(READ ME) Old Hag Fashion: Introduction and State of the Sub 2022 Update
Welcome Old Hags and happy 2nd birthday Old Hag Fashion!
We've grown to 35,000 Old Hags! (That's 3.5Xs our last birthday!) Thank you all for creating this space of fashion, kindness, creativity, and support. If you're new here, continue reading for an introduction to the sub. Seasoned Old Hags can search "State of the Sub" to skip to the updates (though I did make a lot of changes to the Read Me!) If you have feedback, ideas, or recommendations, please share them as a comment.
#Introduction to Old Hag Fashion
What is r/OldHagFashion and the Old Hag fashion philosophy?
This is a space to celebrate feminine and androgynous fashion in ALL it's forms, to share diverse style inspiration, to de-stigmatize aging in fashion, and to engage in self-discovery through personal style, all with an Old Hag fashion philosophy.
What is this fashion philosophy? Have you ever met an old woman who dresses in elegant, imaginative, kooky, trendy, or ostentatious ways despite the world's expectations of her? [Image transcriptions can be found in the imgur captions]. This is what inspired the Old Hag fashion philosophy which is the joyous, confident, unapologetic embrace of fashion as a form of self-expression and creativity. This is a state of mind with which ANYONE regardless of age can engage with fashion. Old Hag Fashion is playful and rebellious. It breaks rules in silly, interesting, or political ways. It takes fashion and trends seriously as a legitimate creative outlet, but not so seriously that it can't poke fun at it. Above all, Old Hag Fashion is a place of kindness, acceptance, self-discovery and self-love through fashion and community.
What is the mission of this sub?
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To bring together diverse people with a love of fashion.
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To uplift fashionistas from across ages, body-types, races, abilities, ethnicities and style points of view.
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To de-stigmatize aging in fashion, subvert stereotypes, and challenge notions that people (especially women) over a certain age can only partake in style in limited ways.
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To encourage self-discovery, creativity, and growth through personal style.
Is this a parody subreddit? Are you making fun of people??
UNEQUIVOCALLY NO! Mean-spirited comments will result in a ban. The only thing we parody here are social pressures placed on people in regard to style, such as: that age limits self-expression in fashion; that certain ages and body types can not be stylish; and that caring about fashion is a frivolous, illegitimate hobby. Calling someone or yourself an "Old Hag" is a tongue-in-cheek way to acknowledge and dis-empower those pressures, which impact ALL feminine people, from teenagers to the elderly. We use this space to confront and dismantle those pressures; to share inspiration from across the age, ability, and body-type spectrums; and to remove the stigma and fear of aging. No matter your age, we're all Old Hags here.
Is there an age limit to participate?
In case this isn't clear, NO!
ANYONE can embody Old Hag Fashion, though some naturally embody it by being confident, creative, and stylish in the body they have: the 80-year-old woman who can out-walk you, and do it in high-heels; the disabled femme showing their wheelchair is a haute accessory; the fat and fabulous trans person who knows they look damn cute in a crop top. No matter who you are--your age, body type, gender identity, culture, disability status, or race--you are welcome here so long as you share these values of kindness, acceptance, and love of fashion.
How can I contribute?
We allow discussion prompts, advice requests, articles, good-natured satire, and outfit of the day posts. You can also uplift other fashionistas so long as they have a public facing fashion persona (like using fashion hashtags on Instagram for discoverability or being a self-described style blogger). In this case, share the users handle as a comment. See the post flair description here.
Additionally, there are weekly threads: A general discussion lounge (every Friday) and a style help thread (every other Sunday). We also have comment prompts which might help you think about fashion in new ways. Lastly, we have bi-weekly themed style challenges (alternating Sundays), coordinated by u/MrDooter. You can view past and future themes here, and discuss themes in the biweekly announcement thread.
Constructive critiques and alternative styling suggestions are encouraged in the "critiques welcome" or "theme" posts: this is a fashion subreddit and discussing if and how things work together is how we grow our personal style! However, critiques are not allowed on posts with "Uplift Me!" or "First Time Poster" flair.
The most important things are to be kind and open-minded about fashion, and to follow the Reddiquette and the subreddit rules.
What is not allowed?
See here for in-depth descriptions and examples of prohibited content. Please report rule breaking.
Old Hag Fashion is a place of acceptance. This means any people, comments, or submissions that are bigoted, hateful, or mean-spirited are not welcome. This includes ageism, such as reinforcing age-related stereotypes or generalizing people based on age. Body envy and health speculation/concern trolling is also not allowed. Lecherous accounts which sexualize OHF post or users will be banned.
Off-topic posts, trend bashing, and low-effort criticisms are not allowed. Disagreement and dislike are more than welcome, as are rejections of trends within your personal style; they just must be presented in a kind, constructive, and substantive way. Reference to fashion "rules" as gospel is also discouraged.
Excessive down voting is strongly discouraged. If you believe someone is engaging in bad faith or poor taste, do not engage. Report them and move on.
Lastly, due to the prevalence of accounts using fashion subs to promote sex work, and due to the fact that we have under-18 hags, we ask that users use a clean account to interact with the sub. See the rules for discussion of NSFW account histories and how they will be addressed.
My picture has been shared here and I would like it removed. What can I do?
Message the moderators with a link to the OHF post and we will follow up to verify that it is your photo and remove the post.
#State of the Sub
Image transcriptions: We have established a partnership with r/TranscribersOfReddit, which provides resources for accessibility and connects volunteers with posts that need descriptions. Our users are also strongly encouraged to transcribe their own post or any yet-to-be-transcribed OHF posts they come across! See here for more details.
New post and user flair: I have updated post flair and user flair. See descriptions of them here. I have also enabled make your own user flair and am interested in hearing if there are any other identity flairs that people would find valuable.
Rule Changes: I've added and improved several of the rules. You can read in-depth descriptions here but I've summarized them below.
No ageism: I have clarified this rule by adding age stereotyping, promotion of generational animosity, and "grandma role-playing" as manifestations of ageism.
No gatekeeping Old Hag Fashion: No comments which: suggest another user isn't old hag, demand others explain how something is old hag, or demonstrate the user has not made any effort to review this read me. They will be removed.
No stand alone rant posts or trend-bashing: The general discussion lounge is OHF's space for rants. Trend-bashing, defined as comments or post which only disdain things that other people like--will also be removed. Sharing why you don't like a specific trend in your own personal style is allowed, welcome, and encouraged when relevant; what's not allowed is low-effort hate.
Please use a SFW account to interact with the sub: while sex workers are allowed and welcome in OHF, we also welcome under-18 Hags. As such this place has to be safe for minors. Fashion subreddits also have a problem with accounts using fashion communities to promote sex work content (whether it be self produced or stolen content). To address this, users are asked to not interact with this sub from an account which promotes sex work content (e.g. only fans link in bio) or interacts with explicitly pornographic subs. I have defined how NSFW account spam will be recognized. See additional details on why this rule was created and how it will be enforced here.
Lecherous Accounts: I have also defined lecherous accounts--users who through their comment content and user history appear to be sexualizing OHF posts or users non-consensually. This is to protect trans hags from being fetishized, but is also applicable to anyone drawing unreasonable attention to someone's body or body parts, or who comments on how "dateable" or attractive a poster is. These accounts will be banned.
No stereotyped post: to keep OHF unique, stereotyped post--defined as post identical to those made on more than two other subreddits--will be removed.
Brand participation and self-promotion policy: Part of the growth of the sub means unfortunately attracting individuals who are less interested in our ethos or in growing and connecting with others through style, and instead are focused on promoting their brand or business by mass posting "good" content on a lot of different subs. I have created a Brand and self-promotion policy on how brands can meaningfully participate in the sub while protecting us from becoming spam targets, and have made persistent stereotyped posts and brand account spam a bannable offense.
#Future plans
New mods: You guys are really spreading the Old Hag gospel! It's clear that this space has resonated with a lot of people and will continue to grow at a steady pace. As such, we'll need to add additional moderators this year. While I am not opening up positions at this time, if this is something that any of you (especially our regulars) would consider doing or have questions about, let me know. Those from the southern hemisphere and from non EST time zones, as well as those who are older and/or from other marginalized identities and backgrounds are especially encouraged to consider.
Posted Feb 9, 2022, 8:56 PM UTC · edited
A little more information on the nsfw rule:
I am not, nor am I interested in stalking OHF user's profiles nor am I going to actively police accounts. Generally, if I’m reviewing a users post history it’s because they’ve raised red flags for me or another user, based on comment content or user name.
The incidents that lead to the creation of this rule:
One account with an explicit username, explicit pornography on their user profile, and an NSFW website plug in their profile was making bot-like comments, including on posts by younger members.
Some users made flirty comments on posts by our trans members and were active on degrading trans fetish NSFW subs.
One account only commented about users' feet and shoes and engaged with rate me subs and fetish subs.
One account commented on the dateability of several OHF users and was active on SFW and NSFW rate me subs.
So basically, if I’m looking at someone’s user profile it’s because their comments or user name raised red flags and their motives for engaging do not appear above board. If you engage here in good faith, do not make posts or comments drawing attention to your own body or user profile, or to other’s body, and you also participate or post in NSFW communities, then there's no reason I or anyone else will find it and you won’t be banned for it.