My Mom’s Style

My husband’s family always has Sunday brunch, which we attended today. It’s his immediate family, him and I, our new baby, and his Mimi. This past weekend I had some time alone with my MIL (who calls me her ‘Daughter in Love,’ which is so sweet) and we went through old photos of their family together. It was so sweet seeing her childhood photos, young photos of Mimi, and thinking about how I can see family resemblance in my spouse, his brother, and now our little girl.

Is that Milly’s husband?

My Grandma always dressed so classy. When I got older, she wore a yellow Lands End sweater of my Papa’s, paired with a turtleneck, jeans, flats, and her gold necklace with 3 charms. She looked so good. I have the sweater now and 2 of the gold charms. She will be gone 20 years, and even though I can’t pull it off like she did, I still love wearing it.

The photo taken on “the hill” is on the ramparts at at Maiden Castle near Dorchester.

This brought me to tears – I have a photo of my parents when they were young and skiing in the Italian alps in the 1960s. People were such amazing dressers back then. They wore stretchy narrow pants and very warm woolen sweaters (I used to wear my mom’s ski sweater to high school!), and cool sunglasses. My dad was a strapping 6.4 foot dark-haired slender man and my mom had her hair carefully done and wore a beehive even for skiing … I am crying thinking of my dad now in the throngs of old age and dementia, and remembering what a handsome and wonderful person he used to be. But I do have beautiful memories of my parents that will never be taken away.

My mom was a true style icon- European, white gloves in summer, calfskin in winter, never wore pants (rode her bike side saddle in a skirt!). I have a double framed photo of her pushing me in a pram circa 1969 in Vienna next to her in 2001 pushing my then-one year old daughter in her stroller- and she is wearing the identical double-breasted navy wool coat and loden skirt. I thought her style was so booooring and now I look in the mirror when I am leaving the house and laugh at the brown wool and the loden coat and know she was, as usual, right about everything.

My mom was a kindergarten teacher for 37 years so her style then (primary bright colors) has infiltrated into my everyday dressing. Sometimes I look in the mirror at myself and say “there’s mom”! And then I change into something more subdued. I can remember her jade green polyester jumpsuit that she wore to a Neil Diamond concert in Las Vegas. How I wanted that! I thought it was beautiful. There were a few clothing items I didn’t want–like the halter she wore with shorts when on the riding lawn mower–in order to get a tan on her back. Ahh–the 70’s…….

Your mom is gorgeous but oh my gosh, I am so distracted by baby Jo and Lucy!😍

How lucky she had such a talented photographer to capture her youth and beauty

This is SUCH a special and unique and INSPIRING post. Love the classics your mom rocked back then. It goes to show classics never fail through the years. And your grandpa was a stunner. I thought that was a movie star. Question for Joanna: were you worried/hopeful that you would get pregnant with twins?? I think it’s the paternal side but still….

My mom passed away last summer and it wrecked me. One of the only things that could make me smile was going through thousands and thousands of photos she had from her lifetime. I could not believe how much she radiated coolness. She never spoke of herself as someone who had style or grace, but gosh darn it, she had both in buckets. I would give anything to have any of her pieces from the 70’s or 80’s, including the green minidress she wore when she married my dad. Of course I’d rather have her back, but no amount of begging or bartering can make that happen. I love this post as well as all of these wonderful comments about moms – hug them tight and tell them you love them every chance you get.

I have a cherished photo of my parents from the early 60’s (I am likely older than the average COJ reader!) and they were in typical summer attire- pedal pushers and a sleeveless blouse for my mom and my dad in Bermuda shorts. It is a perfect time capsule.

What a beauty!

My mom was a high schooler in the 80s, so she has stories of layered polo shirts with popped collars (and matching layered socks!!) and vaseline-slicked hair. I’m not copying those looks, but I do love to trot out the flat, spiky blue metal starburst earrings and railroad stripe jumpsuit (with snap-off sleeves!) that she saved from those days. I also wrap myself in the coziest oversized navy wool sweater that I snagged from her once she tired of it. She wore it when I was little, and it’s nice to carry it in to my adult life.

My mom had the most amazing style in the 70s and 80s and I love looking back at old photos of her — major Sally Albright vibes. She had this gorgeous black velvet jacket that I kept and replaced the buttons on — it’s one of my most cherished possessions. She passed away 13 years ago, so keeping her clothes and jewelry helps me feel close to her.

Gosh she reminds me so much of Liv Ullman in these photographs. Stunning!

Oh my goodness those pics are so precious. I do not have nearly enough photos of my mom which I sadly realized AFTER she passed away. I’m so glad you are teaching your boys to cherish those pics and memories!

I have a pair of Clark’s desert boots that my husband bought a decade ago. I was looking through some old photos of my dad to discover he had the same pair in the 1970’s.

My paternal grandmother moved from a farm in North Dakota to San Diego when my dad returned from his service during WWII. Even in North Dakota, she went shopping at the best department stores and always made sure to get the best deals, to my dad and uncle’s embarrassment. After she moved to San Diego, she became even more stylish. She used to take me for walks to the local salon to get her hair set once a week. We had to wait for grandma to “put on her face” before we could open presents on Christmas morning! And I have the most wonderful picture of her in the 60’s, posing in a sleeveless blouse with petal pushers and wedges. She’s been gone a very long time, but every time I see that picture, I smile.

What a handsome grandpa! lol : ). You’re mom looks lovely as well. Very simple, comfy clothes, ideal for a mother of twins! Amazingly, I cannot remember anything about my mothers day clothes as I grew up – it was all very basic. I’m trying to think of her daily winter clothes for example….nothing. I can not even remember her ever wearing a sweater? All I remember are her evening event clothes. She and my father would dress up for unknown events and that was always special. I even remember her perfume, which added so much glamour: Joy, and in later years before the divorce, the complete opposite: Opium, (both of which mirrored the tone of her marriage, lol, it just occured to me). Wow.

Friends, as a vintage reseller (hobbyist, not a pro) I am here to remind you that if your parents still have clothes from the 90s and before … heck, even the early 2000s!… even if it is threadbare and holey, don’t throw it away! go ask a vintage reseller to help you signs new homes for it. For instance, I found a new home for my dad’s 90s T-shirt GAP T-shirt that was holey and stained, that he would have torn up to use for cleaning rags. Some of the threadbare and worn clothes are so beautiful to people and even valuable- the visible history in the patina is so alluring and interesting to many people.

My paternal grandmother had a great sense of style and always wore the coolest clothes. When she was in her 20s through her 40s, she had a number of dresses tailor-made for her, some of which she designed herself. This was in the Soviet Union before widespread availability of ready-to-wear women’s clothes, when having a dress made for you was affordable and guaranteed a much nicer look and fit than buying off the rack. Only one of her dresses survives, made of Uzbek ikat patterned crepe fabric. I kept wanting to get it altered to fit me and then putting it off because of the cost. I was finally able to wear it as is approximately mid-way through my pregnancy with my son and it felt very special to put on my grandmother’s dress at the time, even though my body soon grew out of it.

My mom passed away about 6 weeks ago in early January and in putting the memorial slideshow together, I found a pic of her from the 70’s with the coolest crossbody brown leather purse. I probably watched that slideshow a dozen times with different relatives and friends and every time someone commented how cool that bag was. Wish I knew what happened to it! I would totally wear it every day!! P.S. Mom left a half knitted scarf still on the knitting needles with the rest of the ball of yarn still attached. How do I get it finished? I am a lot of things…a knitter isn’t one of them. sigh.

Ahh sobbing as I read this post. My beloved Grandpop died last year and we’re getting the family home (that he and my Nana lived in since the 70s) ready to sell. I spent two precious days over New Years going through the house and combing through the most precious photos of him and my Nana (the MVP of my childhood, who died in 2013 and who I miss every day). They both had the most elegant sense of style. Nana sewed all her own clothes and even made bridesmaids and bridal gowns in the 80s and 90s. I came away from the two days feeling almost like I’d got to spend time with them again because I got such a special insight into their life from childhood to old age. Plus I finally, after years of looking, found a picture of just my Nana and I together. One of the very few downsides of being a twin is you often don’t have many childhood photos with just you + a relative :)

My grandma was a trailblazing political journalist in California in the 1940″s….I love seeing pictures of her in her smart dresses and matching hat and shoes! My aunt graduated from high school in 1970, and I love looking at her bell bottomed, flower bedecked dresses and ponchos! I’m right there with you on brown…it gives a very 70’s vibe…along with amber and avocado, and is fun!

How old was your mom when she had y’all? I was really young when I had my babies and I’m always scanning for other young moms. :-)

I aspire to be this effortlessly chic!

I have my parents’ wedding album. They were married in 1946 and looked like movie stars!

This is such a sweet and tender post, my eyes are watering…My Mom morphed from compliant Air Force wife in the 60s, wearing jewel tone taffeta party dresses and a big pin on hair bun to part time hippie-ish gloria Steinem ish working mother of three, in the 70s, wearing patched up flare jeans and tops & caftans made of cut up Indian bedspreads as I grew up. She was an amazing sewer, who forced me to learn at 13 to make my own clothes, so she could stop sewing so much and go to work as a cook in a fancy restaurant. I ended up as a wardrobe stylist & costume designer because of her, and her sister, their Mom, all incredible sewers, (all, also teachers at 1 time or another, HOW did they do it?) Alzheimers took all 3 of them in their early 60’s, 1 by 1, through my early adulthood. Every time I pick up a needle, or string jewelry, or dye fabric, or make Christmas ornaments, or repair clothing, I think of them and thank them. And miss them terribly. Thanks for the tears today Jo, they were needed. Your Mom is so gorgeous, inside and out. You too.

What great moments your family has documented! Every time I start going through photos of my late parents I’m overwhelmed by a longing to teleport myself back in time to get to know them as they were before I was born. Anyone else experience this?

my goodness your mother is so cool and beautiful. so lovely to see these photos! I am really enjoying older photos (the link from the louvre photographer was so great too!) my mom sent me one of my grandparents from the 50’s. they were teens on a motorcycle and as cool as you can imagine! they got married at 14/16 and were together until my grandma died. my daughter recently bought a used older camcorder for a vintage video feel. my other daughter is also into photography, heck I am as well, we are more into nature day to day, but the photos that stand the test of time are the smiling faces of those we hold dear! such a great reminder!

These are a treat; your mom looks very calm, striking especially because she has twins! I think both your parents are English? May I ask– did it ever feel odd for you or them that you are American and they are English (different accents, culture, etc.)? I have friends from one culture but their children are from another; I don’t feel comfortable asking their kids that, but I’d love to know!

My dad died when I was two and all I have is a couple of blurry photos of him. I was overjoyed recently to receive a small black and white photo of him, smiling at the camera. There were my odd shaped ears, my stubby eyebrows and my smile that shows all my teeth. Magical!

Anton looks like your grandfather!!! Only blond and young!!! You have strong genes!!! Beautiful photos .

I’m obviously not related to her, but 70s era Linda McCartney is definitely a style icon for me.

LOL Sleeve rolled up above the elbow…this was you in a recent post with the checked shirt. https://cupofjo.com/2025/02/12/best-blush-chocolate-mousse-recipe/

Style icon!

My maternal grandmother was a model in the 50s and 60s, and she absolutely loved a put-together outfit with big statement jewelry! We have some professional photos of her from that time as well as plenty of family photos, and in every one she was the most statuesque woman with at least one really great accessory or outfit detail. She made it to my wedding ceremony when she was close to 90 and her eyesight was almost gone, and the photographer snapped a photo of her smiling trying to get a good look and feel of my chunky wedding band. <3

Joanna, your mom is timeless elegance personified, and you and Lucy are absolutely adorable!

My maternal grandmother was a model in the 50s and 60s, and she absolutely loved a put-together outfit with big chunky jewelry! We have some professional photos of her from that time as well as plenty of family photos, and in every one she was the most statuesque woman with at least one really great accessory or outfit detail. She made it to my wedding ceremony when she was close to 90 and her eyesight was almost gone, and the photographer snapped a photo of her smiling trying to get a good look and feel of my chunky wedding band. <3

My dad has always been a snappy dresser, and when he visits, he will often bring me a piece or two that he found thrifting. Basically every time that I’ve ever been complimented on an outfit, that outfit usually includes something that he picked out. Growing up, I always pushed back on his choices a bit because I wanted to look like everybody else, but now – sign me up for everything! He’s got a good eye, and he loves color, and I don’t know how he still manages to get the exact right size even though he lives 2,000 miles away, but it’s magic. I wish I’d worn those green jeans more in high school, but I have a neon green jacket now, so perhaps it’s worked out.

A big shoutout to your dad for documenting your mom as a mama in these tender, everyday moments. These visual archives are breathtaking and such a gift. And a big shoutout to all the family visual historians and archivists! Photos are priceless and life is so fleeting. Take the photos! Take the videos! It all goes by so fast. Also, the tones of the film! Timeless!! Breathtaking photos ❤️

Sorry, I meant funny. Dyslexia

What a beautiful pic of your mom on that hill. Maybe she’s just taking a beat from thinking about anything but it also looks like she could be thinking about the WHOLE WORLD. A beautiful moment in time.

Unrelated- do you find it that you were called Freddie? Especially after recent events.

the attention your mom is paying to her kids in these pictures–such a good reminder of being as fully present as we can be, as often as possible. i have a late 80s picture of my mom, sister and me at my desk at work, it is right to the side of my monitor so i can see it often, such comfort.

Swoon…I see Kennedy and Love Story vibes. ✌🏼🌼🧥🪴👖👢🤎🌞🦋

It’s so cute that your mom called you Freddie while she was pregnant with you, and now you are dating a Freddie!!!

My 2yo is obsessed with matching with me and finds anything in our outfit that matches. Yesterday he was pleased that he had black stripes on his pants and I was wearing black leggings. It’s so cute. I hope we continue this trend and our shared love for stripes.

Your mom’s messy bun is hair perfection. She’s like some of those “Kennedy” photos – the style is classic. My mom wore a French twist everyday because she disliked setting her hair. She always looked put together. Thanks so much for the memories.

and .. I see Anton (100%) in the photo with the plaid shirt

Classic style, it’s perfect. I love the messy clipped up hair style in the first photo.. I need a clip like that

I can tell that fourth picture was taken in England because that chalk downland countryside is so recogniseable! Looks just like where I live in Wiltshire:)

I love this so much. Can you please do a reader submission post of parent style photos? I’d love to see everyone’s parents! My mom collects scarves and she wears them beautifully. My favourite photo is of her as a teenager in the 70s wearing a scarf in a kerchief style on her head, sitting in the sunshine.

I had to help my parents go through some of their wardrobe when they were downsizing recently. OMG my dad had SO MANY CLOTHES! He and my mom looked at me aghast when I commented on how his clothes storage alone took up more space than my husband’s and mine combined. They insisted that my dad wore everything in his closet and couldn’t get rid of any of it. So I pulled out a pair of what can only be described as corduroy hot pants, a very threadbare Hawaiian t shirt and a belt with a massive brass rodeo style belt buckle. I dared my 80 year old dad to wear that outfit to his grandson’s next high school volleyball game. Somehow he found the will to get rid of a few things ;)

Love it!!! Love the reminiscing

My Nan had a great eye for fashion and I love the photos of her from the late 40s and early 50s when she was just a few years in America and had the spending money for trendy dresses and bold lipstick, things that she would not have had access to in her small village in Ireland. She had an incredible collection of costume jewelry that I loved to play with and she was never out of the house without a pair of clip on earrings. I cannot believe she never got her ears pierced! She has been gone since 2017 and I miss her always but I’d like to think I inherited her eye for aesthetics and if nothing else, every day I wear her same laughing smile. <3

It makes me tear up when your mom is down at yours and Lucy’s level. Oh my, I come from an intelligent, feminist mother and maternal grandmother. My mom was always at work and died when I was 18, but she was a Talbots and Coldwater Creek colorful stylish teacher all the way. I smile that I can only find those brands in my price range on eBay. And my grandmother had very stylist trench coats and peacoats, so that tracks :) I hope my kids will remember the bright colors I wore, red and cobalt blue my favorites.

About a year ago my daughter (then 9 or so) came downstairs saying she was dressed in “full mom mode” — and omg she nailed it. Cardigan, scarf, skirt, blocky heel shoes, big leather bag. She was stealing it all from my closet of course – but even so it was uncanny. My mom’s style is a crisp ironed shirt (who has time to iron a button-down shirt?) and a chunky statement necklace.

What I would give for that pants/boots combo in the wagon photo!!

I have the leopard print coat that my grandmother made for herself – with a really thick satin lining and beautiful seams. I don’t want it to wear out so I take it out for a spin on special occasions.

Oh no, did Anton miss his sleepover?

My Mom never met a stripe she didn’t like! Same. It holds up through the decades!

My mum was an artist, loved the Mexican muralists so went to Mexico in the 50s as a nanny to learn the language, came home and married my Dad. When she was young she wore loose trousers, wrap skirts, huaraches, no make-up. When I was a kid I remember being embarrassed by how different she was to everyone else’s mother, but now of course I think she was so elegant in her simplicity. She’d slash on some lipstick for a party and that was it. I still love that mid-century lipstick-only look……

As both a lover of vintage clothing and a deeply sentimental person, this has got to be one of my favorite CoJ posts! My own mother was very lithe in the 60s and 70s, so those Twiggy silhouettes suited her perfectly. I’m shaped more like my grandmother, so I’d have gladly worn her 40s and 50s hand-me-downs, if she weren’t such a practical lady who donated anything going unused to the local church rummage sales. I sometimes feel a bit strange about my breasts, but very similar ones just looked so bombshell on her. She’s been gone since the 90s, but I try to dress for my shape, in honor of her.

My wedding dress was my husband’s grandmother’s from 1957! She had just passed and it was a cool way to honor her life at our ceremony. It was a super classic design— short sleeves, bell skirt to the floor. The only thing we had to do was let out the waist to fit my 24” one— she was snatched! I wore a little swing dress I got at Buffalo Exchange at the reception I was so scared of destroying the antique dress! She was a lady who fought for her female high school students to be able to play basketball and who was a chemist researching DDT at a time when people were incredibly hostile to women in STEM. I hope we can hold on to the progress that women like her have made over the next four years and that it doesn’t disappear.

I’m not an anxious person but every time you post that picture of you on the bridge in your mom‘s backpack, I become totally convinced you are going to wiggle out and fall into the Seine.

I have gotten some incredible hand-me-downs from my mom. Nothing name brand or valuable in a conventional way, but each a special piece for what it was to her at one point. A belt from their honeymoon in Costa Rica. A brown pant suit with a vest I can imagine she wore on dates. Patagonia fleece from the 90s she and my dad wore skiing. I have slowly acquired them over the years as our bodies shift shapes and I treasure the pieces and their heritage. Makes me thoughtfully keep a few pieces that my body no longer fits for my daughter one day.

i love looking through my grandparents’ photos, they always looked so effortlessly stylish and warm and cozy! i think everything was simpler and the goal was to feel good, and i like that mindset (and try to live by it!) it makes me miss my childhood with them and how happy i always felt when i was around them. i feel very lucky and grateful that i have so many heartwarming memories with both of them :) my grandmother is 96 years old and she has alzheimer’s, so of course it’s not the same, but every time i see her (usually every week) my heart swells up :) and my mom makes sure the clothes she wears are true to her former self, which i find so sweet and endearing. thanks for asking! :)

This is really lovely. I loved my mum’s style as well and seeing photos of her in her 20s too. I helped her choose what she would wear after she died. She was going to be cremated and she said to me “why ruin good fabric!” (Classic mum). We chose an outfit that was perfectly her, good fabric and all and when my brother, nurse and I dressed her when the time came it felt incredibly loving and special. She was ready for her next phase. I dream about her sometimes where she is in an “afterlife air b n b” and she’s always wearing those clothes.