Classically feminine with a bit of whimsy – a style interview with Janis

Today I interview a Texas born self proclaimed girly-girl! She shares her love of fashion, focus on a healthy lifestyle, her passion for timeless style and why she believes it’s cool to be un-cool.

I think you will love the many style tips in this interview. Enjoy!

Can you tell us a little bit more about yourself?

I am a Corpus Christie, Texas-born girly-girl who now lives in Southwest Florida.

I am also a wife (my hubby and I celebrate 20 years in 2016!), a former co-host of a Southwest Florida visitor’s television channel, and a former editor of and writer for several upscale South Florida lifestyle magazines.

I am passionate about all things classic–and living a holistic, healthy lifestyle (my foods are organic, my skincare and makeup are natural/organic).

As a point of reference which age group do you belong to or perhaps you are willing to share your age?

I’m 55.

Can you tell us a bit more about your blog JLJBackToClassic and why you created it?

JLJBackToClassic is a lifestyle blog and YouTube channel about timeless, understated style and wholesome beauty and self care…and trying to live with a light heart!

I started this blog and YouTube channel because I couldn’t find anything in contemporary media that reflected my tastes and lifestyle–who I am and the sort of things I want to know more about.

I am what a friend once described as “a Charlotte”. My friend was referring to Charlotte York, the traditionalist romantic on the 1998-2004 U.S. television series “Sex And The City”.

Charlotte was and still is one of my favorite fictional characters (along with Mary Crawley on the television series “Downton Abbey”!). Charlotte also was the one at whom the other girls often rolled their eyes, because they thought she was so naive.

I loved Charlotte’s hopeful, cheerful, conservative wholesomeness. I loved how kind and polite she always tried to be. (I wish I could be so gracious!) I loved Charlotte’s understated and natural, fresh-scrubbed look, the classic way she dressed, styled her hair, and decorated her apartment on Park Avenue in New York City.

Charlotte inspired me to be perfectly comfortable with not being so-called “cool”.

But there are few Charlottes in the media today, because edgy, cynical, and irreverent are vogue. And that makes me feel so…well…frustrated, sad, baffled (and several other emotions that I can’t quite put my finger on).

Add to that the fact that I turned 55 this year, and the media would have me and anyone like me believe that I am an old, ugly, irrelevant, especially since I stopped trying to camouflage my gray hair in 2012 and I don’t want to undergo facial cosmetic procedures. By all means, I wholly support and respect any person who does believe in doing these things—of course–but they just aren’t for me.

My hope is, by putting my un-edgy, probably somewhat corny, over-50, un-cool, always-a-little-disheveled, classic-bent self into a blog/YouTube channel for the world to see, I might be of some support to other women who also just want to be their classic selves.

How would you describe your own personal style?

Classically feminine, with a bit of occasional whimsy or sometimes boho sprinkled in. I like both bright and happy colors and soft pastels.

What would you consider the most important components of your style?

Separates and accessories. I do wear dresses sometimes, but I love separates because I can mix and match them to create my own look. I can dress a piece up or down, for example, by what I choose to pair with it.

As for accessories, they truly are your signature on an outfit. They make it uniquely you.

I remember Jackie Kennedy for her pillbox hats and pearls, for example—plus she had such lovely, ladylike manners (as did Grace Kelly!).

Where do you live and how does that influence your style?

I live in Southwest Florida, which is a subtropical climate, so it greatly influences how I dress. I love chunky tweeds and wools and camelhair coats but don’t get a chance to wear them, except maybe a few days of the year.

But I do like to honor the seasons, by not wearing white until after Easter. My exceptions to the (traditional) white rule is that I do wear white jeans all year—and I just began using a white handbag during the winter.

For example I have a white Salvatore Ferragamo Sophia and I wore it with gray metallic-wool, tweed trousers, a silk off-white camisole, and a dusty pink wool ruffled cardigan. I like how it brightened the ensemble.

Do you feel you have a signature style?

Classic preppy, I suppose. My go-to casual day look in the winter here is slim, white ankle jeans with an oxford-cloth button-up shirt (and cardigan/pullover if it’s cool), my Louis Vuitton Speedy that I bought in 1994, flip flops, and a large straw hat.

Once it warms up I switch to Bermuda shorts, a white tee or button-up, a straw bag, again my beloved flip flops, and a large straw hat. To protect my face from the sun, I began wearing a wide-brim hat daily about 10 years ago.

I keep two in my car and three at the back door, and they all have lanyards, so I can hang it around my neck once I get into a building and don’t need it any longer. People in stores call me the “lady with the hat”.

What inspires your outfit choices the most?

Occasion and weather, really. What I love about classic style is that it makes good sense. Not only does it flatter any size and at any age, but it’s intrinsically appropriate to the occasion and doesn’t sacrifice comfort or health for beauty.

If I know I am going to be doing a lot of walking, for instance, I wear flats—cute ones!

Do you take things like color profiling or body type into account when you dress?

Body type, yes. I have a smallish waist, but I am proportionately much larger on the bottom than I am on the top. For that reason I like my clothes to be slim fitting around the hips, so they don’t appear even larger than they already are.

Fit and flare dresses work best on me, because they accentuate my waist. As for color profiling, I’ve never had it done.

I don’t know anything about it. I only know that certain colors definitely look better on me than others. My skin tone is more yellow. I really like bright coral and navy on me.

Has your style changed at all after turning 40?

More so as I got into my mid- to late-40s, because that’s when I noticed my body changing the most! I used to have nice thighs, but now above the knee it isn’t so smooth anymore, so I wear longer skirts and shorts.

Interestingly, my clothing is much more slim fitting though. I am much less conservative in that way now. Before my mid-40s I never would have worn skinny-fitting jeans or skirts. Now, I love them!

Do you believe in dressing ‘age appropriately’ and what does it mean to you?

For me it’s more about body-appropriate and what I think is flattering on me and the condition of my body. If I had gorgeous legs at my age (or even at 80+), I would wear short skirts or shorts. It isn’t an age thing for me.

Would you say that at this stage of your life you are now more, or less interested in fashion, style and the way you look?

I was very interested in fashion and beauty when I was a teenager and through college. It was a wonderful creative outlet for me.

I loved putting together different outfits and trying out makeup. But once I began working, it became a time issue, and I lost touch with it. I began rediscovering my joy for fashion and beauty in the last five or so years, and it’s what inspired me to start my blog and YouTube channel.

So to answer your question, I’m probably more interested in these things now than I was even in high school.

Why is the way you look important to you?

At this stage of my life, health is what is most important to me. June 1, 2012 I went off all sugar/sweeteners, grains and, eventually, dairy as well. I started eating a large organic salad daily, organic meats/chicken/eggs/sockey salmon/sardines, lots of organic vegetables, and as for nuts, seeds, and beans, I only eat those that have been soaked/sprouted.

I had several chronic health issues, including asthma that had sent me to the emergency room four times. I was really scared, so I knew I had to do something drastic. I haven’t had to use any asthma medication since changing the way I eat.

I began incorporating organic butter back into my diet recently, along with sprouted brown rice twice a week, but otherwise nothing else has changed. The nice side effect of focusing on health is, the healthier I am the better I also look, so that’s a plus.

I never realized how much my skin reacted to whether I was dealing with stress in my life, for example, or what I was eating.

Do you follow trends?

Yes, it’s fun to incorporate some trends into my outfits. Often, they are classics that are returning as “trends”!

Which trends excite you at the moment?

Suede (I love the look of a thin suede skirt, white tee, and flats); Ruffles (a Victorian classic); flat mule (so glad they are back, since they’re so comfy); pairing the new pastel pinks and blues; knife-pleated skirts (classic); happy, sunny yellow (I just bought a cute pair of yellow, sling-back flats and I’ve got my eye on a bag).

Do you have any fashion and style tips for women over 40?

As for fashion/style, I would say play up what you consider your favorite parts of your body and downplay what you don’t like. As I mentioned earlier, I don’t like the ripples on my upper thighs, so I wear longer skirts. I like my smaller waist, so I play that up with belted looks.

What are your plans for your blog and how do you see it develop over the coming years?

I plan to eventually incorporate more health and lifestyle posts and videos, along with the fashion. I’ve had a wonderful response to my fashion and lifestyle vlogging on YouTube, and I look forward to doing more.

As for the coming years? I am excited and open to whatever good things the future may bring!

Anything further you would like to add?

Acceptance and kindness towards others, inner confidence, and a joy based on gratitude for what we do have—these do wonders for a woman’s appearance at any age.

And thank you for doing this post on me. I am so very grateful!! ~Janis

Read more about Janis and her classic style at JLJ Back To Classic and more of her at @jljbacktoclassic.

Which of Janis’ looks is your favorite?

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