A grandmother has shut down the haters who criticized her fashion choices as being "inappropriate" for her age.
Candice Cima, 76, from New York, has racked up over 172,000 followers on Instagram where she posts under the handle @lifeinmy70s, where she shares fashion and lifestyle tips with her followers.
Her bio reads: "Exercise, Fashion & Lifestyle at age 76. Reinvent yourself as you age. 'Aging is Changing' Your Best Time is Now!", and its definitely a motto she lives by.
Candice recently faced backlash after she shared an Amazon try-on haul on the platform, and some people were not happy with a brown, mid-length, sleeveless knitted dress she featured within it, claiming it wasn't appropriate for her age.
As Candice rocked the look for the camera, she told her followers: "It’s very comfortable. It’s nice-fitting. Now, it is body-hugging, so if you’re not interested in a body-hugging dress, this wouldn’t be the one for you," adding that "although it is body hugging it has the weight to hang nicely."
Despite her clearly looking fabulous in the outfit, some cruel commenters had some negative things to say about the look.
One wrote: "Not suitable for the arms after a certain âge", while another added: "Great color and style; however, you must wear the sweater over it. The dress is not attractive on you without the sweater over it."
Another commented: "Only wear it with the top on. Doesn’t look great without it," while others wrote: "Wear the jacket with it," and: "Makes your otherwise flat stomach look pouchy."
Clearly, some people never learned the lesson of "if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all".
Thankfully, Candice - who has 11 grandchildren - did not let the barrage of mean comments get to her, telling Today: "It’s not the first time this has happened, but this one surprised me. People have such outdated notions about age-appropriate fashion, and that needs to change."
Amen to that.
Thankfully, there was also a slew of positive comments, with fans writing: "I think it looks great. The people that are replying with nasty comments are just jealous cos they can’t pull it off. Hon, you look good!!! And if others complain, oh well, cos I was taught that if you don’t like something don’t say anything at all."
Another commented: "Looks amazing on you! You've got a great body and a gorgeous face. You definitely do not look your age. Wish I looked as good as you. Enjoy wearing the dress...top on or off. You got it!!!"
Others added: "With or without the top you look great, you have a wonderful figure! I'm so sick of seeing women body shame us older women it needs to stop, we should be supporting our fellow sisters!! Haters gonna hate...just do you, never mind them!!!", and: "You look fantastic in it every which way! Lovely!"
She also told The Independent: "I was not aware that many women believe that an older woman should not show her arms as she ages.
"I actually had never heard that and since I have always worn sleeveless styles I thought nothing about posting these fashions on my sites. It was a shock to me when I learned that it was a 'thing' with some women and started to get criticism for it.
"The criticism does not bother me at all as every woman should be proud of who she is and be comfortable with her style."
