, I salute you, Judith! I think from time to time I might let the colour go, but I’m not ready yet.
    What a stunning outfit, it’s one of my favourites on you. You’re right, green is exceptionally good against red hair, and the ruffled jacket is a really special piece. Those palazzo pants are glorious, and of course, you have the perfect hat to bring it all together – that is your particular skill, among many!
    The photo of you laughing? An absolute delight! xxxx

  13. I love the nude fishnets!! I wear them, too! I have really pale legs that you can see the veins and I feel nude fishnets are the perfect sassy nude pantyhose to help conceal this flaw, not be too hot, and not seem as stuffy as regular brown pantyhose (which I really don’t like!).

  14. Dear Judith…I would love to take a tour of your wardrobe collections!! You have the most incredible pieces…and obviously an equally incredible eye for zeroing in on these estate sale treasures!! Love it all…the emerald jacket, the skirt/pants hybrid, the hat, and the shoes (especially the cobalt blue ones!!)

    http://www.StyleIsMyPudding.com

  15. You look so lovely! This is quite a stunning outfit and you look really radiant. I think there is more to this radiance than the lovely outfit and your natural beauty. You look so happy.

  16. Ah Judith, I had a little laugh out loud moment when I read, ‘I suspect that means I’m upsizing…’ Perhaps so, but you really do infuse your clothes and accessories with such life and vibrancy! You ENJOY them, and wear them, and that’s what matters!

    Today, a glorious swish of green and blue! Lovely and such perfect proportions on you!

  17. Your pictures today are so poignant and uplifting.
    I am 63 but wonder some days what to look
    forward to and then I see you claiming your
    space and time with a love for life. I must
    Learn this and let it slip into being. Thank you
    for sharing your journey with all of us. I must grant myself similar
    permission.
    Cherry

  18. Don’t change an inch of your gorgeous self. I do not know what I would do if I couldn’t put blond highlights in my hair. From the neck up (and from a distance) I think I seem ageless. This is another absolutely beautiful post. The photo of your skirt swirling is wonderful.

  19. So glad your weather cleared , these images are wonderful, the joy shows in every one.The jacket is stunning, both in colour and details . I admire the silver on others, but I’m not ready yet , sometime maybe, I feel we know when we feel it is for us.

  21. Film buff that I am, I applaud that chic 30s jacket partnered with those dainty ruffled sandals. Topped with a brimmed hat (what Grandaunt Nora called a cream-soup plate), and with matching high-waisted/wide-legged slacks, Ginger R. might have worn this costume to lunch at an upscale beach hotel. Perhaps she inspired the twirl…?

  22. So beautiful you are, in these colors and subtle ruffles, Judith. I think about letting the silver come in naturally too, but I don’t know if I’m ready for the process, the long transition. Red, silver – no matter: you’re a beauty inside and out.

  23. Luscious colors! I wear green for the same reason – with my bright hair, I look like a flower, a riot, or both.

  24. Those palazzo pants are just glorious and that ruffled jacket is utterly wonderful with them. I love both pairs of shoes, too.
    No to Botox and fillers but I’ll embrace coloured hair all the way. I admire ladies with waist length silver hair but I don’t think I could do it just yet! xxx

  25. I think it is a beautiful outfit (the word “ensemble” springs to mind). I prefer it with your blue/purple shoes. Because they balance out the green and pick up the blue from the skirt/pants. And also because I find them more elegant and I am a lover of closed shoes. So really.. it is more about my taste than whether one is “better” than the other. Again… great outfit.
    Greetje

  26. You look like a garden fairy, spinning into view for just moments so she can laugh at us mere mortals. That set of greens is just elegant, and the fabric weights and textures just play off beautifully.
    I’m not going to stop dying my hair because I love color, and color loves my fine hair … body with, flop without. I may end up shaving my head, in which case I’ll get a beautiful tattoo all over my head. Said she, lying but loving the idea!

  27. You are the perfect picture and role model of ‘au natural’ in my book. Anytime we can match our moods and ensemble with nature is ‘au natural’ to me. Your natural genuine smile is by far the most striking characteristic you have and its so contagious.
    Now for this ever so beautiful ‘au natural’ ensemble. Oh, that skirt, I simply want to dance in the streets with that ( I sure hope you did that for me). You look so lovely, and carefree today.

  28. Wow, those photos of you spinning and laughing are optimal! Such a gorgeous outfit, so appropriate for both activities. I hope you don’t feel guilty for long for upsizing. How can you not upsize when you find such fantastic pieces that come alive on you.

  29. You have the most infectious smile! I wish we could hear the laugh that accompanies these photos! The ensemble is beautiful! You talk about your friend downsizing and you upsizing! My friend E (70) has also recently downsized and she’s given me lots of her clothes- I am so excited by the coat she gave me- it’s the first coat she bought when she got her first paycheque- that means so much to me that when I wear it, I will think of her- young and excited to be out and about it London!x

  30. I’m with you on the hair color. My hair doesn’t go that beautiful, silvery-white grey. Instead, it turns a sallow, gun-metal-like color. As long as it’s that ugly shade I don’t see any reason not to color it, with a nice blonde streak in front and a few swatches of pink or purple on the sides.
    You are the most glorious redhead I’ve ever seen, especially in that magnificent green outfit 😉

    Alicia
    spashionista.com

  31. Judith, as always you are stunning. I am 66 and wore red hair for 30 years. Several years ago, I got tired of trying to keep my color vibrant. I found red hair dye fades as do most colors. I noticed how older people’s colored hair looked worn and unless they kept it up on a regular basis, at least every two weeks, it is very aging. As I have let my hair grow as I got older, I finally let it go grey/white. And, I have never regretted it. I keep it stylish and I get compliments all the time even from young people. I must say the transition was tedious, but in the end it was with it. In the mean time enjoy your beautiful red hair. See my blog shirleymckellar.blogspot.com

  32. You really should do a book of all these photographs. Your sense of style and color are just fantastic!

    Did you see the post at That’s Not My Age about a modeling agency that just set up for older models? If you fancy a trip to London, I bet they’d sign you up!

  33. OMG! FAB outfit! FAB, FAB, FAB! And obviously hard to choose between the shoes, but maybe I’d go with the green ’cause they’re so hard to come by AND because the ruffles match the jacket. OMG!

  34. Yup, you “do” green beautifully!!! Did you get those green shoes when we were together? I can’t remember. 🙂 I’m loving all the amazing vintage stuff, especially worn in such a creative/vintage-y way. This outfit makes me happy with the wide palazzo pants and amazing cinched jacket. The pic of the back of your head is a fabulous reminder of why your hair is perfect as it is!! It’s good to re-evaluate every now and then, but it’s even better to decide to “do you”.

    Love you. XXOO

  35. That photo of the adorable green shoes and creamy dreamy fishnets is fantastic! So nice to check in and see you. I’ve been pondering not coloring my hair lately but I think I’ll wait until it’s 90% white, which is so beautiful. For now though my colorist is using the gray as highlights! It’s a bit cheaper that way too. 😉

  36. I love your red hair – it was one of the first things I noticed about you, but I understand that there may come a time when it feels right to let it go. I’m trying to transition into that as gracefully as possible by only colouring the long section of my hair and letting the rest be “au natural”

    That is such a pretty jacket and it pairs with those marvelous pants perfectly. Palazzo pants are so much fun to wear (I call them Swishy Pants).

  37. Red head is a great look on you and it’s good to see the eyes smiling.
    Now, before going grey, I would go blond, brunette, highlights, low lights and more and have fun with it. As for me, I like change so, grey is not an option for me yet…. Maybe some day but not today. Naturally, I see women everyday with beautiful grey hair and I say to myself maybe someday I will feel beautiful and powered with my greys too just as much as they do.. Some day, not today…
    Love the blue/purple suedes and all the green!!

  41. You look sooooo beautiful! Do people tell you that you have Audrey Hepburn aura? You do!! Green is my favorite color, and I adore all the pieces you selected for this outfit. Gorgeous!

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