What to Wear
Sizzling Summer Styles
The weather might be taking its time to warm up, but with each day feeling lighter for longer it’s clear that summer finally is on the horizon. We’re getting excited about ditching our winter coats and donning our favourite new season styles.
Whether your summer season will be filled with wedding invitations, al fresco dinners or even a holiday by the sea, we’ve got all the inspiration you’ll need to create your perfect warm weather capsule wardrobe.
Read on to discover our favourite looks and follow our tips on styling them to work perfectly with your body shape. Rain or shine, prepare to feel summer ready!
Floral Fantasy
Nothing captures summer more than a vibrant floral print, and when you combine it with a standout sundress, well, you’ve basically nailed it! Every capsule warm weather wardrobe should have a versatile summer dress, and a key style that would suit almost all body shapes would be the fit and flare maxi.
Long skirts act as the perfect full-length coverup, protecting you from the strong daytime sun, but also adding glamour to your look by night. Swap flat sandals for strappy heels and this dress will take you effortlessly from the beach to the hotel bar.
Curvier body shapes will be flattered with a ruched waist detail, adding texture to the waist area and creating a cinched-in hourglass shape. Meanwhile, soft cap sleeves protect your shoulders from sunrays and add a delicate, feminine finish to this floaty fit and flare silhouette.
Animal Magic
One of the best aspects to summer is its relaxed influence on fashion. Feminine and floaty daytime styles can be worn over the whole day with no need to change for evening plans. As days begin to feel longer, and dreamy afternoons drift into balmy summer evenings, a transitional lightweight occasion dress is just what every wardrobe needs.
Animal prints can be a great option, not just to make a statement, but opting for neutral colours such velvety chocolate browns, stoney greys and stark monochrome hues, will flatter almost any skin tone.
If you want to go really bold, try layering your look with contrasting colours, or even accessorising with metallics, such as a statement gold necklace, silver strappy heels or a shiny chain-link waist belt.
Frilled Details
There’s something about frills that really evoke summer vibes. Perhaps it’s the floaty ripples of fabric making us think of gentle waves bobbing along the sea shore – we’re in paradise already!
Look out for hemlines and sleeves with frilled trims, or try a blouse with flared flute sleeves. Three-quarter lengths have a graceful feel that’s perfect for summer style, lighter in appearance than full-length sleeves, while still allowing enough fabric to accentuate a dramatic frilled style.
When going for more billowy, oversized tops and blouses, take care to really minimise your lower half, keeping a balance to your look. Neutral-toned skinny jeans or fitted trousers will pair perfectly, and elongate your silhouette with some block heels or wedges.
Laid Back Tie Dye
Elevate your off-duty style with a look that’s set to be so on-trend this summer. Retro and eye-catching, tie-dye has made a huge comeback. Splashing crazy colour combinations into our closets, this print can’t help but uplift you, as it did in the psychedelic 60s and 70s, and later with a neon explosion in the 90s.
Modern tie-dye styles do have more sophistication. Look out for sleeker, more geometric patterns that add a vibrancy to an outfit, rather than making a whimsical statement. Softer colour blends such as tones of subtle, cool blues and earthy tones of rust and mustard yellow are more the feel of current tie-dye trends – time to leave the florescent shades boxed up in the attic!
Denim and tie-dye are a match made in heaven. For transitional weather temperatures, simply grab your favourite skinny jeans and pair with a relaxed fit, tie-dye top and fresh white trainers. Layer up with a cropped jacket or open light knit cardigan when there’s a chill in the air.
Ingenious Jumpsuits
Many people run a mile from a jumpsuit, thinking them either unflattering or simply too eye-catching. But the truth is that this clever garment is the opposite of both these concerns.
A jumpsuit actually enhances most body shapes, using design details such as wide leg silhouettes, interesting necklines and embellishments like knotted fronts and self-tie waist belts. When pulled together into an all-in-one style, the result is a textured yet sleek silhouette that’s not only flattering but super comfortable too.
For summer months, choose breathable fabrics such as viscose, cotton or other lightweight floaty materials. Pairing your outfit with heels is a great way to elongate your shape and look out for on-trend prints and colours.
Top Tips to Get Summer-Ready in an Instant
- Lighten up: shed those heavy winter fabrics and swap for lightweight options such cotton, jersey and viscose. These will not only help to keep you cool on a warm day, but they’ll elevate your cold weather style to a sizzling summer vibe in a matter of minutes.
- All in the detail: frilled sleeves, ruffled necklines, flared hems - all these add a soft edge to a garment. On a lightweight fabric, these floaty edges will ripple and sway, creating a romantic and dreamy summer feel.
- Pretty patterns: from vivid florals, to seaside stripes, bright colour splashes and geometric designs, when it’s summertime everything is on the table. Look out in particular for what’s trending - this season indulge in pastel shades of pink, lavender and mint, or go bold with cobalt blue and scarlet red.
- Love your layers: while the weather remains changeable, layers are key to successful dressing to ensure you’re safely covered for the whole day. Think about a lightweight open jacket or blazer to throw over a lightweight maxi dress. A longline cardigan or linen shirt paired with skinny jeans and a patterned tee is a great go-to weekend style.
