It’s fun to follow trends and keep track of how they either evolve or fade away each season. I’ve kept a close watch on the “booties” or “shooties” trend which resurfaced along with the resurgence of 80’s fashion. The trend was a fringe statement three years ago but has grown into a mainstream look. Fabulous.

Booties and shooties started out being described as peds that looked both like a shoe and a boot. I’ve found that over the seasons, this definition has become a little loose. What I used to call an ankle boot is now also being described as a bootie. So to keep things simple in this post, I’m going to refer to all styles of ankle boots and booties as booties.

Wearing booties under boot cut and wide leg pants or jeans is a no-brainer. Even though you cover up most of their style detailing this way, it keeps the leg line long and that’s instantly flattering. Wearing booties with skinnies or straight leg bottoms showcases more of the ped and is a little more daring. Wearing booties with skirts and dresses is the most daring combination simply because high vamped shoes cut the leg line, especially when there is a strong contrast between the colour of the shoe and the colour worn on the leg.

I love a fashion challenge. If you would like to experiment with the trendiest option, here are some guidelines for wearing this “of the moment” fashion ped with skirts and dresses:

1. Adjust your eyes to the look: It’s always the first step! We have been brainwashed to believe that high vamped shoes do not work with skirts and dresses. True, this pairing often looks dumpy. But by adjusting the rest of the variables of an outfit, AND by getting the right style of bootie, you’ve bent body type guidelines and made the look work.
2. Keep the leg line one colour: The easiest way to achieve a longer leg line is by keeping the hose and booties a similar colour. So black booties with black textured hose is a simple solution. Add a dress in a similar colour into the ensemble mix and you’ve created an even longer leg line.
3. Keep it heeled: Even if it’s only an inch or two, the extra height helps to balance our proportions. Stacked three to four inch heels are best for this look, but never fear. Unless I’m sitting down, I don’t wear heels that high and you can make the look work with lower heels too. Short flat booties are not a no-no, but it’s a hard look to get right.
4. Expose the knee cap: As with mid-calf boots, shortening the hemline just a tad is important. Remember that you can cover up with hosiery if you prefer more leg coverage.
5. Choose a flop proof style: Booties that are cut low and fit close to the ankle tend to look more flattering (like the pair on the left above, and the round toe BC bootie). The Clarks “Cone Sweet” bootie is an excellent style to wear with dresses and skirts because it fits close to the ankle and actually has a low-ish vamp.

Once you’re confident sporting booties with skirts, you can move to YLF graduate school. This means dropping the second guideline and wearing the look with a high colour contrast between the foot and the leg. If you’re already sporting the advanced version, well done. It took me a while to graduate to that level, but I’m there now and enjoying every minute of it.

My guess is that the pairing of booties with skirts and dresses is here to stay, so don’t feel that you’re coming in on the end of a trend. It won’t be too late if you get cracking this season.

Two of my favourite booties right now, both of which are in the YLF store.

I vote yay. In the early 80’s, I wore jailbird striped red, white and blue legwarmers over jeans with high heeled red pumps. I also wore bright red legwarmers over acid wash jeans tucked back into flat suede, maroon ankle boots. It was quite an eyesore. But those were the types of crazy wardrobe pairings you wore back then. Looking totally hip and cool sporting the vibe took priority over flattering your body.

This time round, legwarmers can look flattering. The simplest way of achieving a long lean line is by keeping the colour of the hose, shoes and legwarmers the same (see the pictures on the left). A monochromatic approach like pairing grey with black will also work (see middle picture). You don’t need to keep the components on the foot and leg the same colour (see picture with the purple legwarmers). But the greater the contrast between the components, the higher the risk of shortening the leg line. The way I wore legwarmers 25 years ago cut my leg line in several places. It looked hideous and I’m learning from that mistake.

I like the way legwarmers add self-colour textural interest to an ensemble. They also keep you warm, especially when you wear them inside boots. You could use chunky socks instead of legwarmers to achieve the same aesthetic effect with boots. But personally, legwarmers seem the more fun option probably because they’ve become a retro blast from the past. Plus they’re visually more appealing than socks on the foot area when you match them with pumps or ballet flats.

So what’s the verdict. Do legwarmers get a stylish yay or nay? Alhough I turn 40 in six months, I plan to find an inexpensive black pair and have fun experimenting with a few sophisticated trendy looks. Would you wear them?

Thirteen years ago today, Greg and I were married in Cape Town, South Africa. The church service was held in one of the oldest remaining stone churches in the country and we had the reception at a restaurant right on the shores of the Atlantic Ocean. Like most wedding days, it felt perfect in every way even though it was over so, so fast. It’s astounding how much preparation can go into a mere eight hours of your life.

Because the day is over so quickly, my late Mum suggested that I try to enjoy the process of planning the wedding event instead of getting all stressed about the details. This was brilliant advice and I ended up enjoying the planning process as much as the day itself. The best part was thinking about my frock. I designed my own wedding dress and knew exactly what I wanted from the word go. I wanted to be “a modern vintage bride”, which is a contradiction in terms, but it made sense to me.

I always saw myself walking down the aisle in a veil-free, fairly narrow-fitting gown with vintage detailing and lots of pearls. So I worked with an experienced, rather deaf and stubborn, eighty year old seamstress to make this happen. She was fabulous. The dress was vintage in styling, but the fabric was modern (an off-white stretch bridal satin). The back square neckline was cut low and had thirty covered rouleaux loop buttons and a train that was almost double the length of the dress. It had special loops sewn into the hem so that I could loop the train around a few fingers when I walked so that I wouldn’t trip over it. I had vintage lace attached to the neckline and wore my Mother’s long drop pearl earrings. And that was the last day I wore earrings. I also wore my very first real pearl necklace and bracelet, which my boss at the time gave to me as a present.

You can’t really see my shoes in the picture below, but they were almost the best part of the outfit. I managed to find chunky, retro, strappy matte gold 70’s sandals with huge square ankle buckles. I loved how they were an unexpected element of surprise each time I sat down and crossed my legs.

I had very little to do with Greg’s wedding outfit. How’s that for trust and love! His instructions were (1) to surprise me and (2) to make sure that he wore good shoes. My sweetie did a superb job and I wouldn’t have changed a thing about his outfit.

This picture of Greg and me is my favourite wedding picture because it captures a perfectly down to earth and fun moment. I’m pulling a face saying something to the effect of: “I think a rose petal went down the front of dress”, and Greg thought that was hilarious.

I only realized much later that my wedding dress ended up being very similar to my Mum’s 1963 wedding dress. Crazy. If I could do it all again, I would probably design a very similar dress and still walk down the aisle without a veil.

Your wedding dress style is very personal and there is no right and wrong in my book. In fact, I’m all for non-traditional wedding attire. As long as you feel beautiful and dress appropriately for the dress code you choose for the big day, it really doesn’t matter what you end up wearing. If it’s not a timeless silhouette, that doesn’t matter either because you’ll look back on it and remember that it was trendy at the time.

I’d love to hear about what you wore on your wedding day, the preparation that went into your wedding style, and how you felt about the outcome. And if you haven’t yet walked down the aisle, but have some thoughts about what you would like to wear should the special day come around, I’d love to hear about those too.

Why wear flattering clothing? Why bother with accessories, a nice hairdo, make-up and clear skin? As long as you are clean, your body is covered and your clothes are comfortable, why should you expend any effort at all to look appealing. It’s an interesting question.

I guess you wouldn’t be reading this blog if you weren’t interested in fashion, personal style and your physical appearance. Your reasons for being interested in this subject matter might be different from mine though. Here are the things that drive my interest:

• Style is aesthetic. This might sound shallow, but I’m a very visual person. I get a kick out of being surrounded by beautiful design. From the interior of our house to the wrapping of packages and the car that I drive. The collars on our dogs are important and so is the tissue holder in my handbag. I even make the food on our dinner plates look pretty. So the way I present myself to the world is a natural extension of my aesthetic appreciation for everything. I guess it’s just the way I’m wired.
• Dressing is an art form. A part of being a visual person is seeing the art in everything (I almost studied art instead of psychology). I like looking at the way other people are dressed because dressing is an art form. People are walking works of art. It’s fascinating to look at and appreciate all types of style.
• Fashion is fun. I LOVE clothes, footwear and accessories. I thoroughly enjoy looking at them in stores and trying them on. And I love to shop, both for myself and for other people.
• When I look good, I feel good. The way I look on the outside effects the way I feel on the inside. When I’m happy with my outfit and look attractive, I feel that I can take on the day. Obviously, my outer appearance is not the only thing that gets me through a day, but it helps knowing that I’m at least well turned out – in my eyes anyway.
• I like to look good for other people. I actually do care what other people think and even though I am not always affected by what they say, I’d like the world to perceive me as a well put together individual.
• I enjoy compliments. Who doesn’t?
• It’s my bread and butter. I have to practice what I preach! It doesn’t make sense for a fashion stylist to be disinterested in the way they present themselves. Also, I’ve been immersed in the international fashion scene for 17 years and it’s part of who I am. I eat, sleep, drink and breath this stuff.

Do these reasons resonate with you? Why do you want to look fab? A penny for your thoughts.