Clamdiggers with knee-high boots eliminate “tucking-fuss” and are quite a hip expression if the variables are right. This is not a flop-proof look: The clamdiggers need to be long-ish, and the boots have to fit snugly against the calf. Here are some “dos” and “don’ts” for the combination:

• Tucking? Yes. You can tuck if the clamdiggers are long enough. YLF Forum member Sarah did a super job of tucking clamdiggers into her new, killer riding boots.
• Above the knee clams? Maybe. I don’t think the look will work as well with above-the-knee clamdiggers. But it’s definitely worth a bash if you own a pair of clams and a set of fairly casual knee-high boots.
• Walk shorts or cropped pants? Not really. These are not ideal substitutes for clamdiggers in this formula. You’re after “the skinny jeans vibe”, sans the skinny jeans, which makes anything wider at the hems a less current look.
• Turning up the hems? Not really. You’re after a long lean line, so turning up clamdigger hems is not a good idea. Keep them either tucked or un-tucked.

I wore clams with knee high boots last season and I’m sporting the look again. Comfy, funky and practical in the Seattle rain because your jeans don’t get wet. My clams are best un-tucked and I show a bit of skin with my slightly shorter pair of brown embroidered boots (picture 3 below). That’s okay. It looks a little cheeky and I like that.

(1) Weatherproof half ‘n half low wedged boots (microfiber and cracked patent), (2) Riding boots, (3) Retro embroidered boots, (4) 20 eyelet Doc Martens .

A current, polished, pulled together and appropriate look is a prerequisite for being stylish. But there is another more subtle requirement: your style must also seem effortless. If it is forced, impractical, fussy and unnatural, you risk being dubbed a fashion victim.

“Effortless style” is a contradiction in terms because looking stylish actually requires some effort. Style icons Audrey Hepburn, Grace Kelly, Cate Blanchett, Jennifer Aniston, Kate Moss and Helen Mirren spent years honing their personal style. They did not miraculously wake up one day and look effortlessly stylish.

Achieving a stylish appearance definitely gets easier with practice, especially if you have a set of efficient and effective wardrobe choices. But irrespective of how well put together you are, your sense of style is still something you will need to maintain. You need to think about it on an ongoing basis as fashion, your body and your lifestyle change.

So how does one achieve an “effortless” sense of style? Is it about a look, or is it wrapped up in an attitude? What makes you think that someone is “trying too hard”? I have my own thoughts, but I’d love to hear yours first.

J. Crew is offering an assortment of wonderful washed-wool scarves and the picture below does not do them justice. Solid colours, ombre, or polka dots for $49 to $59. There are at least 20 different options to select from in stores at the moment and it’s well worth a look. Don’t let the uninspiring picture and lack of online choices put you off.

I have a wool allergy that makes me come out in a bad rash when I wear it close to my skin. But I’m willing to try items with a wool composition on the off chance that I can comfortably sport the item without breaking out in hives. I own a few wool pashminas that do not itch and this has given me hope.

I loved these scarves when I saw them in J. Crew and promptly tested one in store. I walked around looking at their merchandise for 10 minutes with the scarf Euro-looped around my neck. No hives, no fuss and best of all, a subtle fringe that I won’t need to remove. I was sold.

The scarves are very lightweight and come with a swing ticket that suggests three ways of tying them: “choker style”, “simple ascot” and “hacking knot”. Nice one J. Crew. If it isn’t too cold in your neck of the woods, wait a while and score this little gem when it goes on sale.

I saw green, coral, yellow, raspberry, turquoise, cream and black solid colours. There were blue, green, taupe, pink, grey and yellow ombre versions, and black, cherry, yellow and orange solids with cream polka dots. I came home with the black and cream polka dot and the client I was with bought the green one.

This look is fringe, very fringe. I can’t think of a more dramatic pair of peds than high-heeled, over-the-knee boots. The Chanel pair Anne Hathaway wore in “The Devil Wears Prada” caused quite a stir.

I’m on the fence about the look. Part of me feels that a black, pointy-toed and stiletto heeled pair looks trashy and just far too much leather for one outfit. Throw patent into the mix and it’s dominatrix deluxe. But another part of me feels that a flat, suede pair in a colour other than black might be fun if you have the gams. A pair like the taupe ones below could be sweet under a shorter flowy dress with tights, or over skinny jeans with girly blouse. The pair worn with the pink tights looks equestrian and I rather like that look too.

Help me decide whether over-the-knee boots are sassy, or unstylish. Is there a way of making them look effortlessly chic, or will they always scream fashion victim?