Stop Treating Us Like Caricatures

The fashion and lifestyle media love their caricatures of aging. On one end of the spectrum, we get Iris Apfel: giant glasses, layers of bangles. and over-the-top eccentricity. On the other, we get the grumpy old man stereotype — cranky, withdrawn and yelling, “get off my lawn!”

But here’s the truth: most of us don’t fit either of those molds. We’re not interested in being cartoon versions of ourselves. We’re real people, living full and evolving lives and we want to be seen that way.

For women over 60 especially, there’s this constant pressure to either go loud and flamboyant (“Look at me, I’m still alive!”) or fade quietly into the background (“Don’t bother with me, my best years are over”). Both are extremes — and neither reflect the majority of us.

The reality? Many of us are curious, stylish in our own way, funny, adventurous, sometimes introverted, sometimes extroverted — just like we were in our 30s, 40s, and 50s. We’ve just added more layers of experience, perspective and wisdom to the mix.

This blog exists because I believe there’s a wide space in the middle that isn’t being talked about enough. A space for women who want to keep exploring, laughing, learning, trying new things and enjoying life — without being treated like a gimmick, a punchline, or…..old.

And here’s the fun part: I don’t want to do this alone. I want to build a community of like-minded women who feel the same way. Women who are tired of being put into boxes, who want to step out and who want to share the ride with others who get it.

So if you’re nodding along right now, I invite you to come with me. Let’s rewrite the narrative. Let’s show what it looks like to live fully, stylishly, and joyfully — in a way that’s true to who we actually are, not who the stereotypes say we should be.

Because aging isn’t a costume and it’s not a character. It’s just life. And life is a lot more fun when we live it on our own terms, together.