Fashion: Knit one

OK, so your head needs to be kept warm. But there are ways to do it in deep, thick style. Ruth Picardie shows the way to fashionable winter woollies. Photographs: Jane McLeish

So you've got the fake fur coat, the boot-cut trousers, the velvet shirt. But what winter wardrobe would be complete without a hat and scarf? A girl needs the right accessories for two reasons.

First, if you've blown next month's mortgage repayment on a leopard skin wrap, it would be terrible to find yourself at the opera with only a Man United bobble hat to keep your head warm. And secondly, if you're still wearing a coat from 1989 (like me), you need to attract attention up and away from the frayed sleeves.

Pictured here are three approaches to winter woollies. First is the black balaclava by Sam de Teran, whose functional but deeply stylish sportswear is bought by everyone from Lauren Hutton to Kylie Minogue. Her swimwear - ranging from the itsy bitsy to the elegantly sculptural - is so sexy that her customers can, if they're in a hurry, go straight from pool to premiere. And her skiwear - including catsuits and fake fur mufflers - is glamorous enough even for Patsy and Edina's recent skiing trip.

The point is that you don't have to be an exercise nerd to wear Sam de Teran clothes. "Sportswear gives you a feeling of health and relaxation," she says, "even if you haven't done the exercise. It's a bit like wearing trainers all the time." Hence our model is wearing her balaclava miles from the ski slopes, and instead of feeling like a terrorist she is simply healthy, relaxed and very, very warm.

The second approach is the Dr Who scarf, made by Sally Morten at POSH, whose accessories (though not this scarf, which is exclusive to Independent readers by mail order) can be bought at Paul Smith. You may think embracing the Tom Baker look is taking the Seventies revival a little too far. However, hot design duo Clements Ribeiro, who produced similar scarves for this season, wanted something "big and ragged" to set off all those clean lines. "The collection was based on the idea of a `found' wardrobe," says Suzanne Clements, "things from your granny's attic, new but second-hand. We wanted a hand-made, crafted feel - fashion has been slick for so long." Also, it was a way of killing time during the collections for Inacio Ribeiro's mum, who was visiting from Brazil and knitted them all.

Finally, there is the matador hat, which is second-hand and comes from Persiflage (Chenil Galleries, 181-183 King's Road, London SW3, and Alfie's Market, 13-25 Church Street, London NW8. 0171-723 6066), which sells a wide range of vintage hats for special occasions, from pounds 15. Quite simply, it's pure glamourn

Below: Plain knit black balaclava, pounds 36, by Sam de Teran, available from Sam de Teran, 151 Fulham Road, London, and selected Debenhams and House of Fraser stores; brown sleeveless zip-up top, pounds 75, by Diesel, available from Diesel, 43 Earlham Street, Covent Garden, London WC2; Gillmores, 19 Renfield Street, Glasgow G1, and Blueberries II, 137 Church Street, Blackpool; Denim short trousers, pounds 115, by Hussein Chalayan, available from Jones, 15 Floral Street, Covent Garden, London WC2; knitted brown shoes, pounds 25, by Johnny Moke, 396 King's Road, London SW10.

Left: Multicoloured `Doctor Who' scarf, pounds 25, by POSH, mail order 01773 853746; chocolate brown knitted tank top, pounds 75, from Sam de Teran, as before; low cut evergreen and maroon bikini bottoms (part of set), pounds 130, by Corinne Cobson, to order from Jones, 15 Floral Street, Covent Garden, London WC2.

Below: Navy cotton scarf, pounds 25, by POSH, as before; navy cotton roll neck, pounds 85, from Agnes B, 35 Floral Street, London WC2, and 58-62 Heath Street, Hampstead, NW3; Spanish bullfighter's hat by Persiflage (stall Z2), available from the Chenil Galleries, 181-183 King's Road, London SW3 (0171 351 5353).

Stylist: Lucy Ewing

Hair: Matthew Wade for Steven Carey Hair & Beauty Salon (0171 495 5353) using the Steven Carey Botanical Range.

Make-up: Charlotte Tilbury at Camilla Arthur

Model: Jan Dunning at Select