Wearing the same colour and wash of denim on both top and bottom is a fashion faux pas. Too cowgirl and awfully matchy-matchy. You’ll look like you’re wearing a denim suit, which is not so fab.

But if you mismatch the denim pieces, so that the top looks entirely different to the bottom, you’ll get away with wearing them together. For example:

• Match black, or dark blue denim jeans with a faded blue denim top or jacket
• Match any wash of blue or black denim jeans with a white denim jacket
• Match white jeans with a blue or black denim top or jacket

These combinations are fashionably acceptable, but no longer my cup of tea. I guess I overdosed on the look when I wore it to death in the 90’s. Over the last 10 years I’ve been big on wearing ensembles with contrasting textural interest, which means keeping my outfit to one denim item only.

But I’ll admit that with 90’s trends resurfacing, it might be fun to revisit the trend. As long as there is a new twist. If not, it’s one item of denim at a time for me.

A snood is the combination of a scarf and a hood. I‘ve seen the concept made of polar fleece in sporting goods stores and ski shops, but I haven’t seen the item make a fashion statement until this season. The ones you see below are designer and exorbitant, but my guess is that it won’t be long before the likes of H&M, Topshop, MNG and Zara have it knocked off to perfection at a fraction of the cost.

The look is pretty over the top, but practical at the same time. I guess you could wear a woolly hat and scarf, or a hooded jacket and scarf to achieve the same cozy effect. You’d have hat hair either way, but at least with a separate hat and scarf, you’d have the advantage of your hair peaking through which is often more attractive.

Will you be wearing a snood this winter?

The tough gal biker look is bigger than ever and there is no stopping the trend. So if you love it like I do, you’re in for a treat.

Waistcoats, or vests, are generally great items to use as transitioning pieces from Summer into Autumn. This season it’s all about the motorcycle waistcoat as an edgier alternative to the classic kind and I’m digging the rocker vibe.

Waistcoats are fabulous because they offer just as much tailoring and layering appeal as jackets sans the sleeves, which means it’s a cooler option all round. Remember that you don’t need to keep a waistcoat zipped or buttoned up. Sometimes they are more flattering unfastened because this creates a strong vertical line down the front of the body, drawing the eye upwards and elongating your look.

There are countless ways of incorporating a moto waistcoat into ensembles. Try it over a graphic T, button down shirt, blouse, piece of knitwear or frock. Dress it up or down with sass and verve and watch those heads turn. Forum member Laura shows us how it’s done with style.

A black or brown leather (faux leather) motorcycle waistcoat is not your only option. Think different colours, like caramel and grey, and different fabrications, like Ponte knits and denim. I’d love to get my hands on an emerald green moto waistcoat with tarnished silver hardware.

I’m getting more and more frustrated with sleeve lengths in stores. Many of them just aren’t flattering. At one point, I thought I was being overly critical, but when Kendall Farr confirmed my suspicions in her latest book, Style Evolution, I felt that my frustrations were justified. Kendal says:

“Most manufacturers really don’t understand the flattering sleeve issue. Unless an arm is slim and toned, caps or lengths that draw a line across the bicep are fattening. I buy my favorite T-shirts in long sleeves and take them to my drycleaner to shorten to anywhere from just above to just below the elbow. Plays up a slim forearm; disguises the rest”

A sleek sleeve that ends around the elbow, as Kendal describes, is in my opinion the most flattering length of sleeve on any arm. It’s where the hem of the sleeve cuts the arm in half, or thereabouts, that makes visual sense. Long sleeves and sleeveless garments are flattering too. The former covers the arm completely, while the latter bares all, thereby creating equally long, lean lines.

And then there’s the rest. Sleeves that end at unflattering lengths somewhere between sleeveless and short sleeves are in abundance. And they are the most difficult sleeve lengths to wear! As much as I love to wear sleeveless garments and encourage others of all ages and sizes to do so as well, I realize that many women prefer to wear sleeves. And because retail is cap-sleeve-obsessed, this is what most women end up wearing, especially if a top fits well in every other respect. Not so fab.

Help us out retailers. Getting this right should be easy. You don’t need to stop producing cap sleeves – there are women who sport them beautifully. But variety is the spice of life, so offer a deeper assortment of flattering sleeve lengths and you’ll probably sell more items. I’m putting in a special request for elbow-length sleeves because they’re flop proof.

Hope our retailers are listening.