Your Stylist: Sporting a summer scarf without losing your neck and very stylish vegan shoes

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Resident Image stylist and market editor Melissa Magsaysay soothes your sartorial woes in the weekly Your Stylist blog column.

I’ve been wearing scarves in warmer months for years now, but after seeing myself in pictures I realize that they make me look like I’ve got no neck. The ones I wear are pretty thin, but I am small (5-foot-1). Should I just give up wearing decorative scarves or am I doing something wrong when wrapping them around my neck? C.P., Sherman Oaks.

Thankfully, unlike Uggs worn with short shorts, scarves in summer don’t look out of place. Making sure they are super lightweight (like you’re doing) is definitely important, as is finding one that fits your frame so you don’t look like you’ve been swallowed by your own scarf.

If you’re petite, keeping the lines of your body as long and graceful looking as possible is important in avoiding looking shorter or overwhelmed by your clothing. The neck is easily one of the sleekest and most elegant areas of a woman’s body, and keeping it that way when you’re on the shorter side can get really tricky.

After you’ve found the lightweight scarf you love, try wrapping it around just once so the two tails hang down on each side of your chest. In a full-length mirror, turn to the side to see if the scarf is bulging out behind your neck or flat and draping nicely. If it’s too bulky (especially in the back) twist it to make it a little thinner or try throwing it around your neck once to have it hang down.

If swaddling yourself in a scarf is too much work, Echo’s infinity ring scarves are connected so you just have to loop it in two and throw it over your head. The summer collection is done in a thin shape and light weight fabric, so it doesn’t pouf out around the neck, and adds color and pattern without the bulk.

Are stylish vegan shoes are an oxymoron? I am desperately trying to stay committed to not wearing leather if I can help it, but I am having some trouble when it comes to footwear. I don’t like anything too nature-y looking and need to be in something other than sneakers or sandals for my job, but everything I own at the moment seems too casual. What are my more “formal” options? K.S., Los Angeles

Believe me, until I discovered a vegan shoe company called Olsenhaus, I was beginning to think cute vegan shoes were nonexistent. But Olsenhaus, along with Toms Shoes, Sanuk and Simple are making some very good-looking styles that are animal-free.

Olsenhaus certainly has the trendiest and more “formal” shoes out there. I especially like the “Fate” style in brown because they can go dressy and edgy, and the color is a versatile, rich tone.

Besides the “one for one” pledge behind Toms Shoes, they also have several vegan styles that look just like the rest of the collection. So you can sport some heels to the office and slip-ons during the weekend while sticking to your animal-friendly philosophy.

Send your style queries to melissa.magsaysay@latimes.com

-- Melissa Magsaysay

Middle left: Echo infinity loop scarf ($48)

Bottom right shoes, from left to right: Olsenhaus ‘Babylon’ teal flats ($150); Olsenhaus ‘Fate’ heels ($220); Olsenhaus ‘Atlantis’ heels ($250)

Bottom left: Toms Shoes ($54)