Genie jeans, platforms and true love

Errica Iacopini, 26, sends this submission of her mom and dad all the way from Italy and I'm grateful it got to me safely.
"The photo was taken in Rome, Villa Borghese in 1980. My dad is from Rome but he moved down to South Africa to learn English. My mother is Italian but grew up in South Africa. She was working for Alfa Romeo at the time and had decided to go on a Euro trip as she wanted to move to Europe. A work colleague suggested my mum to meet my dad for advice on Rome. The two met and my father said he knew she was the one for him. He still gets wobbly knees for my mum! My mum did end up going on her trip (the strong woman she is) and dad kept calling her to remind her that he was waiting for her!!

This photo is of my parents on a holiday they took together in Italy. I love this photo because they look like such a hip couple. I love my mothers style because not only is she natural beauty inside and out (She did modelling too) but her style is just as fantastic. She has always had a unique sense of style and taught me that to be sexy one doesn't need to bare all. She is such a confident, beautiful, radiant and strong woman and an inspiration for me, i love her so!"

Boardwalk Empress

Martine Holland writes: "This is a photo of my mom and dad in Ft Lauderdale, FL taken in 1975 ). My mom was a natural at putting together timeless, stylish outfits her entire life, up until she passed away in 2004 from Pancreatic Cancer at the age of 62. She taught me how to have that effortless style and that the bag (and fragrance) made the outfit, as you can see by the fabulous bag she is carrying. Her name was Rosalie (Mondani) Flaherty. She was from Connecticut and went to college in NYC. She moved to Boston, MA when she married my dad, and though she was a public school teacher in Milton, MA for many years, she took great pride in looking perfectly stylish everyday from head to toe. The memory of her amazing outfits and style makes me smile every day. Just look at those sunglasses! Also, worth noting, even though they would be cropped out if chosen, are my dad's shoes!"

Lets bring back: the white pantsuit

Nancy Perry Parsons, of Oklahoma, writes: "My mom, Donna Perry, always had a striking appearance – dramatic but never pretentious. Her clothes were timeless, and she taught me how to build a wardrobe of good quality classics and build them out with less expensive, trendier items. Her go-to wardrobe was a black turtleneck, black pencil skirt or slacks, and a gorgeous jacket. There were boxy shantung toppers in the 60s, knee-length brocade vests in the 70s, and bright shoulder-padded blazers in the 80s, always revolving.My favorite photo of her marks a departure, though. Visiting our cousins in the summer of 1972, she wore a white double-breasted pantsuit. Just sitting and relaxing, she’s regal and effortless all at once....That’s me in the pink dress, distracted as usual."

The best bow on the block

Jackie Hoffman generously shared this glamour shot: "This is Charlotte Hoffman, circa early 40's in Brooklyn, N.Y. Look how beautiful she is. At 90, she is still a looker. She is fabulously accessorized, and this outfit would be killer even today. Like many women of her era, she was far from wealthy, but not far from style. She is still an amazing shopper. As an actress who has gotten to wear delicious costumes on Broadway, and amass quite the wardrobe myself, I am proud to say I take after her. I wish I were as pretty!"

Classic Jewel

Laura Kline, and antique linen guru from Los Angeles, shared the photos that just blew your eyes out of your sockets:

"My mother, Jewel “Buck” Stewart Rochester, was never one for fads or trendy things. She taught me—and still demonstrates each day—that good taste is timeless, and good-quality items should be treasured. A great example is the wide, two-buckle, leather belt seen here on her in 1944 when she was a student at Ole Miss in Oxford, Mississippi and which I wore myself in college in the early ‘70s and still have to this day. “Updated classic” was more her style, such as a well-fitted dark suit, a crisp linen dress, smooth, sleek hair and, always, without exception, make-up and lipstick every day—all in all, a beautiful, pulled-together look for her with her slim, petite figure, dark hair and fair skin. Today, at the age of 87, she still never faces a day without being “dressed” and her “face fixed.” To her, good fashion sense and style require mostly an eye for something that not only works well during the passing whims of fad, but also endures as classic fashion itself."

Hot suede pants

This photo was taken of Marcia Prentiss' mom in 1971 in Michigan at the tender age of 29.
Marcia writes: "During a recent trip home to see my family, my mom and I were looking at old pictures of her when she was my age. Then this usually follows a scavenger hunt in her closet to find her clothes from when she was in her 20s - yes she still has them! Of course, she makes me try them on and reminiscences when she was my age. I have gone through many different fashion styles, but on this last trip to see my mother I realized that she got fashion right. Now everything I am looking to buy a new shirt, dress, or shoes I think; what would my mom buy."