Clothing Cultures - Volume 4, Issue 3, 2017

Recently, we have witnessed an intensified interest from various fashion scholars on the subject of men and masculine identities. However, while most of the existing research initiatives explore various aspects of masculinity and fashion, they also seem to be limited in their choices of subjects to homosexual and/or young male adults. In this vein, Julia Twigg argues that older men remain ‘largely disengaged from fashion as a cultural field’ (2013a: 19). This article explores the nature of this theoretical disengagement when it comes to older heterosexual men’s lived experience of fashion by drawing on in-depth, semi-structured interviews and personal inventories with a small sample of British men (n=5) based in, or strongly linked to, Nottingham, United Kingdom. In-depth qualitative analysis of the research material revealed various contradictions displayed by the participants in relation to their ageing masculine identities and their often lifelong interest in fashionable clothing. We inspect these discrepancies from two perspectives in which such a disengagement might emerge: between men and fashion and between fashion and ageing. By analysing the findings through Connell’s (2005) influential concept of hegemonic masculinity, we argue that some men both resist and reproduce such a stereotypical disengagement.

This article examines clothing practices within the square dance community in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, whose members are mainly older adults in the 60–80 age range. What square dancers call ‘traditional dress’ is no longer required and is, even, overtly criticized by those seeking to update the image of square dance, but it remains the favourite of long-time dancers. Our focus is on the pleasures and practices of this clothing, with particular attention to sensory experience and to the activation of the clothing within forms of gender performance among older adults. Wearing traditional dress offers rich resources for aesthetic and physical expression and, for women in particular, an opportunity to assert forms of femininity that are otherwise seen as off limits to older women.

This research explores clothing sustainability from the perspective of female users over age 50 and their report of their experiences with long-used clothing. Participants included 50 US and 50 South Korean consumers who were asked to respond to a survey of eight open-ended questions concerning sustainable clothing in their wardrobes and probing for attributes and sustainable strategies related to selected clothing they still wore. Interviews with selected survey participants were conducted to probe further for attributes of the long-used and favoured garments. Data were analysed and summarized. Participant’s relationship to clothing and cultural background was considered by comparing responses of participants originating from the two cultures. The research provides insightful perspectives for the apparel industry, specifically for designers and users seeking to achieve sustainability by encouraging selection of clothing for potential extended use and hence implications for sustainable design of the future.

This article reports on a user-centred methodological approach towards fashion design for older women (55+). Referred to as the ‘baby boomers’, the women in this study are the product of the cultural revolution of the 1960s, who consequently have a strong sense of their own agency, as conveyed through their clothing and style, but now find themselves stepping into the unknown territory of a limited clothing market. The majority of fashion brands and stores aim at younger consumers, and with some notable exceptions, it is mainly high and niche designer labels who are offering stylish garments that complement the changing bodies of an older generation women with strong aesthetic values. In response to this negative scenario, three researchers have developed an original practice-based research methodology that synthesizes fashion and textile design practices with interpretative phenomenological analysis. The emerging holistic, co-design and user-centred approach uniquely responds to both the physical and emotional needs of an ageing female demographic highlighting the need for more holistic clothing design models.

In the summer of 1948, the American edition of Vogue magazine invented a fictional character named Mrs Exeter. Her purpose was to provide fashion advice to women aged 50 and beyond. Articles focusing on Mrs Exeter were a repeating feature in the magazine until 1962, giving unusual attention to the clothing needs of older women. The figure of Mrs Exeter had considerable influence, spreading to British Vogue, newspaper advertisements and the home sewing network. Using Vogue publications, contemporary newspapers and memoirs, this article traces how the United States’ premier fashion magazine envisioned the well-off older woman. While the fictional Mrs Exeter was white and privileged, she nonetheless provided a way to address changes in all women’s bodies as they age. This is something that contemporary discussions of fashion for older women often ignore.