When my mother came into my bedroom and surveyed the 12 pairs of knee high boots lined up against the wall she commented that I had a lot of boots. This may be true, but I wear them almost every day in winter and I’ve been collecting them for a decade or more.
I love knee high boots and think that if you live in a climate where it gets cold, they are an essential item in your wardrobe no matter your size, shape or age.
Knee high boots have a great leg lengthening effect as they act as a low vamp shoe. The leg starts from the toe, rather than the ankle and make everyone’s legs look longer and slimmer. Win!
They are also really practical, keeping your legs warm and allowing you to wear skirts and dresses in winter when otherwise you might feel too cold.
That you can wear both flat options as well as heels with skirts and dresses gives you so much more variety and also makes them a very functional footwear option.
Ideally if you want your legs to look longer, then go for tights/hosiery in a similar color to the boot, rather than an alternate color so there is no extra horizontal line created between the boot, and the hem.
There are so many great boot options around and come in all calf widths too which cater to a great variety of leg shapes. Plus they are great for balancing a slim jean or legging with your hips.
I own heels and flats in the same color. And for my everyday style black knee high boots I own some with a slimmer leg and some a little wider that are easier to tuck my jeans into. Every year in the end of season sales I look for boots in a new color (that’s how I found my great navy blue suede ones) to add to my collection.
Polish them up regularly, re-heel them and re-sole them when necessary and they will last and last.
If you have wider calves – look for wider fittings and for features such as stretch panels. Places like Duo Boots and Boots for Broads specialise in wider fittings and even Zappos has a selection.
A narrower ankle fitting will make the boot look dressier, wider and looser ankles on boots create a more casual feel.
Know your calf and ankle circumference measurements, take them shopping, particularly useful if you have curvier calves to be able to measure around a boot before you bother asking for your size!
Find your new boots
