If you dream of looking years younger then forget the facelift and invest in a new wardrobe instead.
A study has found that an outfit can make all the difference to how old a woman's face looks.
Researchers put the same 55-year-old in 12 different ensembles and asked the British public to guess her age. The results revealed that a well-cut wardrobe miraculously sheds up to eight years from a woman’s face. In contrast, ill-fitting, unflattering items can age her by seven years in the blink of an eye.
Holding back the years: This 55-year-old model was said to look eight years younger when she wore clothes that were fitting and flattering, left. But in the ill-fitting jeans and polo shirt, she was said to look 62-years-old
Former Clothes Show presenter Caryn Franklin who helped to carry out the tests, said: 'This confirms what I have always known: that clothes are a very powerful beauty aid, and when women make clever clothing choices they are more youthful and fully of vitality in the eyes of others.
How to wear a mac: With a belt to pull in the waist, on trend accessories and fitted jeans, the model looked as young as 47, left, to those questioned compared to the unflattering look, right, that aged her
A 55-year-old size 12 model was pictured in different outfits with identical hair, makeup, lighting and posture.
Of the 2,400 Brits polled their guesses varied greatly from 47 to 62-years-old depending on the outfit.
Six outfits were taken from the isme.com, a mature women’s online retailer who commissioned the research, while another six were taken from the wardrobes of everyday fifty-plus women.
The team discovered that not only did all participants believe the model was much younger-looking when wearing the correctly fitted and styled clothing, they were also more likely to base their age assessment on her face.
Nearly two thirds (65 per cent) said it was the face that gave their age assessment rather than the clothes themselves which were judged by just 31 per cent - suggesting that style has a powerful subliminal effect on the appearance of physical features.
Don't be frumpy: Wearing bold colours, a belt and tailoring makes the 55-year-old look much younger, left, than she did in a drab cardigan, right
When sporting on-trend skinny jeans and a short summer mac, three quarters of respondents believed that the 55-year-old model had the face of a 47-year-old.
However, when the same model was dressed at the other end of the sartorial spectrum, in a loose polo shirt over boot-cut jeans, her average perceived age was 62 - adding on an unwanted 15 years on the previous perception of 47.
Ms Franklin continued: 'Women my age are experiencing increasing age-hysteria from companies selling expensive beauty treatments and invasive procedures that cost a fortune.
'This research can reassure every woman that the best and most effective way to shed years and shine is to dress well.'
TOP TIPS ON DRESSING TO LOOK YOUNGER
- Always pick the right bra as clothes mould to your shape and even tightening the straps can make a difference. A tighter band and fuller cup appears more youthful.
- Play to your strengths by picking one area and choosing garments with features that draw attention to it.
- Avoid washed out or drab colours all over your body and instead make a colour statement.
- Choose classic garments that are shaped with gentle tailoring to give a youthful silhouette, with vertical seaming giving a streamlining effect.
- Have fun with accessories. Bags, shoes, belts and statement jewellery are a great way to bring an up to the minute trend into your wardrobe and re-invigorate your look.
Source: dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2172618/How-choosing-right-clothes-make-look-15-years-younger.html#ixzz3HLs7qv4P
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