A mannequin on display at Soma Intimates caught my attention last week. She was wearing super sleek underwear accompanied by the slogan “the one and only vanishing edge panty”. Curious, I went inside and found a whole slew of panties and shapewear in Soma’s “vanishing edge collection”. I promptly bought a pair of boy shorts to put them to the test.

They are fabulous. The leg openings are lined with an ultra thin layer of rubber to ensure that your undies stay put. And it really works. Ultra soft and breathable microfiber, a cotton gusset and an assortment of colours might make these knickers the answer to your thong-free days. They launder well and the rubberized finish has not irritated my sensitive skin. I’m chuffed.

The sales assistant suggested going up a size if you’re a little curvier on the derriere or thigh because panty lines can’t vanish if the rubber is too tight. I’m converted and have made use of their offer by getting 3 for $27. Here’s to no more panty lines.

I personally like the look and coverage of boy shorts, but there are many other options if that’s not your cup of tea. This collection is available online if you don’t have a Soma store nearby.

The site was looking a little cluttered after the addition of the store area on the right, so we fast-tracked a visual refresh that was already underway. Hopefully you’ll find that things flow a little better with the updated design.

We also used the opportunity to make a few changes to the forum. Most importantly, we added two new areas:

1. Your Body Type: This is a place to talk about your body type. How do you fit into the various classifications? Are there general rules you can follow when selecting items and putting together ensembles? Every body is unique, but there are also definitely shared attributes and lots of opportunities to share advice and experiences.
2. What You Wore Today: People were so excited by this topic that we thought we’d give it a home of its own. So if you don’t have your own site for posting your daily outfit (like Kasmira’s excellent blog), then you can do so here. Even if you do have your own site, feel free to post links on our forum. Please post each new outfit (or group of outfits) separately, and try to use a descriptive title.

We retired the poor old “Fashion Industry” area because it wasn’t getting much traffic, but all of its posts are still available under “Everything Else”. If you have any feedback, or problems that you would like to report, go ahead and use our brand new contact form.

The YLF forum is, as we say, going like a Boeing. A big thank you to existing forum members and a warm welcome to newbies. Your articulate, informative and passionate conversations increase the style quotient of this site.

I love everything in my wardrobe, but do have favourites. These are the items that make me feel extra special when I put them on. Some of these items are worn daily, whereas others are worn weekly, monthly or a few times a year. They are extremely versatile and I’d really miss them if they were gone.

• My footwear collection. I do not have loads of shoes, but I am proud of the pairs I own. It took a great deal of time, patience, discipline and expense to accommodate my fussy feet.
• Black sateen trench. This item is machine washable and travels with me everywhere. It’s perfect with jeans and Converse, and takes me straight to a formal function over a cocktail dress at night. Brilliant.
• Cream trench. I could put this item over pajamas and I’d look fab. It makes a bold statement and I feel uber chic, funky and feminine when I wear it.
• Specs. I have 2 pairs of cat-eye specs that I swap daily. The one is bulky and fun, and the other is streamlined and sophisticated. My ensembles are naked without my specs (and I couldn’t see without them).
• Diesel jeans. I duplicated my ink blue, straight-leg jeans because they are fabulous in every way. They can be dressed up or down and worn with most heel heights. They do not bleed, rub or grow. I should have bought a third pair.
• Suit. I don’t wear my black baby pinstripe pants suit often, but I thoroughly enjoy wearing it when I do. I dress it up in funky ways, which makes all the difference. An Edwardian collared chiffon blouse that’s belted at the waist works beautifully under the jacket when it’s matched with red chunky patent round-toe heels and faux zebra skin clutch.
• Pearl necklace collection. I collect all sorts of necklaces with pearls in them. Short, long, funky, retro, modern, vintage, fine, chunky, plastic and classic. You name it, I’ve got it. These necklaces complete my look every day.

I hold a special place in my heart for tunics, jackets and handbags, but they didn’t quite make the cut. I’d love to hear your wardrobe favourites. As with the preferred shopping categories, I expect to see a lot of variation in your lists.

Cropped pants fall into two categories: walk shorts and capris. The distinction is based on length rather than silhouette:

• Walk shorts are pants that are cropped anywhere from just above the knee to the widest part of the calf. Clamdiggers, bemudas, pedal pushers and culottes are all forms of walk shorts.
• Capris are pants that are cropped below the calf and above the ankle. I am allergic to pants at this length. They are extremely leg shortening and unflattering. Models that sport capri lengths wear 4 inch heels which visually raises the hemline. I rest my case.

Retailers and magazines often refer to clamdiggers as capris, which confuses the issue. As long as cropped pants fall on, or above, the widest part of your calf, I’m in favour of them. Anything longer looks dumpy. Stacey London and Clinton Kelly from What Not To Wear are not opposed to capri-length pants (which explains why Stacey wears them throughout her book “Dress your Best”). We will agree to disagree.

Walk shorts at the perfect length (clamdiggers, culottes and bemudas)

Capris at an awfully unflattering length.