Leeds fashion report

I've been to sessions, but I'm too jet-lagged to report on them. My periods of focused observation have been brief and random.

I do realize that most of us are operating under similar constraints of trying to pack for assorted activities and weather conditions in carry-on luggage, and that luggage mishaps may influence some ensembles.

Still . . . Keens and Tevas look best with sporty clothing. Think of outfits suitable for a high-end yoga class, or a cute running skirt. Not long skirts and dressy cardigans.

The dress with a print of songbirds in flowering trees, worn with dark periwinkle heels and a black shrug, that was cute.

Watercolor-print dress in aqua, yellow, and light green . . . pretty, but not with red-white-and-blue spectator pumps. Spectators are sporty-dressy, to be worn with tailored clothes, so wrong style and wrong colors.

Black top, cardigan, skirt and tights, with purple ballerina flats: very nice.

Tailored, vaguely safari-ish skirted suit on older woman with mobility problems: very appropriate, well-chosen colors, goes with the sensible shoes, looks like you're making an effort without risking injury to feet, ankles, or knees.

It's amazing how a plain woman can turn into a jolie laide by dressing carefully and neatly in a figure-flattering outfit with classic accessories and tidy hair.

Dresses really do look a lot more pulled-together, in general, than outfits with more pieces.

This all sounds embarrassingly shallow, and even hypocritical, considering that I am wearing my Ugly Shoes (without the ankle brace this year [woot!], though I brought it just in case), many-pocketed quick-drying travel trousers, and an unexceptionable grey pullover that is almost as good as an Invisibility Cloak. But I like to look at people who are nicely dressed, perhaps the more so because I'm dressing for the Ugly Shoes. Maybe it's time for a safari suit.