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Owning Your Look: Italian Style Confidence After 50
- Elinor Salter
- Sep 11
- 2 min read
It’s amazing what can trigger a feeling of self-doubt.
This morning, I headed down to the sea for my swim. As I came out of the café where we usually have our post-swim breakfast, a woman walked past in jeans, a top, and a furry jacket. She looked fabulous. But strangely, that wasn’t what unsettled me.
What made me wobble was the fact that I was wearing a simple beach dress over my swimsuit.
Only the day before, I had felt scruffy and underdressed, so this morning I made an effort. I chose a floaty Zara shirt dress I’ve loved for years, matched it with a pink swimsuit, added earrings, and even a little make-up. I thought I had it just right — and then suddenly, in the blink of an eye, I felt like I’d “missed the mark” again.
It’s silly, really. It was already 24 degrees and getting hotter, and I was heading to the beach, not the catwalk. But that flash of insecurity crept in anyway.
It’s so easy to give in to these feelings and let them spiral into “why bother?” or “no one’s looking anyway.” Those old thoughts come back to keep us small and stuck.
But here’s the truth: the only opinion that matters is our own. If we feel good in what we’re wearing — if it reflects who we are on the inside — then why should we care what anyone else thinks? And honestly, that woman in the furry jacket might well have walked away thinking, “Why did I wear this to the beach? I feel so overdressed!”
Italian Style Confidence After 50
Style is never about competing. It’s about owning your look. Owning yourself.
This is exactly what we explore in my Italian retreats and one-to-one programmes — how to dress, think, and feel like the woman you are now, with elegance and confidence. If you’ve been feeling “stuck” in your style or self-image, maybe it’s time to give yourself permission to step forward again.
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