Wide-legged pants and jeans are all the rage this season. Voluminous slacks always remind me of the panache that Katherine Hepburn sported in the ‘40’s. I adore the sophisticated and dramatic style that they can convey, but it’s not that easy finding a flattering pair. Here are some guidelines based on my experience with dressing different body types in this style:

• Don’t go too wide at the hem if you are petite – you’ll look like you’re drowning in all that fabric
• Be mindful of cuffs – wide cuffs generally work best on taller women because they tend to shorten the line of the leg on petites and women with long waists. 
• Opt for mid-waisted and flat fronted waist bands if you are curvy – pleated, paper-bag and high-waisted styles add volume where you won’t want them to and are therefore best on straight boyish body types.
• Keep them fairly fitted on the waist, hip and thigh area –  you might feel dumpy instead of streamlined and elegant when wide-legged pants are also wide from the top down. Keeping them fitted is a better option. 
• Get the length right – it’s imperative that this style of pant skims the surface of the ground for that effective “leg slimming” effect.

The right pair of wide-legged pants can make you look slender, while the wrong pair can make you look stout. If you still don’t fancy the look of them, stick to the forever-flattering boot cut.

Wide-legged jeans from Victoria’s Secret at the the perfect length and width.

Happy anniversary Youlookfab! I can scarcely believe that it has been an entire year since my first post. I thought we could celebrate by reflecting on the posts and categories that have been the most popular.

Top 10 posts:

1. The pretty pear (winner by far!)
2. Perfect pants lengths please
3. What is your fashion persona
4. Smart casual for ladies
5. The racy rectangle
6. The androgynous look
7. The body type balancing act
8. Rethinking the skinny
9. The statuesque inverted triangle
10. Dressing your age

Top 10 categories:

1. Body type (winner by far!)
2. Casual wear
3. Winter 2006/2007
4. Instant style tips
5. Wedding wear
6. Event wear
7. European style
8. Men’s style
9. Accessories
10. Dress codes

Here are my favourite posts:

1. High style in Hong Kong (my home town!)
2. The pretty pear (so many people found this useful)
3. Gap’s decline (fascinating industry story)
4. Perfect pant lengths please (my pet peeve)
5. Rethinking the skinny (I warmed to skinnies… especially for riding boots)
6. The flop proof outfit (such an easy formula)
7. Look slimmer in your clothes (skinny is unhealthy, but slimming never hurts)
8. The power of accessories (the key to your fashion personality)
9. Perfect polish (the importance of grooming)
10. Wearing yellow (the “it” colour this season)

Perhaps you’d like to share some of your favourites?

A big thank you to all our subscribers, daily readers and occasional visitors for making our readership what it is today. It wouldn’t be the same without you.

I like the look of translucent gloss, but I battle with its sticky consistency. Nevertheless, I was convinced that there had to be something out there to satisfy my picky make-up persona. So after lots of unpressured collaboration with the staff at Sephora, I found two good solutions:

• Cargo Purse lip gloss is especially non-sticky and feels just like lipstick. It isn’t quite as shiny, but that seems a fair tradeoff.
• Shiseido Make-up lip gloss is so light and subtle that you’ll barely notice that you’re wearing it.

I’m still not a gloss girl (I prefer lipstick), but it’s nice to know that less gooey options are available. Are there any other non-sticky glosses that you can recommend?

These glosses are in the $16-$20 range at Sephora.

Pant length is the first aspect of an outfit that gets my attention, because lengthening your legs is always flattering. With Summer around the corner, it’s extremely important to make sure that you are sporting the best cropped pant length for your body type. Here are some guidelines:

• At the knee is the most flattering length for most body types. For some women this will mean on the knee, and for others up to 4 inches below the knee. This length shows off your legs at their best because they’ll look their longest and slimmest. If you have shapely calves, you’ll want to accentuate their roundness, so don’t cover them up.
• Between the base of your calf muscle and your ankle is the most difficult length to wear with style. Unless the capris are tight and you are tall with really slim and shapely legs, avoid this option because your legs will look shorter than they are. You’ll find that even lanky models sport this pant length with heels in order to elongate their legs (which leaves little hope for the rest of us).
• Just above the ankle lengths are generally unflattering. I can appreciate this “of-the-moment” fashion look in tapered skinnies when matched with high heels on a the correct body type; but other than that, steer clear. 

Cropped pant lengths are not an easy one to get right. You might find yourself having to alter lengths for them to look best. You might even consider shortening some of the pairs you already have in your wardrobe.

Flattering lengths from Ann Taylor and Nordstrom.

Risky lengths from Ann Taylor and Nordstrom.