Fab Tip

If you're bored of bright coloured tights, or if lace tights just aren't for you, maybe you're ready for the next challenge — floral tights. I've had a pair sitting at home for a while, but have been too nervous to try them on. Now that I've warmed to them, I thought I'd give them a shot and see what you think. The style is currently available all over the High Street from River Island to Dorothy Perkins, but my pair are by Celeste Stein (£12).

They're not quite as bright as the picture suggests (a relief), but I still want to break up the pattern. My advice is to keep it simple. Pairing them with stripes, dots or tartan would be more of an advanced complicated look to pull off.

They looked great with a short black dress as they added a shot of colour for Spring and over the knee boots helped to stop the pattern being overwhelming. If you're not comfortable with such a short skirt then try a longer length with heels that just reveals a hint of the pattern.

So you've probably already taken my word for it that tartan is a trend and have seen it emerge on the High Street but when you get the items home, how do you actually wear it? Well I have taken on the task for you!

I picked a tulip shaped check skirt (£15) from Dorothy Perkins which I particularly liked because of the unusual shape. The pleating detail give the skirt a Vivienne Westwood edge and definitely makes it look more expensive.

I really like plaid skirts, particularly in a classic school girl way with a black jumper so I teamed it with a roll neck batwing jumper. I then thought the ensemble would be finished out nicely with a pair of heeled brogues but it's so cold today that I had to go for flat boots.

Plaid skirts are so detailed that it's best to keep everything else plain and simple. It's a great winter item as it adds colour to a look and tartan is often quite a heavy weave. What do you think?

You'd have to have been on another planet since February to not know that tartan is bang on trend this autumn. Appearing on the catwalk at House of Holland and D&G the trend has now filtered to the High Street and to tights! I decided to try out a pair to find out how to wear this season's hottest trend.

I chose a tartan pair by Pamela Mann (£7.95) and was initally very excited by the prospect. They're quite bright which is a bit shocking and they weren't as thick as I expected. I wanted to make the tights look as punk as possible so I teamed them with a pair of buckled ankle boots.

I wore them out to a party with black shorts and a black vest keeping the attention on the bright tights. I also tried them with a knitted pinafore dress (right) which mixed textures. I found the knitted dress was more flattering (possibly because it was slightly longer) and also thought that if you wore flat knee-high boots that it would be a good daytime ensemble. What do you think of the tights?

When I first found out about Gio Goi's crystal wash jeans (£65) I just had to see them for myself. Designers are continually trying to end the skinny jeans phenomenon but most people (myself included) can't seem to give them up. The jeans looked very unflattering in the picture so I wondered how I might wear them.

When I first put the jeans on I was impressed by the fit. I am not Kate-Moss-skinny but I don't think you have to be to wear skinny trousers. The waist wasn't exactly loose but, as you can see from the picture, the leg was baggy enough to look flattering. To what to wear with these jeans just read more

Stirrup tights (aka ski pant tights) have been on my radar for a while. Queen of leggings, Lindsay Lohan, was wearing the trend a while ago but this week Katie Holmes stepped out in a pair. I wanted to try the tights for myself to see just how wearable stirrups really are.

Never one to be subtle, I chose a bright purple pair of tights (£5.95) from LoveColour-LoveTights.com. I'm not a big fan of footless tights and generally only like them with a bit of a heel. There's also no point wearing stirrup tights with boots so I opted for a heeled sandal to fully show off the ski pant detailing.

I then added a jumper dress for an evening look. I'm a big fan of jumper dresses (they cover a multitude of sins) but equally good would be a black shift dress or bubble skirt. Stirrup tights are great for winter as they allow you to wear sandals without getting that horrible sandals-tights combo (visible seem across your toes) whilst still keeping your legs warm. I liked the tights and the look they created but they pinched the heel of my foot slightly and you might end up with numb toes.

PVC or wetlook leggings have been en vogue for several season now. They instantly update a look, are comfortable and go with an array of different outfits. However, this season the trend has stepped up a notch with the introduction of wetlook tights.

I decided to try a pair of purple wetlook tights by Aristoc (£15). The tights are possibly easier to wear in black but I love the aubergine colour and it matched the floral print of my dress perfectly. Unlike opaque tights, wetlook tights do not stretch much which means they are not super comfortable. The close fitting style actually makes them more flattering (trust me!) as it creates a smooth silhouette and they stayed up all night.

For more on wetlook tights just read more

Last week I suggested ways to wear coloured-opaque tights, and today I'm continuing the tights focus with on-trend lace. Lace appeared on the catwalk at Prada where it shaped everything from skirts, dresses and handbags, but how does that translate to mere mortals like us, you ask?

There is a lot of lace on the High Street nowadays, but wearing them in the form of tights is an easy way to look stylish without going all out. They are also classy and look incredible when paired with another Autumn trend; tartan. I decided to team a pair of Fantasia tights by Jonathan Aston (£10) with a traditional tartan mini skirt for an Agyness Deyn-style punk look.

For how to wear white lace read more

This season as we see the return of the skirt we also see a rise in importance of tights. Tights (also known as pantyhose on the otherside of the pond) come in all colours and prints for Autumn 2008 including in the key trends of tartan and lace. Over the next few weeks I'll be suggesting ways to wear the new seemingly-scary styles by sharing my own legs with you!

Firstly I'm going to tell you about opaque bright coloured tights. This is one of the easiest and cheapest ways to stay on trend right now. I tried a royal blue pair by Jonathan Aston at mytights.com (£5) first and decided to team them with another primary colour for the biggest impact. Despite being told that I slightly resembled a smurf I liked the colour and they made me feel like Katie White from the Ting Tings. Although they are a relatively cheap style they were still thick enough and the colour pigment was certainly adequately bright!

To find out about how to wear red tights read more