whoever said age doesn't matter was lying

fashion rules are made to be broken. or our planet will be a trifle too boring. but breaking some of them can sometimes lead to disastrous results. like that particular rule about dressing one's age.

superstars can pull it off. think madge.

celebs—though not all of them—may not always be as lucky but will be forgiven all the same. say, kim cattrall.

but you cannot expect the same kind of treatment for ordinary mortals like well, your mom, perhaps? the world can be terribly unkind to the obscure individual so this semi-elderly or simply elderly person you may know runs the risk of being called a thousand words. from tacky to loud. from silly to ridiculous. from outlandish to garish. from unrefined to unsightly. from cheap to trashy. from pathetic to miserable. whew, i can sit in front of a thesaurus all day and never lack for ways to describe this, uhm, tragedy.

meanwhile, our offender could do herself a favor and add a new word to her vocabulary: class.

images grabbed from here, here and here.