Seven style tips for Baby Boomers on how to appear youthful and cool

With another book that gently guides Baby Boomers from dowdy to wow-y, Sherrie Mathieson has made a career out of wardrobe advice for middle-age moda mavens.

Mathiesen will be at a book signing for her latest how-to tome Steal This Style: Moms and Daughters Swap Wardrobe Secrets Thursday, Dec. 17th at Books and Books in Coral Gables (265 Aragon Ave.; 305-442-4408) starting at 8 p.m.

We asked the style consultant and former costume designer for her best style tips for women over the age of 40. The basic trick is to combine classic core pieces with current accents and accessories. For more information, visit SherrieMathieson.com.

Here are her lucky seven universal truths and tips. For instance, did you know that:

The older you are the more natural your look should become. "Women need to understand that minimalism is not boring and is a very modern twenty-first-century concept. Too much obvious artifice will age you."

Crossing the threshold of boomer-marketed shops will instantaneously age you. . . . Poof! You're a senior. "Segregating this age group by concentrating on elastic-waisted, non-wrinkle, and overly embellished clothing that looks either boringly dowdy or flamboyant ends up alienating women who want to look modern, ageless and youthful."SherrieMathiesonPortrait

Women should spend more on their "investment" accessories than on total outfits. "Your accessories define your look. An authentic bracelet from Morocco, a superb pair of designer shoes, a gorgeous coral necklace, or a bag that is extremely well made and/or has an exquisite design, can be worn forever and inherited by future generations. These items may be expensive - or sometimes not - but the cost amortized through the years will prove well worth it."

The sportier your image, the less 'lady-like' the more vibrant and energetic you'll look. "[Those] ladies-who-lunch, wearing knit suits and matched ladylike outfits look more fragile, and curiously unproductive, than women who adopt modern and stylishly mixed sporty looks."

Wear a big (men's size), masculine silver or gold watch. It's a youthful look. "Something as basic as the watch you wear daily tells everything about your personal style - more than any outfit or accessory. Are you ultraconservative? Are you very daintily feminine? Are you about showing affluence? Are you very active and sporty? Are you into quality? Are you hip and modern, or the opposite? Your watch provides the best clue."

People can't perceive quality as much on a totally black outfit - nor notice its details. "Conventional wisdom says that black is always 'in' and practical - surely a safe haven. People might falsely assume that persons dressed in all black are artsy or sophisticated. Or...black can provide an unforgiving harsh contrast next to aging skin and that black is rarely a real standout."

Personal style is often confused with fashion. "Fashion is only a component of the larger context - style. You need to learn to 'walk' in terms of style so that you can 'run' well with fashion. This knowledge allows you to be confident in what you are doing and present yourself skillfully to the world. Happily, it's never too late to learn."

New Fashion

If you’re not in the southern hemisphere, then we’d like to apologise in advance because one look at Seventh Wonderland’s latest swimwear collection will be a cruel reminder that there’s a summer happening somewhere. But it’s this very emotion that continues to inspire Sydney-based designers Bonnie Coumbe and Carlos Aviles.

Through beautifully constructed swimsuits, they’ve created a world centred on escapism and dreams. There are glamorous laser-cut one pieces for lounging poolside, skimpy string bikinis for remote stretches of beach and nautical prints for those who’d like to call a super yacht home. More of a realist? Work yours on the grassy knoll in North Bondi or just crank the heating in your northern hemisphere apartment.

Change 2009: Fashion Magazines

I didn't grow up liking fashion magazines -- at least those tween-teen magazines telling me how a normal teenager should look like. I studied in a private school and wore a uniform every day. Wearing make-up wasn't allowed and even fancy jewelry like dangling earrings were highly discouraged to wear. Because of these limitations, then, I had a certain dislike for teen fashion magazines, Meg, Candy and the like. I occasionally read Vogue though, and until now it looks like a giant book of well-laid out advertisments and I sometimes feel bad for reading something that I couldn't read because there was nothing much to read in the first place.

Despite my dislike for fashion magazines, I did grow up reading Time, Country Living, National Geographic back issues (because they were damn expensive, and still are!) and Tribute Magazine, a magazine very popular in Canada. My favorite was, and is, Time, for obvious reasons. Except for Time and National Geographic (I read issues in my elementary school library), I read the rest because I had to use them as scrap materials for my art projects.

It was when I got to Ateneo that my interest in one particular magazine, Preview, grew. Though I did not openly admit to buying an issue in 2007, later on, particularly this year, it became a hobby of mine to sneak into the Summit Media website and see what's in store in the new issue. I started to like fashion trends (but not wear them -- Paris, Milan, New York and London winter fashion just won't do in Philippine setting) because the writers told convincing stories with pictures; they did not just advertise the apparel. I eventually developed an appreciation for fashion magazines. After reading a few more issues I simply became hooked.

Since early June my interest in personal style grow, as well as my general interest in magazines. I presently read, aside from Preview and Time, I-mag|Photography and Interior Design (an expensive magazine. I buy this every six months -- p700 a month? Excuse me, but I need to eat). Aside from reading these magazines, I have a bar full of online magazines and art news websites: New York Times - Art News, Financial Times - Art and Leisure, ArtsJournal.com, LensCulture.com, Artdaily.org and Journalism.co.uk, to name a few. Not only did I start to get in the know of the latest fashion trends, I also learned of different names of people and places, particularly photographers and art galleries, respectively. But I think the most important thing here is that I dispelled all beliefs that fashion magazines were just a waste of money -- they aren't; because I learn as much as I learn from textbooks (I mean, not the technical nitty-gritty stuff, but about how to live today).

I consider what I'm reading now as a commercial break from all the news that I read in newspapers (I read the lifestyle section of the newspaper just to escape the bad news in the front page). After all 2009 isn't the best of years, financially and politically speaking. I simply decided to make the best of what's left of this year: I opened my eyes to a possibility of reading more than just textbooks and thriller novels. Before sticking my head out the window and see the present moment happening, I was something like a conservative librarian, believing the textbooks were the only key to the future. I have been wrong for the past ten years. Upon realizing this incorrect worldview, I actually began to seek the best in life -- for me it's knowing what's going on in the art world, understanding today's culture, seeing people live their dreams through photos and their articles, and of course letting myself grow in the right time.

So now, here I am, about to read the latest ish of I-mag|Photography. Tilak Hettige (I wouldn't know he existed if I hadn't read magazines) has an interesting article about how motion blurs add depth to a photo. Beside me as well is the latest issue of Preview with Anne Curtis on the cover. My mind is getting giddy since AFAR Media followed me in Twitter, and I just asked them when their magazine will hit Philippine shores.

And now I'm thinking if I should buy a new pair of earphones, a loudspeaker for my laptop, or an issue of Interior Design.