blustery day

the rain has subsided and been replaced by the wind. is it january or april? i’m confused. there were some terrible tornadoes that ripped through southern georgia. having lived in tornado alley for many years my heart goes out to all who were affected. come to think of it, i’ve experienced firsthand almost all of the natural disasters known to mankind: 7.3 earthquake – we had just arrived at the hotel for a military ball when the quake struck. the elevators malfunctioned and mr. style was engaged the rest of the evening coordinating firemen, families, and staff. category 5 typhoon – this baby left a widespread path of destruction behind on guam. no electricity, no water, and no gasoline for weeks. thank goodness i filled up the car and washed every stick of clothing we owned beforehand. blizzard– there were 7-foot drifts in front of our garage, took my dad three days to make his way home and taught my mother to stock up on bread and milk. tornado — one touched down in our neighborhood but left our home unscathed. at the time, i was at a choir recital with my oldest while mr. style stayed home with two that had chicken pox. mr. style will always remember our middle child standing at the top of the stairs arguing about coming down the stairs to safety. of course, he raced up those stairs, tucked that sassy-pants beneath one arm and raced back down with the sound of a roaring train in his ears. flash flood — i was on my way home from the pediatrician with an infant and toddler in tow. i think i might have kissed the garage floor when our feet touched the ground after that harrowing trip… yikes! but for some reason, an earthquake still strikes fear in my heart. maybe because they always seem to strike at 2 am and it takes a moment (or two) to figure out why your bed is slipping and sliding.

okay, did you think this post was about an ootd? well, it is. and today i’m dressing for the elements. although i did wear my snazzy over-the-knee boots. when wearing a trend, a style trick of mine is to anchor the outfit with a classic. so out came a black turtleneck. i could have played it safe with a pair of plain black pants. but faux leather leggings give this ootd a modern touch. as does this printed raincoat. it’s been eons since i’ve worn this fab python print trench. and it compliments this outfit beautifully with its chic black and brown color combo. but there’s one more classic item that i added to keep this outfit grounded. anyone notice the shape of my handbag? that’s right. a satchel is classic through-and-through.

labels: faux leather leggings Ann Taylor (almost sold out, similar here); turtleneck Talbots; trench coat Banana Republic (old, similar here and here); boots Nine West (similar here and here); handbag Ralph Lauren (old, similar here and here);

Beth Djalali

is the Founder and CEO of Style at a Certain Age. She writes Sundays-Fridays on all topics ranging from fashion, health, wellness, home design and more.

She’s 65, 5’8, and size 8.

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