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The Warning Signs of Frumpiness

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FabulousAfter40.com

Deborah Boland and JoJami Tyler (The Glam Gals) are Image and Style Experts specializing in helping women 40-plus look and feel fabulous. They are the authors of the e-books, The Glam Plan: 12 Simple Steps to Take You from Frumpy to Fabulous and Tweak Your Chic: Mother of the Bride, as well as coaches for their image make-over program, Tweak Your Chic™. For more tips visit their blog and sign-up for their newsletter at FabulousAfter40.com. Add the Glam Gals to your Excelle network!

More articles from this author:

• 5 Ways to Look Thin After 40

Do you look in the mirror and feel like a frump because you know that you’ve let yourself go? Trying to pinpoint exactly what it is that’s making you look so old, so you can finally do something about it? Then read on to discover some sure signs that you’re looking a bit on the frumpy side:

1. You look like you are wearing a tent.

Want to hide that midlife flab? Then don’t cover up! Baggy clothes that hide your entire body make you look old and matronly. Show off the parts of your body you do like (for example, your bust) and cover up only the parts you don’t (perhaps it’s your hips). Don’t use oversized clothes as a gigantic blanket to hide behind. (Just say no to the muumuu, or anything that resembles it!) Switch to more fitted clothing that is not tight but skims your curves and shows off you do have some shape.

2. Your teeth as yellow as corn.

Stained or yellow teeth are a telltale sign of age despite how great you may look otherwise. But if you flash a set of shiny white teeth, you can easily knock ten years off your look. Plus, these days it’s super easy to restore this kind of sex appeal thanks to at-home whiteners or dentist laser treatments.

3. Your glasses make you look geeky.

Still wearing those hokey glasses you bought ten years ago? Time for an update. The trend now? Buy at least two pairs — one that is dressy and one that is casual and fun. Switch them around to look modern and fashionable. Be sure to take a stylish friend along with you when you make your choice. It’s easy to get stuck in an eyeglass rut and end up buying more or less the same thing you had before.

4. Your breasts are headed south.

If your breasts are heading south, it’s time to perk them up with a supportive bra. Hike up the gals so that they sit halfway between your shoulder and your elbow, and you’ll start looking even more vibrant and sexy!

5. You have scary lips.

Halloween is over! If you are starting to look like Cruella Deville, ditch the dark corpse-like lips, which are too strong a contrast to aging skin and hair, and try wearing soft natural shades of lipstick in pinks and peaches. And as for those boldly lined lips that make you look like a vampire — when were those ever in? When you walk in a room, you want people to think how beautiful your face looks, not how hideous your lips look.

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