Who am I kidding?

John and I enjoying a musical evening in our
favourite wine shop: Los Chilines

I am a woman "of a certain age", which clearly means that I must be over 21.  A lot over 21 if I have to be honest with you.  I have started reading other blogs written by women over 40 (Fabulous after 40, Fab over 40) and even women over 50 (Fab over Fifty, Une femme d'un certain âge) so I thought that it was time to strike a blow for the over 60s.  


A lot of these blogs are about style, which is a subject that interests me though sadly it is also a subject that I know very little about. When I post any photos, you will see that I'm being very truthful here! This isn't helped by my being petite.  Being honest again, the petiteness is more to do with my height - or lack of it - than my width.  I have big bones, as does our Spanish dog Lisa, who is often accused of being "gorda" (fat) by our Spanish neighbours.  So far none of them has dared call me gorda, though I'm not holding my breath!


I digress: style.  There are numerous blogs on style and even more books on style, some of which are aimed at mature ladies like me.  Some style guides advise you to wear neutrals and in particular suggest buying a black jacket, a little black dress and black trousers: this is to form the basis of your capsule wardrobe.  Fine. Others state categorically that over a certain age you should never wear black as it is so ageing. Who are we to believe? 


So I'm not a style expert, but I know what I like.  I reckon that by the time you're 60 if you really want to wear black you should damn well wear it, even if it ages you. If you want to have bright red hair then go for it, although obviously there are far more flattering colours for over 60s.  Why should the under 40s have all the fun?  I don't advocate always dressing as if you are under 40 (especially whenever ra-ra skirts come back into fashion) but I really don't see what harm it does to wear clothes that you love rather than clothes that are considered suitable for your advanced years.  From time to time I intend posting a few photos to get your views on my choices, and would like to encourage you to send in your own contributions.

With my lovely friend Beryl, on my 60th birthday

I recommend reading the blogs mentioned above if you are interested in fashion and style, after all if you are over 60 you must by definition also be over 50 and definitely over 40.  Where they are very useful is in showing you how to adapt the latest trends so that you can look fashionable without the dreaded words "mutton" and "lamb" springing to mind.  I am fortunate to have a daughter who has a good eye for fashion and who makes me try on clothes that I would never consider wearing, which invariably look good on me.  Unfortunately said daughter lives in London and I live in Spain, so sometimes I am left to my own devices!


Observant readers may have noticed a few references to Spanish dogs and Spanish neighbours and realised why this blog is called "Over 60 and over here".  I retired to Spain with my Scottish husband John in 2008 and we adopted Lisa (though she thinks she adopted us) over two years ago.  This blog is clearly aimed at readers who, like me, are over 60. I will be posting about fashion, life, health and other topics that interest me and hopefully you. I also hope that you will enjoy my occasional posts about our life in Spain and consider visiting this fascinating country, even if you don't want to go as far as us and retire here.  


I nearly called this blog "Past 60 but not past it" as my aim is to show how over 60s can be vibrant, healthy and make the most of their lives.  I would love any comments on my new blog and welcome suggestions for future topics.  I may not be an expert, but with the help of Google I can research and write about almost any subject you or I choose!  If you are a blogger and would like to send me a guest post that fits the aims of this blog, please do so.


¡Hasta la proxima!