Aging is Just a Number

Joyce Carpati studied opera at the age of 16 in Milan. At 82-year-old she has started to sing again. Check out the videos above to see some her wonderful improvised singing! I hope everyone has a happy, healthy and inspired New Year!

Dress For The Theater of Your Life Everyday, Especially the Holidays.

Lynn Dell Cohen dresses for the theater of her life everyday, so she had no problem looking absolutely smashing for a holiday party thrown by our dear friend Carol Markel. Here is a little excerpt from a poem by Carol from her wonderful blog http://femmeetfleur.blogspot.com :

With happiness I must cheer,

we made it through another year.

With health issues only minor,

we can say that we feel finer.

To all our friends, both far and wide,

we refrain from comments snide.

Advanced Style ladies both classic and quirky,

May your holiday dinner be tofurky.

Winter Color

When I stopped this woman to take her photograph she said, "Do you want to know why I wear this?It's because everyone looks the same dressed in black and grey." I always love seeing a bit of color on a grey winter's day.

Leaving Noordermarkt

I hope everyone is enjoying the holidays in health and happiness!

The Color of Life

Text by Sue Kreitman

How old am I? Somewhere between my mid seventies, and eternity. By the time my mother was my age, she was dead for 25 years, so you can understand why I consider growing old an adventure and a privilege.

But I must tell you that I am not really an old lady; just cleverly disguised as one. Art and colour keep me young, keep me sane. Working as I do as an untutored ‘outsider’ artist is my therapy, my medicine, my joy and my purpose in life.  

I mentor and support visionary young artists and a few old ones as well. I create and curate iconoclastic art exhibitions. My life has purpose and my mind and imagination are always going full tilt.

Colour surrounds me: I revel in it, splash it everywhere, gulp it with a spoon. I am immersed in art. I make it, collect it, it fills and defines my existence. Childish, shamanistic, wild and anarchic, it is as far outside the box as it is possible to be. Box?? There is no box!

When I leave the house, I cannot bear to leave my collections and creations behind. So I wrap, festoon, curate myself before I sashay out into the world. The kimonos I wear everyday are hand painted by Diane Goldie, or collaged by Lauren Shanley, or designed by me, and stitched together by a local tailor.  My necklaces are art objects, usually rather large, and created by me, or by artist friends.

How lucky I am: relatively healthy, a supportive family, a wild assortment of vivid and talented friends. At this age, we may not be dead yet, but we can almost see it from here. It’s the Memento Mori thing: remember death, but choose life for as long as you possibly can.

Be bold, be adventurous.  Do profound things, dazzle yourself and the world. Contribute to society, and live large. Life is short, make every moment count. It is never too late to find your passion.

http://www.suekreitzman.com

Romero's Mom

I have been excited to meet makeup artist, Romero Jennings', gorgeous mother ever since someone tagged #advancedstyle on a photo of her from his instagram page. I have been following their stylish adventures ever since. Nancy was an absolute joy to photograph and didn't even complain when we took her outside on a cold winter's day to take some more shots. I asked Romero to share a few words about his stunning mother below:

My mom was born in Panama in the 30" but lived a big portion of her life in Jamaica. The influence of both cultures makes her an excellent cook! Nancy comes from a line of stylish women. Her mother made all her own clothing which allowed her to spend plenty of money on beautiful shoes and jewelry!

Nancy loves hearing all my tales of life backstage at fashion week! She feels somehow that she is there with me in spirit. She especially loves to find out what is hot and what is not! My mom has always been know for her  signature red or shocking pink lipstick and a generous coat of mascara topped off with translucent face powder!

 Of course her favorite makeup brand is M.A.C cosmetics and her go to lipsticks are Candy Yum Yum , which she is wearing in the photos, and her favorite red lipstick -relentlessly red! She has a passion for huge oversized eyeglasses which has now become her signature! Nancy has a passion for fashion and feels that leopard is a neutral that goes with everything! At 75-year-old she still loves going to work every single day.

Dapper in Chelsea

A ran into this dapper gentleman on my way home from a vintage holiday market.

Scarves and Smiles

A Serendipitous Meeting

I was walking home from a coffee date with Ilona in the West Village when I spotted the stunning woman above. When I approached her to ask for a photograph she replied, "Darling don't you recognize me, it's Emily from Paris." I had photographed Emily two years ago when she was on vacation in France and I was in Paris shooting for my book. It was so much fun to see her again and I can't wait to get together for some more photos after the holidays. Check out Emily's equally fantastic summer travel look below.

Roman Red

Lots of Leopard

Ruth and Anne Marie

Lina and I have had the pleasure to meet so many creative and inspiring people throughout our travels with the film.The Advanced Style Documentary always attracts the most wonderfully dressed audiences!  When Ruth and Anne Marie entered the movie theater for one of our IDFA screenings, we couldn't stop admiring their fantastic combinations of patterns and color. After the screening I had the chance to take some photos of this dynamic duo. Read more about their stylish friendship below:

It all began in 1973. Ruth started a shop with secondhand clothes, vintage,

in the 'Jordaan' in Amsterdam. In 1975 Anne-Marie came along in her shop,

mostly on Saturdays, because she worked as a X-ray assistant during the week.

  

Later she continued coming to Ruth’s other new shop in the same street.

We were both very interested in fashion & style, so we talked about it and started

visiting each other.

In 1980 and 1981 Ruth had her daughters Eva & Esther, so she was very busy with that, and Anne-Marie was busy with her new relationship. We had less contact then.

But in spite of our different lives we kept in touch throughout the years.

These last years we made some city trips, f.e. Paris, Lisbon. We visit markets together and sometimes sell vintage clothes & bric-à-brac.

And since the last 5 years we have been getting a lot of attention whenever we are together on special occasions, like fashion shows and openings.

We never tell each other what we are going to wear, but we always match as we share more or less the same style. We call it a mixed style since it is a combination of vintage, second hand and designer clothes.We always have so much fun!

Jennifer Dolan: A Mother's Influence

Jennifer Dolan with her daughter Amanda

Earlier this week I went to Greenwich, Connecticut to photograph a fabulous new woman for the blog. I met Jennifer Dolan's daughter, Amanda, at the post office last month after she stopped to tell me how much she enjoyed the Advanced Style Documentary. She said that I must meet her mother and quickly followed up with an email full of wonderful photos. I loved Jennifer's mix of east coast prep with futuristic style elements inspired by her love of Star Trek. Amanda, Jennifer, and I had a lovely afternoon filled lively conversation and memories of our beloved grandmothers. Check out how Jennifer and her mother LaLa inspired Amanda's creative journey below:  


“I was Never Afraid to Make a Statement”
-Jennifer Dolan, 68, Greenwich, Connecticut

My Mother was born with Courage. It must have started In Utero. Her Mother, Lilyan (called ‘LaLa’ by Us Grandkids) was the Original Style Statement Maker. With flaming red hair and an ever present matching Strawberry Lip- she never left the house without looking iconic. Leopard Print, Rhinestones, and False Eyelashes were her Basics. She lit the Style-Courage Revolution Torch..which then was passed on to my Mother..

Mom carries that torch to this day.. She fanned its flames in the 1960’s- becoming a trailblazer as the first Woman Student at The University of Miami’s Accounting Program.  

Having the Moxie to be both Beautiful, Stylish AND Smart..she went on to become one of the Vice Presidents of the New York Times Company for the next thirty years.

Her boldness continued to burn bright throughout two bouts with Breast and Ovarian Cancer.  With a bold red lip and an array of colorful turbans Mom fought her illness with ultimate grace, pluckiness and an unwavering will to move forward..

Retired and in good health now.. she still makes a stylish declaration every single day. A Mix of the Classics with a Futuristic Modern Twist- A Mom of all Ages. 

And so now this torch is being passed to me..Will I be afraid to make my own statement? The answer is no. I started my Vintage Clothing business already backed by The Greats..a bloodline of Fearless Supernovas. Generations of women before me who lit the Spark.  

Mom taught me that if you have Courage in Your Personal life, then You Undoubtedly have Courage in Your Personal Style. The two go Hand and Hand.. So shine Bright.

By: Amanda Dolan, 32, New York, New York
Founder of SparkPretty.com

A Charming Pair

This couple had the coolest glasses and the greatest smiles.

After Apfel

Iris Apfel isn't the only one who can pull off a pair of oversized round glasses. This woman looks fantastic in her tortoise shades!

Market Style

I loved discovering the Noordermarkt upon my last visit to Amsterdam. The market was filled with incredible food, great vintage clothing, wonderful people to photograph. This woman had a huge crowd waiting for her homemade jam, but she took a quick second to allow me to take her picture. You can tell that she takes pride in what she does and I love how elegantly she looks for a cold morning's full of work. All of the market vendors had unique looks perfectly complimenting their wares. I highly recommend a trip to the Noordermarkt when in Amsterdam and make sure to buy some of this woman's delicious jam.

Reflections

It's been a while since my last visit with author, Alice Carey. She's been traveling back and forth from her home in Ireland working on the finishing touches to the Irish version of her book, I'll Know It When I See It.  Alice is a wonderful storyteller. I love how she is able to reflect upon her past through wonderful descriptions of her style -- each piece of clothing tells a story. Check out Alice Carey's latest thoughts below:

At some point during this photo shoot with Ari, I looked down at my kilt and remembered wearing one a long time ago.  There I am with my mother at CLEARYS, Dublin, buying a kilt quite like this one.  Yet that kilt was a girl’s.  This one is a man’s, complete with jacket that I bought at a Vintage Ireland Antique Fair.

My kilt was another reminder that I’m no longer a girl.  Yet part of me is still a girl - plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose.  “The more it changes, the more it stays the same” - while the woman I am has drifted away from her.

In some ways we’re still the same.  We both wear kilts.  We both wear tweed jackets and sensible shoes.  Even though I sometimes think about buying a pair of ‘manolos’, I stick with Doc Martin.

After Ari left, I walked along the river remembering that girl.  There she is in a nice navy blazer and kilt striding along beside me.  Isn’t she the cat’s meow!  And here I am, an older woman, still I hope, the cat’s meow.     

Carla Palermo Revisited

Last time I was in Amsterdam I stumbled upon a great vintage store with an even more wonderful owner, Carla Palermo. I visited Carla's shop again last week when I was in Holland for my TEDx talk. Carla looked as splendid as always and we had a very fun time looking around the store and catching up. If you happen to be in Amsterdam stop in and say hello for me:
Carla Palermo on Huidenstraat 4.

Market Style

 

I always meet the most interesting people at local markets and antique fairs. This striking gentleman was selling vintage coats when I stopped him for a photo. He told me that he used to train prize race horses in Spain. I'll have to come back to Amsterdam soon to hear the rest of his wonderful stories.

Inside Noordermarkt

Outside Noordermarkt

"This is my Ferrari, for now."

Last Friday I had the honor of speaking at the 2014 session of TEDxAmsterdam. It was such an incredible experience getting to meet so many fascinating people and a pleasure to hear them share their inspired stories on stage.  I was lucky to have my dear friend and muse, Debra Rapoport, accompany me on stage to share her story on aging with creativity. If you would like to watch our TEDxAmsterdam talk CLICK HERE.

I have been taking a lot of pictures while out and about in Amsterdam. This wonderful woman was sitting a booth at the Noordermarkt when I asked if I could take her photograph. After a few quick snaps she announced proudly, "This is my Ferrari, for now."

Winter Coat Options