In American English a jumper is a sleeveless, collarless dress that you wear over a blouse, shirt or knitted top. In British English, a jumper is a pullover, or what Americans call a sweater. South Africans call this a jersey (and use “sweater” to describe a knitted long sleeved T). I call an American jumper a pinafore, and have a love-hate relationship with the item after being forced to wear one as part of a school uniform for 12 years.

When I used the word “pinafore” in the States I got blank stares. I used the word “jumper”, meaning sweater, and got equally confused looks. But I can’t get used to the American usage because a jumper will always be an item of knitwear in my mind. So, I now use “dress” when I mean pinafore. I use the words “pullover” and “cardigan” when I’m referring to knitwear. I keep the word “jumper” for home.

When I have a change of heart about a fashion item, I own up to it. If you’ve been with YLF since its inception, you might remember that I was challenged by skinny jeans when they first resurfaced over three years ago. I blogged about not liking the look and being unable to wear skinnies again after wearing them to death in the 80’s. But shortly after that, I was all over the silhouette and subsequently wrote about giving them a second chance. I’m grateful I did, because my wardrobe wouldn’t function without multiple pairs of skinny jeans.

I’ve had a similar change of heart about harem pants and it took a trip Israel to help me get the look. When I saw women wearing harem pants with sass in Tel Aviv, I felt silly and narrow-minded that I’d boxed the trend as a no-no. Shame on me. But I know better now. While I’m still not a fan of the styles with very low hanging crotches, the others look great. The harem and harem-esque style pants in jersey knit and denim that you see pictured here get my vote.  If I could find a woven silk pair, I’d definitely give them a try. The cropped versions remind me of pedal pushers and knickerbockers, which I loved wearing 25 years ago. I guess I got a little nostalgic on this one.

But the harem pants below don’t make it through my filter. They look like nappies gone wrong no matter how you wear them. I wonder if the trend will stick around? My guess is that the more wearable styles with regular fitting rises will become more mainstream while the others will fall away. Time will tell.

I’m going with yay: everyone can look good in sleeveless items of clothing. I don’t think you need to have slim, toned arms, or young firm skin to pull off a sleeveless garment. Plus sized actresses like Queen Latifah and Jennifer Hudson look stunning in sleeveless garments, as do woman over the age of 60 like Helen Mirren, Catherine Deneuve and Vera Wang.

Sleeveless items come in many styles so it’s a question of choosing wisely. The style you choose need not be strappy, sloppy or overly revealing. If you’re shy about showing the top parts of your arms, opt for silhouettes in sturdy, better-end fabrics with good underarm coverage, a fuller shoulder line and a modest neckline. Paying attention to these details makes all the difference.

I’m not saying that you must wear sleeveless garments. If you’re more comfortable covering your arms then that’s fine too. But on the off chance that you had your doubts, I hope you feel encouraged. Baring your arms is an ideal way to beat the heat.

It’s another blast from the past. Remember the calf-length zippered jeans that we wore 20 years ago? I’ll admit I wore the leg-shortening style back then until my Mum said one day : “Those jeans make your legs look short. It’s not very elegant. Your Levis look much better”. I never wore those zippered jeans again.

But my fondness for zipper detailing continues, so I was thrilled to see zippered skinnies back on the fashion scene. They are more sleek and streamlined this time round, and thankfully at a much better length, WITH stretch. I adore the way the open zipper looks like a vent cascading over the top part of the foot, especially when worn with a heel. Subtle and alluring, yet interesting and edgy. Very fab.

Zippered skinnies look nice zipped up at the hems too (picture on the far right). They’ll scrunch voluminously around the ankle when the length is longer (I prefer skinny jeans to scrunch). I’m all over this trend and hope to add a pair of zippered skinnies to my denim collection this year. I wonder if Mum would have liked this version better.