Q: I would like to know what the current 2001 hemlines are. I think minis are still in. Recently, I've seen lengths just above the ankle, so is the bottom of the calf out? And some lengths seem to be right on the knee or just below. Can you help clear up all this confusion?

A: Alas, no, I really CAN'T help clear up this confusion. It's our lot in life now.

Designers got burned one too many times with their attempts to jerk hemlines up and down like marionettes. So now their official line is: Freedom for all! It's a new era of choice and variety! Wear what you like! Wear what looks good on you! Every woman decides for herself!

Sometimes they even go so far as to say: "Hemlines don't matter" -- which is visibly untrue, as you probably know if you've tried on a dress whose hemline brushes your shoes. It worked for Jane Austen and it's still fine for kids and for evening, but you probably don't want to go to work in it.

Miniskirts are definitely back, at least according to the fashionisti. A couple of weeks ago, shopping with a niece at the local Guess? Outlet, I saw one that couldn't've been more than 12 inches long. (I had to stop and think: Did it really qualify as a skirt, or was it more of an extra-wide belt?)

Just above the knee is fine, if you have the legs. Just below the knee has been around for a few years now, having been pioneered by designers like Miuccia Prada and Isaac Mizrahi (before he left fashion for the stage). Some people think it's an awkward length; some feel it's terrifically sophisticated.

Top-of-calf or mid-calf or bottom-of-calf are all reasonable options. What looks best depends on proportion more than anything -- on the line of the dress and the shape of the person in it. Trust your mirror.

Patricia McLaughlin is a nationally syndicated fashion columnist.
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