My Instagram Introduction

Here's something I wasn't expecting.

It turns out that there's a whole subculture I haven't been part of - Instagram - and a whole sub-subculture I never knew existed: women in their 40s who love clothes and hair and other pretty things. And now I'm part of it too.

I've always loved fashion, believe it or not. I've been an Elle Magazine subscriber for years and love to flick through the pages learning about trends and designers. But, although I'm not un-stylish, I've never invested much time in my "look"

So here's the weird thing. As my hair changes I need to pay attention to it. I can't just wear it the same way every day because it keeps changing and what looked fine yesterday, doesn't look good today. This applies to my clothes too. My colouring is changing so I've been adapting my clothes and makeup.

When you have black hair and wear an all black outfit you have one look. When you wear an all black outfit with greying hair, it looks very different. You have to ask yourself whether that's the look you were going for!

Which brings me to Instagram. I'm finding some fantastic role models - real women in their 40s who try different looks and share them with their followers. I've started doing the same, not because I'm looking for "likes" but because it is forcing me out of my comfort zone. When you know you are going to post a photo of yourself in today's outfit, you take a bit more care putting it together.

The big trends with women my age are:
Scarves - they add colour around the face and often provide a contrasting pattern which is very current.
Jackets - they provide a bit of structure and when you add a t-shirt and jeans give you a great silhouette
Great shoes - I can't walk in high heels but if you can they can really be a highlight if the rest of the ensemble is a bit plain. For me, it's often boots and, if you check out my Instagram profile, you'll see that I just invested in some new ones for autumn
Pattern - stripes are very popular. But so is animal print, zigzags and checks. In fact, anything goes really and combining two patterns in one outfit goes down very well with followers!

If you search #styleover40, #40plusstyle, #growingoldgracefully, #fashionover40 or just #whatimwearingtoday (if you fancy pot luck!) you'll find some great people. I'm particularly inspired by @catoinamsterdam, @fashiononthe4thfloor, @mymidlifefashion, @josidley and @themrsrigby. But I'm already following 213 people and I rarely see anything I don't love! These are people having fun and feeling great. And I am now one of them!

If you want to find me look up @blairelyspalmer or go here https://instagram.com/blairelyspalmer/ 

See you there!