Introducing Ms. Caitlyn Jenner: formerly Bruce Jenner, gold medal decathlete, reality TV star and most recently, the newest fashion icon for women over a certain age.
Now that the dust has settled over her insanely glamorous and groundbreaking appearance on the cover of Vanity Fair, we're slowly acknowledging that the real story here is not just her looks (although, come on, she's a BABE!) but rather that brave, empowering, I just don't give a shit attitude that millions of women wish they could pull off.
Before her big reveal, Caitlyn as Bruce exclaimed: "As soon as the Vanity Fair cover is out, I'm free." Little did she know, it wasn't just herself, her own inner goddess, she we was freeing. It was all of us women watching.
Let's take a closer look at the woman formerly known as Bruce. At 65, she finally gave up on being something that she's not. She was tired of going with the trend, tired of being told who to be, how to act, and yes, what to wear. No more hiding her personal style. In her breakout role as Caitlyn, she shed her cocoon, and emerged on the now infamous magazine cover sporting pieces that captured how she really feels on the inside.
For her debut, she wore outifts that encapsulated old Hollywood glamour with a tinge of new age sass. On those pages, shot by the uber-talented Annie Leibovitz, Caitlyn looks, most of all, like a woman settled into her own skin. She's wearing the clothes and not the other way around. Is there anything more powerful in fashion?
It's as if Caitlyn Jenner's grand entrance finally gave us the permission we need: that it's okay to dress your age and still slay it. After all, she's at an age -- and it's taken some time to get here -- that has earned her the right to listen to no one, to wear what she thinks looks good on her and, in doing so, she owns any room she walks into. She's proven that when it comes to fashion, women can have it all. We can embrace our femininity and mean business at the same time.
If, through this huge transition, Caitlyn can take charge of her personal style in this very public way, we all can. All we have to do is know what we want to wear and then wear the shit out of it.
Let's face it. Hollywood is a hard but trendsetting place. Although fashion has always been wonderful in accepting everyone within the industry, it does have a knack for being a bit, well, bitchy. Has the day arrived where the fashion industry is finally doing the listening instead of the talking? At the very least, it's taking a seat and doing some watching. And thankfully, so are we.
Written by Despina (Dessy) Danishwar and originally published on BrazenWoman.com - Brazen Lifestyle for Women 35+
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