The stories in Advanced Love—the new book by the creator of the blog Advanced Style—are actual, irl #relationshipgoals. Following over 60 couples, most over the age of 60, author Ari Seth Cohen asks couples what kept them together through the years, and how their advanced style played a part.
Couples like Ann and Bill from California explain that their love and style has worked over the decades because “we’re made for each other because we are both weird.” Nazare and Edwardo explain their love story as, “We started out as the best of friends, back in the early eighties. We really had a lot of fun and many crazy adventures. From best friends, we decided to get married. Now, thirty-nine years have passed, and we know that that was the best thing we have ever done.”
There are also iconic “How did you two meet?” stories, like Gai and Rhonda from Los Angeles:
Gai: I was so pissed because my ex-girlfriend was trying to set me up with somebody to get her off the hook for breaking my heart.
Rhonda: Well, it was my ex-girlfriend who was with your ex-girlfriend.
Other couples, like Tutti and Paul, explain how they’ve stayed together over the years: “If there’s one thing I’ve learned about marriage in more than fifty years, it’s that it’s not all kittens and rainbows. There are soaring highs and crushing lows, there’s fighting and screaming, love and laughter, and plenty of…therapy.”
Keep this book nearby, on a coffee table or bedside, for beautiful photos of love thriving (not just surviving) through time. And don’t lose hope: these couples didn’t all meet at sock-hops and shared malt milkshakes—love is always out there, always real, and always fashionable.
Images from Advanced Love by Ari Seth Cohen, used with permission
More from BUST
Let Advanced Style’s Mara West Show You How To Create A Rockabilly Rosie The Riveter Look
These Models Prove True Style Is Ageless In Our BUST Fashion Editorial
These Badass Senior Ladies Prove That Style Is Totally Timeless