ɐ dˈɛkeɪd lˈeɪɾɚ, æt θˈɜːɾi ˈeɪt, sˈaɪks ɹᵻflˈɛktᵻd ðˈæt "wˌɛn juː hˈɪt θˈɜːɾi juː lˈuːz jʊɹ ˈɛdʒ": ɪnvˈaɪɾᵻd baɪ ðə tˈaɪmz tə kˈɑːmɛnt ɔnðə lˈeɪt nˈaɪntiːnhˈʌndɹɪd nˈaɪnti z tɹˈɛnd fɔːɹ ˈʌltɹəhˈaɪ hˈiːld ʃˈuːz, ʃiː əbzˈɜːvd ðˈæt "ðiːz wˈɪɹd spˈeɪsˈeɪdʒ ʃˈuːz lˈʊk kˈuːl ænd tɹˈɛndi ænd ɑːɹ ɐ wˈeɪ ʌv ɡˌɛɾɪŋ bˈæk tə sˌʌm dᵻɡɹˈiː", bˌʌt ðˈæt "ðɪs tˈaɪp ʌv tɹˈɛnd ɪz nˌɑːɾə klˈæsɪk vˈɜːʒən ʌv bjˈuːɾi.
A decade later, at 38, Sykes reflected that "when you hit 30 you lose your edge": invited by the Times to comment on the late-1990s trend for ultra-high heeled shoes, she observed that "these weird space-age shoes look cool and trendy and are a way of getting back to some degree", but that "this type of trend is not a classic version of beauty.