<p>When I was in San Antonio recently I noticed lots of people wearing the maxi dresses - young and older alike - SOME of them looked really cute and “right”. Have to say though, I have not noticed the Maxi trend here in Ohio.</p>
<p>Maxi dresses? No way, I’d look like a tent with feet.</p>
<p>I actually ordered a cute black and white maxi dress. It’s going back. I can’t help but think that I look pregnant in it. I just don’t think those empire waists are very flattering for most. </p>
<p>Still not sure what to wear for my son’s graduation ceremonies. After trying on a few shorter dresses this week, I will not go there. Legs need a LOT more work. I hid them under black tights this winter but I can’t do that in May :)</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>We got a Fossil catalogue the other day and I thought that the gorgeous, skinny teen models looked pregnant in most of the empire waist dresses they were wearing! If *they *look bad in a dress, there’s certainly no hope for the rest of us!</p>
<p>It’s not a big leap from maxi dress to mumu, on the wrong body :)</p>
<p>^^So true. That’s what it looked like in the photo of me in the one I bought a couple years ago…a mumu. My chest is just to big for those things so I agree with the OP that says if you’re flat as a board they might be cute, but if you have decent sized girls and even when you have a think body it makes you look not great at the least and pregnant at the worse.</p>
<p>With all that said, I do think the more casual maxi dresses look nice for beach/pool coverups…they are more flattering than a moomoo and in that context, the more covered I am, the better.</p>
<p>I agree missypie…I like the solid color ones for coverups…like black…lol. </p>
<p>I am NOT big on top…but that print maxi didn’t look good at all. Last year at a summer barbecue, my friends d wore one…she looked cute. </p>
<p>So what kind of dress/skirt should I wear if my legs are not in shape for showing right now? Or should I just stick with pants? (got lots of those).</p>
<p>Toneranger, are your legs really not in shape for showing, or is it that some lengths or cuts of skirt are just unflattering? If you have some time, go to a department store and try on skirts or dresses of every length and cut you can find.</p>
<p>I was looking for a classic pencil skirt but they kept making my legs look fat. The problem was that the hem fell at the top of the widest part of my calves, so the impression was that I was wide all the way up. I tried on the same skirt in a petite size, it was just a bit shorter and was flattering.</p>
<p>If your legs are on the thicker side, I would think an a-line skirt would be more flattering than a slim skirt. Just try on a bunch. I think the issue is with the skirts, not your legs.</p>
<p>Based on what I have tried on in the past…just below the knee works best. But lots of the dresses out there are above the knee (especially for me since I’m very tall). Hitting mid calf does tend to look dowdy. I do have a few longer skirts (not quite maxi but LONG) that look good with ballet flats and a fitted top. </p>
<p>I do believe in playing up strengths…I know we’ve talked about this before. And this would NOT be my legs unfortunately. It’s a tough limitation though when you’re trying to dress “young”.</p>
<p>I think it is terribly hard to find any dress that looks good on mature women, unless you are quite thin. Right now, sleeveless, low-cut, clingy and above the knee is the norm, often with empire waist, NOT a good look for most of us. </p>
<p>Last summer I found a black knit cotton dress from Eileen Fisher, just below the knee, with a wide wrap-around tie belt. It’s sleeveless, but I wear a thin sweater with it. It was worth the money. I’d love to buy more dresses, but I don’t see any that work. Why don’t designers realize that there is a whole generation of women out there with money to spend who would like some cute dresses for summer?</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>That makes me nuts. Also, when I go into a store and the employees are all over the teens trying to help them when I’m the one who actually has money!</p>
<p>I agree, it doesn’t make much sense, although I got to wondering about this a few weeks ago when I noticed several other mother/teenage daughter pairs waiting at the pediatrician’s office. The girls were all dressed and accessorized to the nines, while their mothers looked quite dumpy in comparison. I don’t know if the moms spent all their money on their daughters, or they just figure, “why bother?” anymore. Either way, the focus was clearly on the daughters’ appearance and the moms took second fiddle.</p>
<p>I just went on some errands. Black yoga pants…black tshirt. Trekkers. At least I don’t look fat :)</p>
<p>Now, if I had Tina Turner legs (she’s now 70), I might consider some of those short little dresses.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>About four years ago there was a figure skater named Katy Taylor. She came in 4th at nationals in 2006. She was a beautiful young woman. Whenever they would show her mother in the stands, it looked as if poor mom hadn’t bought a new dress or changed her hairstyle since 1986. (Who knows, with the money she spent on her D’s career, maybe she hadn’t.) Anyway, at the time I was approaching 50 with two lovely daughters in my own house. I told myself that I was never going to look like Katy Taylor’s mom alongside my daughters and that’s when I really started to pay attention to the way I dressed.</p>
<p>Legs: going to the nitty gritty.</p>
<p>Is your concern that you hate the shape of your calves? OK, I agree, knee length skirts are not going to be great. But really, are your legs really that bad? I would hate to completely cover my legs when it is 90/90 (degrees and % humidity)</p>
<p>Or do you not like that they are pale and/or show veins? (That would be me.) I use those moisturizing tanners and call it good enough.</p>
<p>Or is it varicose veins that cannot be camouflaged? I don’t have a solution to suggest for that, as I haven’t gotten there YET.</p>
<p>Really, I am curious about the issues. If I’m not there now, I will be at some point!</p>
<p>No varicose veins… a few small spider vains. No cellulite. Yes, pale…very pale. </p>
<p>Honestly, I used to have great legs. And they’re real long. After I got pregnant, my ankles became swollen. Somehow, this never completely resolved even after I was pregnant. So thick ankles…a new thing for me in my 30s. Then some extra pads creeped in above my knees - sometime in my 40s. Yikes. I’m trying to work on these things by doing LOTS of biking. And I just wear pants most of the time. And black tights in the winter :)</p>
<p>oh, toneranger, I can’t help but think they are not as “bad” or noticeable as you think. A little fake tan can do wonders. I am not tall, so I’m thinking that finding skirts to the knee is difficult. Can you get “long” skirts and then have them hemmed?</p>
<p>You know, I read about Jamie Curtis this morning. Apparently, Tony Curtis left her mom (Janet Leigh) for some young teenage gal. And Jamie says her mom was constantly stressed by perceived flaws in her body. I remember Jamie posing in a magazine, in her underwear, showing us all that she was FAR from perfect. Smart gal. </p>
<p>So yeah, it can be hard to deal with our flaws. For me, hiding them works best. Honestly, there’s not a darn thing I can do about thick ankles. They were there even when I was at my skinniest in my early 40s. Pants are my friend. Maybe I should move to a cooler climate :)</p>
<p>I have so many flaws, I don’t know where to begin hiding! (not kidding.) But I am pretty sure that none of them puts me into the “hideous” category, so I do the best I can, short of a burka.</p>