The wide side

THE High Street has embraced the trend for wide-leg trousers with much enthusiasm, not least because they are so easy to wear.

I say “easy to wear” and so they are, in that they are simple to pull on. But buyer beware, because they are not a look that is easy for everyone to pull off.

As evidenced by the spring/summer international catwalks, it’s all about proportion and balance this season, and wide-leg trousers and palazzo pants, are very much part of that trend. At Jil Sander, for example, voluminous floor-length wide-leg loon pants with small peplum overfolded waistbands, all in block bright colours or in white, were teamed with plain white or black short sleeve T-shirts. They were 92cm wide – almost maxi skirts – but they did look rather marvellous, the volume of the bottoms emphasised by the fitted simplicity of the tops.

Needless to say, this is a look that the short and curvy should probably avoid, but that is certainly not to say that they should avoid all wide-leg trousers, far from it. In fact, they can be slimming and leg-lengthening and help tremendously with re-proportioning the body, a great boon for those who legs are on the short side. But choose fitted wide trousers, that is, ones that fit your hips and skim your thighs, are cut to go in slightly at your knee, and then flare out again gradually from knee to ankle.

Find a pair that fit all the way to the floor, when you wear high heels, and you will be guaranteed extra inches of height and reduced inches of width. And if you want to enhance the effect even further, choose an all-in-one, or go for separates in the same colour (and it’s a great way to wear bold colour, if you’re small).

If you have a small waist, make sure you cinch it in with a belt, and this season these range from wide cummerbund geisha styles to fine little white and gold strips. Experiment and see which work best for you.

Go to Gap for jeans-style bootleg fitted flares, as these suit most shapes and sizes, and go for flat-fronted if you want to keep the silhouette even slimmer.

At the other end of the spectrum, there are palazzo pants, which are pretty much the same width and volume from the hips to the ankle, and these are great for tall types, who can wear them with longer tops if they choose (although that’s a lot of fabric). But shorter folk can given them a go too. Again, it’s all about keeping the proportion, so go for a fitted cardigan or for a jacket that stops well about the hips – just below the waist in a waistcoat style would be good, and even better would be a waistcoat itself, because at heart, this is a fabulous 1970s’ revival of long and flowing clubland looks, topped off with floppy straw hats and flowing scarves. Ibiza, here we come.