Fashion Tips for Over Knee Boots

Over knee boots will never lose their appeal as long as they enhance women's appearance and help them at least look like they're prepared to weather the elements. For centuries, this is a look ladies have relied on for protection and status points. However, there are some foolproof suggestions for wearing knee-high boots stylishly.

Year after year, over knee boots get re-tooled as wardrobe necessities. The only fool-proof way to wear them is to have long and skinny legs. If that's not an option, keep scanning the stores and reports from the runways for tips on finding boot styles that suit you, paying proper attention to proportion. Knee-high boots accentuate, for better, or worse, a third of a woman's physique. The top designers in New York, Paris and Milan never run out of ideas for elongating a woman's figure and helping her appear assertive when she needs to with the over knee boots.

Top U.S. sportswear designer Tommy Hilfiger showed women a way to wear over knee boots sensibly--with mid-thigh camel skirts or over trim-fit jeans for a timeless look. Elsewhere in Manhattan, designers like Yigal Azrouel suggest a "Heroine Chic" look with a chiseled, kick-butt attitude to them.

Don't wear over knee boots unless you intend to make an unabashed fashion statement. In many workplaces, they may look too provocative and if they're worn out at night, they'll often appear suggestive. There is nothing tame about knee-high boots because they draw attention to a woman's legs.

Whether it's an Ann Demeulemeester's position (pony skin boots with shiny cap toes and ankle chains, or Jean-Paul Gaultier's garish blue suede boots with matching tent-striped stockings, designers tend to let their imaginations run wild where this boot look is concerned. Expect to pay more for them as well. Over knee boots require far more material to make than a pair of shoes and the cost for designer boots gets passed along to consumers.

There's always the "Rough Riders" look as a knee-high boot alternative. Rick Owens' most recent take featured flared biker leather covering tight black jeans, while Gareth Pugh's patent-leather boots flared out from the knee and were stacked on 3-inch wedge heels. Some over knee boot styles leave longer more lasting impressions than others. For instance, Fendi's shown a version that resembles elongated, satiny spats, with the forefoot peeking out of a wedged ballerina heel. Miuccia Prada took the plunge with rubber-like platforms paired with tweedy shorts, sweaters and peacoats.