Jeans with raw hems on flared cropped silhouettes and culottes are a great, trendy way to refresh your denim capsule. But few are available in short lengths, and regular lengths can be too long for proportions that are just flattering enough. 

The good news is that you can keep the finish of the raw hem and shorten the length. Simply cut the jeans to the desired length yourself with a sharp pair of scissors and leave the hems unfinished. There is no need to hem the denim or sew in a seam above the raw edge. The hem will fray perfectly after a laundry cycle and look completely fine (just like the original raw hem). Feel free to cut off some of the longer threads as the hem frays over time. 

My white Current Elliot cropped straight leg jeans were just a little too long when I wear them with flat silver oxfords. (I am that pedantic about pant lengths and will split hairs over half an inch). So I boldly, but carefully, hacked off a little less than an inch to see what would happen. The length was perfect and the hems looked great too. These relaxed fit flared crops have become a wardrobe workhorse and I wear them all the time. That means I launder them frequently, and the new length raw hems handle themselves beautifully after each wash. Take a pair of scissors to denim ladies, and sort out those pesky pant lengths.

The denim on denim trend — or “double denim” — means wearing two or more items of denim in one outfit. In other words, you’ll pair bottoms like jeans, a denim skirt, shorts or culottes with tops like a denim shirt, jacket, vest, tunic or chambray blouse. Or you’ll wear a denim dress or denim jumpsuit. 

Double denim has been trending for many seasons. The vibe is often thought of as overly masculine, stiff, too cowboy, or just too much of a good thing. Personally, I like the look of double denim when the outfit is pulled together in a certain way. These street style shots provide great examples of the vibe:

• Flouncy Fabness
• Mismatched denim and bare shoulders
• Lots of skin
• Magically Matchy-Matchy
• Statement white jeans with a dressy bag and shoes
• Fringed Fabness
• With Statement bling
• Skin and heels
• Pastel Denim
• With black jeans
• Snug fit and pretty support act
• Bling
• Column of Denim
• Another Column of Denim
• Skin, polish and glam support act

Based on these visuals it’s clear that adding a glam integrity to double denim is a fun way to wear the look. It makes the outfit less masculine, more alluring, more girly, and a lot softer. Here are seven effective styling strategies. Feel free to combine several of the tips in a single double denim outfit. 

1. Combine Two Denim Washes or Colours

Pair a denim blue top and bottom in different blue washes. Or pair blue denim with white or black denim. Pairing white or black jeans with a blue denim shirt, jacket or tunic is a popular rendition. 

2. Wear a Chambray Top

Chambray is a softer and a “denim-lite” way to wear denim on top. Think of a chambray top in all sorts of silhouettes, and not just a shirt. 

3. Add Feminine Footwear

Heels, pointy toes, ankle straps, pumps, cage heels, strappy sandals and any other shoe style that’s NOT Tomboy. Metallic footwear creates a nice juxtaposition with double denim because it’s neutral, glitzy and bright. 

4. Expose Some Skin

Unbutton the front of a denim shirt a little lower and showcase a lace camisole, or a bit of lacy bra if you dare. Scrunch long sleeves to bare forearm skin. Combine a sleeveless top with a vest. Wear a denim mini skirt, or a longer skirt with a high slit. Or showcase shoulders with an off-the-shoulder top. 

5. Add Bling & Polish

Add shiny jewellery to create a textural layer against the denim. Add a dressy and structured bag. Fingernail polish, toenail polish, and make-up adds that next layer of glam to the outfit. 

6. Wear Tailored Fit Jeans 

Wearing snug jeans increases the alluring-factor of the outfit, and offsets the fluid fit of the top. Although fashionable, combining baggy boyfriend jeans with a roomy denim boyfriend shirt or denim jacket and chunky flat oxfords does not have the same girly and glam effect. 

7. Create a Column of Colour 

Layer jackets or vests over a column of colour to break up the expanse of blue denim. Toppers can be fitted, fluid or oversized. You can even add a denim jacket in a contrasting wash to the column of shirt and jeans.

I’m back to loving double denim. I wear blue denim dresses. I wear blue denim tunics with fitted cropped white jeans. I wear a blue denim shirt (or jacket) with fitted cropped white jeans, and have also worn them with fitted cropped blue jeans and a snug blue denim skirt. I now make a point of adding heels, a structured bag and pearls to the outfit to glam things up. 

Over to you. Do you wear double denim?

Spring is a great time to refresh all sorts of grooming routines. Here are my favourite beauty tips for improved skin, eyes and lips, and an all-round healthy appearance. 

1. Cleanse normal and dry skin once a day

Cleansing your face — no matter how gentle the product — dries out your skin. Cleanse your face at night if you have normal to dry skin and don’t cleanse with product in the morning. It’s AMAZING what a difference this small tip can do for your skin. 

2. Fill the spaces between your lashes with eyeliner

I started doing this last year and haven’t looked back because I love the visual effect. The technique really brings out your eyes. I apply dark blue eyeliner with a brush to the inside of my top eyelid to fill the gaps between my mascara’ed lashes. It creates a line along the base of your lashes that is strong, yet subtle. The line looks more connected and “natural” than applying eyeliner above your lashes. 

3. Wear a fashionable hat to keep the sun off your face

Wear a fun hat if you don’t like to wear sunscreen. Or wear both sunscreen and a hat! The sun can feel glorious against your skin, but it’s harmful so protect your skin from the sun from an early age. 

4. Exercise is one of the best ways to create a dewy complexion

Our skin tends to look its most healthy and radiant after exercise. Mine certainly does after a yoga class or a long walk. Exercise regularly, and you will see the effect on your skin. 

5. Apply lip balm before lipstick to tone down its colour

I love to wear lipstick, but battle with bright shades of red that tend to take over my look. So I apply lip balm before I use red lipstick to soften its dramatic effect. Feel free to do the same with any shade of lipstick. 

6. Use dark brown mascara instead of black for a softer appearance

Black mascara can look overly harsh when you have blonde features, low contrast features, or a pale complexion. Using brown mascara creates a softer and more natural effect. 

7. Defining brows and lips is very effective

Do not underestimate the power of a visually defined brow line and lip because both features frame the face. The definition can be bold or more subtle. For subtle definition, dye your brows if you don’t like filling them in, and choose a light gloss if you don’t like lipstick. 

8. Keep facial powder to a minimum

Personally, I love the look of skin that is shiny like an apple. Powder creates a matte look that prevents your face from looking dewy and healthy. So unless you have oily skin, use facial powder sparingly or not at all.

9. Kneading dough is the best manicure

After a professional manicure, my hands look polished. But when I knead dough, my hands look so much better. The butter in the dough is a natural moisturizer and the kneading action is a good massage.

10. Get enough sleep

A rested face and body looks and feels best. I’m not good at getting enough sleep, and the bags under my eyes are proof of that. But when I do get enough sleep, I look brighter and feel better. 

After using dark brown mascara all my life, on an absolute whim I started using blue mascara a few months ago and like the subtle change. Perhaps I’ll go green for high Summer. Over to you. Share YOUR favourite beauty tips in the comments section.

This ensemble was inspired by Kit and Ace, and by a few of my clients who like to dress this way. These clients have denim light wardrobes and enjoy wearing outfits that are avant-garde. The palettes of their wardrobes are very neutral and solid. Black and grey are dominant colours. But every so often there’s a white or brightly coloured item to liven things up. 

Avant-garde outfits can be over the top, maximal, very fashion-forward and complicated to put together. But there are easier versions that can be pulled together with silhouettes and proportions that are more familiar. It’s all about pairing two architectural items in the right palette and finishing off the outfit with trendy footwear and bag. 

Here are the components:

Architectural Bottoms: You’re after a pair of cropped wide leg pants that are full (like culottes) or that taper at the hem (as shown here). Harem pants are another option. You can also layer a black skirt over cropped leggings or cigarette pants. Feel free to substitute the look with an architectural skirt if trousers aren’t your thing. Fabrics can be knitted or woven. 

Cropped Top: Short tops create easy outfit structure when worn with voluminous architectural bottoms, which makes their cropped length important. Silhouettes can be boxy or fitted, and woven or knitted. We don’t think of cropped tops as architectural, but some of the silhouettes can be just that. 

Optional Topper: You’re after another short boxy silhouette to top off the look. Or layer a long cocoon coat over the lot. 

Trendy Footwear: Think sandal booties, oxfords, chunky sandals or flatforms. This is not the time to wear a refined pointy toe ankle strap pump because it deviates from the vibe. 

Accessories: I vote patent tote, upscale backpack or oversized clutch for the bag. Add arty and quirky jewellery pieces if you like jewellery. Finish off with eyewear, headgear and watch as desired.