On one of her recent shows, Oprah talked about finally discovering the combination of high heels and comfort in a single shoe. More specifically, a boot in the Nike Air collection by Cole Haan (a wholly owned subsidiary of NIKE Inc.). The shoes in this collection have an engineered “air bag” in the fore part and heel of the shoe, thereby providing a comfortable cushion for your feet.

Gordon Thompson, the man behind the creation of this special footwear range, spent 10 years developing footwear for Nike before becoming the creative director of Cole Haan shoes. Originally trained as an architect, Thompson had the vision of marrying running shoe technology with luxuriously crafted high heels.

When Oprah said “This is life changing. It’s not a cure for cancer, but it is a cure for your feet“, I felt compelled to see for myself. After trying a few styles, I too was convinced that these shoes are more comfortable than other high heels. Trouble is, there isn’t a heel in the collection lower than 3 inches, which makes for difficult walking no matter how cushioned and comfortable the interior. I’d love to see Cole Haan come out with a 2 inch heel using the same Nike Air technology.

You might want to give these shoes a try if you can walk in 3-inch heels, but unless this collection brings out a lower heel, they’ll stay in the category of “great sitting shoes” for me.

The boots that changed Oprah’s life, and pumps and wedges from the same Cole Haan collection.

I get a lot of questions about fashion personas. Many women feel that they aren’t a perfect fit for one of them in particular. That’s ok! The descriptions of the personas are extreme. You don’t need to be a long-haired, bead-wearing hippie from the ’60s to be classified as Bohemian. You don’t need to stick to navy twin sets, tan pants and loafers to be a modern-classic. And you don’t need to be a platform-wearing, skinny jeans girl to be a trendy fashionista.

Instead, you could be:

• An artistic urbanite who was in heaven this season with all the black and grey fashion. But you also chose to wear a bright green patent tote while keeping your earrings and necklaces exotic.
• A classic fashionista who felt that she couldn’t wear skinnies, but embraced waist-belts, longer length tunics and bubble skirts, without giving up  button down shirts, cardigans and bootcuts.

Our personal style is often a mixture of more than one persona. Once we’ve taken into account our body type, age, personality, lifestyle and budget we can adopt an appropriate fashion persona or become a mixture of a few. Sometimes, we might love the idea of a particular persona but look so much better dressed as another. Fashion personas can also change over time. We might feel the need to adopt a trendier look after being modernly-classic or sporty for too long. Or, it might be time to become an updated classic or retro urbanite after years of being a bo-ho hippie. 

Develop an individual sense of style and make sure that you experiment with current trends all the time. Don’t be afraid to try new things. And don’t worry about having a constantly-evolving fashion persona. The only constant in life is change.

I like to watch the fashion on the red carpet during the award ceremony season. This is the best time for stylists and designers to shine. Every year there seems to be a trend and so far “the white dress” was a popular choice at this year’s Golden Globes. While only one of the white dresses was amongst my personal favourites – it was nice to see a contrast to the overwhelming number of black dresses that have dominated the party scene over the holiday season.

I had expected to see lots of jewel-toned dresses (with the imminent explosion of colour for Spring 2007), but they were few and far between. Instead, shiny metals, svelte black numbers and neutral shades were in abundance.

My favourite dresses this year:

• Emily Blunt – in white and silver
• Naomi Watts – in periwinkle blue and metallic embroidery 
• Cate Blanchett – in black lace 
• Eva Longoria – in Grecian navy blue 
• Angelina Jolie – in smoky grey 
• Jennifer Lopez – in black and gold
• Reese Witherspoon – in acidic yellow
• Beyoncé – in glitzy gold
• Meryl Streep – in Grecian nude

Choosing the best dresses is subjective and personal. Stylists will differ enormously on this topic and so will your friends. I’d love to hear your list if you happened to watch the show.

See what the E! online fashion police have to say about Golden Globes fashion.

Winter is the perfect time to wear a hat. It not only adds interest to your outfit, but keeps you warm – extremely practical if you commute on foot. Newsboys and Cadets are the “it” hats of the season. They are more or less the same silhouette with slight differences in the crown and head of the hat. Newsboys tend to be slouchier than Cadets, which fit more snugly around the head.

Hats are not for everyone (especially if you fear “hat-hair”). But you might be surprised how gorgeous you look if you give one a try. Anthropologie and Urban Outfitters have an excellent hat selection this season.

And be sure to keep your hats in an accessible spot. We often forget about this accessory when its hidden somewhere in the back of our wardrobe.

Roomy Newsboys from Anthropologie.

Tailored Cadets from Anthropologie (left) and Urban Outfitters (right)