Munich - Dressing in denim from head to toe can be too much of a good thing. A pair of jeans topped with a denim shirt is already overdoing it, according to Munich style consultant Georg Stiels. Add a jeans jacket and you have double trouble.

"No more than one denim article should be worn at a time," pronounced Stiels. "Or at least the cloth should be confined to one part of the body" - wear either a denim top or a denim bottom, in other words.

Munich - German hikers typically are demanding consumers, but they usually aren't materialistic, according to a recent survey.

When they buy an article of clothing to wear while hiking, it has to be of high quality and they tend to keep it for a long time, a survey of 1,002 consumers in Germany found.

The survey showed that the majority of hikers in Germany is female - 59.9 per cent. Compared to average consumers, this group possesses more than an average number of garments designed for their outdoor activity from well-known outdoor brands.

Munich - BMW is planning to test a fleet of several hundred Mini cars with zero-emission electric drive in the coming months, the car maker has announced.

BMW's CEO Norbert Reithofer said in Munich this would help gather more know-how on how "mobility can be efficiently ensured with vehicles running only on electric-drive."

The Minis, built in Oxford, England, would be shipped to the BMW plant in Munich where they would be modified for electric drive.

Munich - Germans love to invite friends over for a party in the back yard.

A survey published in the July edition of a German home magazine shows that 71 per cent of the people surveyed enjoy throwing a garden party. The same percentage like being invited to garden parties given by friends or acquaintances, the survey showed.

The survey also showed that all neighbours are invited to 41 per cent of the garden parties. About one-third of the people surveyed invite friends over weekly during the warm summer months.

Munich - Office workers know that in high summer it can be difficult to dress professionally and at the same time feel comfortable in warm temperatures.

Although women have it easier than men, it's often impossible to achieve both when dressing for work.

"As harsh as it sounds, men of the world wear long sleeves under a suit or sports coat even when it's 32 degrees Celsius," said Georg Stiels, a style consultant in Munich. "Anything else is in fact unfashionable."