And so it begins

I have always been a somewhat hip chick. Not uber-fashionable mind you, but certainly up on the latest trends and willing to try something new to stay current. Even when things were not age appropriate, as most trendy things are, I could admire and appreciate them on the younger crowd. For myself, I will always add a splash of new color to my wardrobe or an earring or a handbag or a new shoe, or most recently a belt, as a nod to the thirteen year olds that actually look good in this stuff. When I had my store we always had a stellar accessories section and I consider myself to have an eye for that sort of thing. I think it is important to move with the times and show that you are willing to go forward as things change.

Now I find myself entering a period in my life where the latest and greatest is starting to seem ridiculous and costumey. Last week I got a new copy of the Free People catalog, which I have always admired for its bohemian chic-ness and was horrified to find not one single thing that I liked in it. Not. One. Single. Thing. This week, I got online updates from Urban Outfitters and was horrified to find this in its "we love" section:

Bleached skinny jeans? Really? I thought maybe that was the worst of it until I clicked on this:

Um, no.

Maybe it is recession chic. You can obviously make these with some baggy jeans swiped from your Dad and a sharp razor blade. Still, this stuff was cool in the 80's, only because it was an ironic rebellion against the materialism my childhood was known for. These days, your ripped up jeans cost $300.

So I realize that Urban Outfitters isn't aimed at someone in their mid-thirties. I am fully aware of that and always have been. I am not one of the desperately uncool old folks still trying to squeeze into a Forever 21 vest, size large (which is really a size 6). It could be that I am just taking a break from the retail pace after selling my store almost a year ago. But still, it might be that I am starting to not get it, and really, where do you go from there?