From Ingrid

5 reasons I dare to wear a dress again at my age

For a long time I had a rule. Dresses were for other women.

Younger ones, mostly. Women who did not think about their upper arms, or about what happens to a fitted waist after a three-course dinner. I had my dress pants and my good blouse, and I had made my peace with that.

Then I tried one dress that changed my mind, and I have been asked about it often enough that I wrote the reasons down. There are five. The third one is the one I did not expect.

On the wardrobe door, where I can see it. That alone is new.

1. It covers what I want covered

I will start with the practical one. The sleeves come down over the upper arm and the skirt reaches the ankle. Nothing rides up when I sit down, and I do not need a cardigan to feel finished.

That sounds like a small thing. It is the reason I stopped wearing dresses in the first place, so it is not small to me.

2. It skims the middle instead of clinging to it

The fabric across the front is gathered in soft folds. The folds do the smoothing, so the dress falls over the tummy rather than sitting on it.

I did not wear anything underneath to hold me in, and I did not spend the evening holding my breath. I ate dinner. I had dessert. Nobody could tell.

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3. I stopped thinking about what I was wearing

This is the one that surprised me.

I expected to feel dressed up. What I did not expect was to forget about it. No tugging at a hem, no checking a strap, no arranging myself before someone took a photograph. About an hour in, I realised I had not thought about my outfit once.

That is what I had been missing all those years. Not the dress. The not thinking about it.

The morning after. It did not need pressing.

4. It feels like an occasion without feeling like a costume

There are no sequins and nothing shiny. It is a soft, matte chiffon with a draped neckline and a skirt that moves when you walk. It is dressed up enough for a wedding, an anniversary dinner or a holiday party, and plain enough that I still feel like myself in it.

I have no interest in looking like I borrowed someone else's wardrobe for the night. This does not do that.

5. It is easy

It pulls on. There is no zipper to wrestle with behind my back and nobody has to do me up. The fabric has some stretch, it is light enough to wear for hours, and it folds flat into a weekend bag.

Getting dressed takes me two minutes. At this point in my life, that is exactly how long it should take.

Yes, I went back for the red.

About the price

The dress is called the Mikaela and it comes from Grace & Curves. It is $49.95 at the moment, down from $164.95, and shipping is free.

There is a 30-day money-back guarantee as well. I mention it because it is the only reason I was willing to order a dress online. If it had not worked, it would have gone straight back.

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What I would tell you if we were friends

If you have quietly decided that dresses are not for you any more, I understand. I decided the same thing and I held to it for years.

But if there is something on the calendar, a wedding, a graduation, a cruise, a birthday with a number on it, try one before you reach for the pants again. This one, or one of the others they make in the same spirit. Put it on at home. Sit down in it. Walk up the stairs. You will know quickly whether I am right.

— Ingrid

Sale on now, while it lasts.

Ingrid Parker works with Grace & Curves as a paid content creator. This is her own account and was approved by her before publication.

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