By Ryan Patterson

LOS ANGELES, Calif. --

Teri Hatcher was spotted wearing revealing ripped jeans this weekend. Definitely not your typical dowdy “Mom Jeans”, which is a good thing, but are they appropriate for a 44-year-old mom?

That very issue was brought up in our office when our producer said he didn’t think they were age appropriate. That got me thinking about what is appropriate… So I conducted my own very unscientific poll.

I consider my sister Robin to be a pretty conservative dresser and was surprised when she thought the jeans looked good. I asked my stylist friend Sara to weigh in. “She has a great body and is stylish, however, to be age appropriate, she should stick to ONE trend - she can definitely pull off skinny jeans, but leave the distressing to her daughter.”

The ladies in our office were quite vocal about Teri’s look. Nancy, a New York based producer, says, “she shouldn’t be showing so much thigh. The rips are fine for a 22-year-old trying to show some edge, but at 40+, it looks like she is trying too hard.” “I think her outfit would have looked better with some nice fashionable jeans, minus the rips,” suggests Jeneine.

Pregnant producer Cara adds, “I would be embarrassed if my mom was walking down the street like that.”

“I actually disagree,” says Susan, who liked Teri’s distressed style. “It’s like saying minis are not appropriate for 40-year-olds… if they are worn tastefully, why not?” Selin agrees, “she’s paired it with a blazer and boots, so she’s made the look a little older and I actually think she looks great in the jeans!”

What about a guy’s point of view? “Certainly questionable,” says Mike, a dad of two.

“Though I wouldn’t suggest distressed denim for all women over 40,” Anthony says, “Teri can pull this look off since she’s got such a hot body.”

“It would be worse if she didn’t look hot in them,” Steve says.

Adam, a father of two, says, “ripped jeans are back in style, but this may be a bit much.” (I love that he knew ripped jeans are in style again!)

So, which side of the fashion fence do I fall on? Putting my personal dislike of ripped jeans aside, part of me feels that people should wear whatever makes them happy. Very PC, I know. But another part of me always scratches my head when I see moms and their young daughters dressed nearly identical - it just screams desperation to me. Which is ironic in this case since we’re talking about a ‘Desperate Housewives’ star. But perhaps my friend Stephanie summed it up best:

“I don’t think they are appropriate at any age, unless you’re a stoner or live in a trailer. LOL!”

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