She's Charlotte's 'Coastal Grandmother'
Plus: Teen Talk; Top News of the Week — Democrats keep control of city council — Filing opens for school board elections — Levine Museum president to retire — Social Districts plan moves ahead
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The relaxed and beachy ‘Coastal Grandmother’ trend is this summer’s hot vibe — and this Charlotte-area influencer (and grandmother) has been an expert on it since long before it was a thing
The “Coastal Grandmother” trend that’s the talk of the summer is nothing new to fashion blogger and Instagrammer Jan Correll, who has long embraced the luxe, casual comfort style shown here in images from recent social media posts. (Photos taken with permission from the @silver_isthenewblonde Instagram account)
by Cristina Bolling
When it comes to the hottest TikTok fashion trend of summer 2022, 64-year-old fashion and style blogger and Instagrammer Jan Correll of Huntersville is absolutely nailing it.
The trend is called “Coastal Grandmother,” and the funny thing is, Correll is seriously on-trend by doing exactly what she’s been doing for years — posting photos of herself in relaxed-yet-polished clothes made from luxe fabrics and neutral colors on her blog, Silver is the New Blonde, and her Instagram account.
Before we delve into Correll’s story, here’s a quick primer on Coastal Grandmother, for the uninitiated: the trend is a beachy, soft and flowy esthetic infused with luxury that takes its cues from Diane Keaton and her home in the 2003 movie “Something’s Gotta Give.”
The term was created by 26-year-old TikTok creator Lex Nicoleta, who describes it this way: “If you love Nancy Meyers movies, coastal vibes, recipes and cooking, Ina Garten, cozy interiors and more, there’s a good chance you might be a coastal grandmother.”
If you think about it, the trend is turning on its head the way we typically see fashion reaching across the decades: Coastal Grandmother isn’t about helping older people feel young again. It’s about younger people embracing the comfort and luxury that older generations have known about for years.
Correll was a sales executive for a technology company for most of her career, and as she traveled for work, she noticed that she was always getting complimented for her style.
In her late 40s, she decided that when she turned 50, she’d stop coloring her hair and embrace her natural color — gray. About 6 ½ years ago she started her blog, and her Instagram account followed a little more than a year later. (She currently has more than 68,000 followers on Instagram.)
The New York Times featured her in a 2018 story, “The Glamourous Grandmas of Instagram,” and Glamour Italia followed with a piece in 2019. She has partnerships with companies ranging from Eileen Fisher, Chico’s and Johnny Was to Mann Travel and Celebrity Cruises, which pay her for promoting their goods and services on her blog and Instagram account.
The Ledger caught up with Correll recently — and yes, she is an actual grandmother — to get her thoughts on the Coastal Grandmother trend and learn what it’s like being an influencer with an older following.
The conversation was edited for length and clarity.
Q: Let’s jump right into it. Do you identify as a Coastal Grandmother?
I do. I like it. Sometimes I tend not to wear as much white as they do. I tend to wear a lot of black. In fact, I have an outfit that’s black shorts I got from Zara, a black T, a black-and-straw purse, and then a hat. I wonder — is this the antitheses of Coastal Grandma? I thought it’d be fun to do a post or a[n Instagram] reel about that and get people’s opinion.
I don’t wear a lot of long things like a lot of Coastal Grandmas will do, but I wear a lot of linen, and I do wear a lot of white. In fact, I looked at my posts last week on Instagram and everything is white or a light shade.
Q: How do you explain the trend to people?
I think the Coastal Grandmother look is chic, but it’s casual-comfortable. That is how I describe it. I think with Coastal Grandmother, it’s about some of the finer things. It’s not fussy. It’s a little on the preppy side.
Q: There’s definitely a lot of focus on the fashion part of the Coastal Grandmother trend, but there’s also a lifestyle element to it. Do you see it as being more of an overall aesthetic, than a fashion trend?
Yes, I think it’s much more of a lifestyle. It's a very relaxed way of living, but it’s elegant. … It’s a lived-in look, but it still has that elegance to it. I would say it’s very not-bland, but there’s a touch of elegance. I read a description that captures it well: “an overall laid-back, minimalistic lifestyle.”
Q: I have a 17-year-old, and she loves the Coastal Grandmother trend. She modifies it by wearing slightly cropped tops or shorter shorts than you’d probably put on your blog or Instagram, but the overall Coastal Grandmother look is there. What’s it like to have these young women adopting a style you’ve been wearing all along?
I think it’s very cool. I wouldn’t say that they’re going after it for the “grandma” trend. To me, it’s more about them being the person they are rather than have them having to be flashy, to be showing off their tummies. It says a lot about these kids that they’re so into it, because maybe it says that the modern trends are not really something that they’re comfortable with.
Q: Where do you see the coastal grandma trend heading? Obviously, nothing lasts forever in fashion.
I think it’s definitely here to stay. And I think the next trend that will be popping back up is a lot of preppy stuff. I think that’s going to come back around.
Q: OK, let’s change gears a bit and talk about your life as an influencer. Who are your followers?
I would say they’re women who range anywhere from age 35 to 75. My daughter is in her 30s, and I have a lot of women that age following me because a lot of those women are pointing things out to their moms. They feel like they might need help.
Q: Has it been hard to grow a presence on social media with an age group that’s older and not as rabid on social media as the younger generations?
Oh yes. Unless people are doing things that don’t feel right to me [like buying followers], it’s so hard to grow. You need something to go viral to really help you get out there, and I haven’t gone viral yet. If I do, fine. If I don’t, fine. I’ll keep puttering along and hopefully delivering some value.
Q: Have you noticed that the Coastal Grandmother trend has given you a boost in followers?
I would say no, because I would say [coastal grandma style] has always kind of been my thing. I guess I need to post #coastalgrandma more. Hashtags are weird, though. Sometimes they work, sometimes they don’t work.
Q: I think of your target market as being more of a Facebook crowd than an Instagram crowd, based on their age. Why did you choose to focus on Instagram?
They are [more of a Facebook crowd], but they’re moving quickly. It’s unfortunate — the brands are on Instagram; they don’t care about Facebook. When it comes to my blog readers, a lot of them still aren’t on Facebook or Instagram. A lot of the clothing that I buy or am given I post on [the app] LikeToKnowIt/RewardStyle. (The LikeToKnowIt/RewardStyle app allows fashion bloggers to be paid a commission for online purchases that are generated from people clicking through their blog or Instagram posts.)
I’m going to do an Instagram reel on how to use RewardStyle, because if I look back, that’s one of my biggest blog posts ever because I educated women on how to do it. To this day, I’ll get a message and they’ll say “I really like those jeans you had on. Can you help a lazy girl out and just send me a link?” But this is money-making, so I try to send them the RewardStyle link so they can buy them there. I think at some point it still needs to be a lot easier for some people.
Q: Tell us about your blog and Instagram. You post about everything from fashion to skin serums to getting hearing aids for the first time. What would you say your focus is?
My blog is all about pro aging and style tips. When people say, “You can’t wear that” — never tell me that. I can wear anything I want; it’s all about style at any age. Today, I’m doing a post about “bold beauty.” I take “ageless adventures.” I just went with Mann Travels and Celebrity Cruises to Italy. It was so much fun. I’d like to do more of that. I try to not focus only on fashion. Fashion is where a lot of bloggers make money, but to me, if it’s only fashion, I think it gets really boring. How much can you talk about? It’s more lifestyle than anything else.
Cristina Bolling is managing editor of The Ledger: cristina@cltledger.com
Today’s supporting sponsor is Soni Brendle:
Teen talk: Build your vocabulary
Impress and delight the young people in your life by using the words they use. The Ledger shows you how in this occasional Saturday feature.
Today’s word: “ate”
Part of speech: verb, past tense
Definition: to have done something extremely well
Used in a sentence:
“Did you see Kara playing basketball last Saturday?”
“Yeah, she ate!”“Have you heard Harry Styles’ new album?”
“Oh yes, he ate that.”“Austin Butler seriously ate in the new Elvis movie.”
Ledger analysis: It’s hard to find much information about the genesis of this slang term online. Some believe it’s a shortened version of the word “dominate.” But one thing is clear when you talk to teens: by no means should you ever put it in present tense — eat.
—Cecilia Bolling, age 17
This week’s crossword: 24 Hours of Booty theme
In honor of this weekend’s 24 Hours of Booty charity cycling event, crossword constructor Chris King worked up an appropriate theme in this week’s puzzle — which also has Charlotte clues.
Ledger crosswords are created by Chris King, edited by Tim Whitmire and presented by CXN Advisory. Enjoy!
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Headed out of town? Why not print off a few? For more crosswords with local clues, check out our dedicated Charlotte Ledger Crossword page.
This week in Charlotte: Lyles re-elected mayor and Democrats keep control of city council; filing begins for CMS school board; new UNC MBA program signs lease in uptown
On Saturdays, The Ledger sifts through the local news of the week and links to the top articles — even if they appeared somewhere else. We’ll help you get caught up. That’s what Saturdays are for.
Politics
Election results: (Ledger 🔒) Once again, Democrats control the city council 9-2. Mayor Vi Lyles was elected for a third term Tuesday. Republican Tariq Bokhari narrowly won the District 6 election against opponent Stephanie Hand (D). Lyles said priorities include affordable housing, quality of life issues and transit.
Ajmera’s time: (WFAE Inside Politics newsletter) Democrat Dimple Ajmera won the most votes of at-large City Council candidates, continuing a trend of political success in Charlotte by moderate women. She had some high-profile disagreements with others early in her political career, “but over the last two years, Ajmera has kept a lower profile and seen her status rise,” WFAE’s Steve Harrison reports.
Education
New school boundaries: (Observer) Three new relief elementary schools will open in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools district for the 2023-24 school year, and school officials are drawing the new boundary lines for them in Ballantyne and east Charlotte. School officials say they have four top priorities for drawing boundaries: minimizing home-to-school distance, keeping feeder patterns intact, increasing income diversity and maximizing building utilization. CMS will hold a public hearing on the proposed boundaries Aug. 9 and the school board is scheduled to vote on them Aug. 23. Learn more about the proposed boundaries here.
School board elections: (WFAE) Filing for the Charlotte-Mecklenburg school board opened Monday. The six open seats normally would have been on last year’s ballot, but a delay in census data caused a delay in creating new voting districts. Filing ends Aug. 12, and voters will make their choices in November.
Local news
Leaving Mecklenburg: (Ledger) Believe it or not, more people moved out of Mecklenburg County than moved here in the year ending in July 2021, new census data shows. The county’s population is still growing, largely because the number of births is higher than the number of deaths. Population growth in Mecklenburg has slowed in recent years, but demographers are unsure if the exodus shown in the numbers is a one-year anomaly or a longer-term trend.
Levine CEO to retire: (Ledger 🔒) Kathryn Hill, who has served as president and CEO of Levine Museum of the New South for the past six years, will retire at the end of 2022. Museum board members will conduct a national search to hire a new president and CEO by the end of the year. The Levine Museum recently sold its property at the corner of 7th and College Streets and plans to reopen in Three Wells Fargo Center on South Tryon Street later this year.
Business
Recession odds increase: (Observer, subscriber-only🔒) Charlotte economists say the odds of a recession are rising. Compared with their predictions earlier in the year, they say they are more pessimistic.
Business school extension: (Biz Journal, subscriber-only🔒) UNC Chapel Hill’s Kenan-Flagler Business School has signed a lease for space at Legacy Union uptown. It will offer an executive MBA for the first time in Charlotte this fall.
Good reads
Who is Sir Minty? (Fútbol Friday) Charlotte FC’s mascot, Sir Minty, is an enigma. He’s a soccer ball with arms and legs, and nobody seems to know his origin story. Most fans at the Chelsea match earlier this month had no idea that the team even had a mascot. Woody Wilder, the director of communications for Charlotte FC, said fans can expect to know more about Sir Minty “very soon.”
Complaints over park rentals: (Ledger 🔒) Dozens of community groups and individuals have said they’re frustrated with how Mecklenburg County handles the rental of parks and recreation centers. They claim the process is cumbersome and that the fees are not transparent, and they’re asking that the county consider reducing or eliminating fees for community groups that hold free events for the public.
From the Ledger family of newsletters
Bank CEOs speak on the economy: In recent earnings calls, CEOs of banks with a large Charlotte presence said they’re seeing few signs of a slowing economy, but they’re anticipating a cooldown later this year.
Bourbon fundraiser: Earlier this week, Opera Carolina announced a partnership with Maker’s Mark, the Mecklenburg County ABC Board and the Charlotte Bourbon Society for an unique fundraiser: blending a barrel of bourbon. The recipe, which was created by sponsors, will distill in Loretto, Ky., for 14 weeks, and, in December, about 240 bottles of “Maestro’s Blend” will travel back to Charlotte, where it will be sold in Mecklenburg ABC stores.
Wednesday Ledger (🔒):
Tools in Schools: Ray Terry started Put Tools in Schools in 2018 to show CMS high school students that college isn’t the only option after graduation. Terry partners with trades companies like Ironworkers and SteelFab to demonstrate how to use equipment and let them have a turn. He also connects students with internships and apprenticeships in the trades.
Plaza-Midwood Commonwealth ‘sizzle video’: The developer of the huge Commonwealth project under construction in the middle of Plaza-Midwood has a “sizzle video” hyping what the scene will look like. It blends real video with video-game-like animation showing people by a pool grilling and hanging out, couples embracing on a lawn and folks drinking on a terrace overlooking uptown’s skyline.
Friday Ledger (🔒):
Social districts plan moves ahead: The city of Charlotte’s Safe Communities Committee voted unanimously Thursday to recommend creating social districts, which would allow people to walk around with an alcoholic beverage within a designated area. The City Council will vote on the matter on Aug. 22 after a public forum on Aug. 15.
Charity for adults with disabilities: The latest installment in our Charity Spotlight series focuses on InReach, a Charlotte nonprofit organization that helps individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities be as independent as possible. InReach offers affordable housing, job coaching and connections, emergency financial assistance and daily support and assistance.
Ways of Life (🔒):
Bob Parker was known for his talent on the accordion and piano, performing at venues like the Bank of America Stadium, the Charlotte Symphony Orchestra and Carnegie Hall in New York City. He also tuned pianos all over North Carolina for 35 years. He passed away at the age of 69 after a battle with cancer. His wife, Melody, and his sister, Donna Wilfong, remember Bob as a humble and loving man. Two weeks before his passing, he got together with his musical trio, Horizon, to play his piano one last time.
CATS leadership: John Lewis, CEO of the Charlotte Area Transit System, faces criticism on the efficiency of the transit service. CATS is experiencing a staffing shortage, which bus riders say is making the service unreliable. Ridership is down 75% in the last eight years. Until it can hire more drivers, CATS is reducing service and cutting back on routes.
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Executive editor: Tony Mecia; Managing editor: Cristina Bolling; Staff writer: Lindsey Banks; Contributing editor: Tim Whitmire, CXN Advisory; Contributing photographer/videographer: Kevin Young, The 5 and 2 Project