The seasonal wardrobe - Summer

My new tortoise-shell reading glasses

Continuing with my wardrobe posts, today's post is about the summer wardrobe.  During the hot and humid days of high summer the simple dress is my best friend.  The collection below is what I had on high rotation this past southern hemisphere summer.

The first three are cotton knit from Banana Republic in Hawaii two years ago, and the next two are pure linen by a New Zealand company Wallace Cotton and I have been wearing them with a low-slung belt (hanging from each hanger) to have them be a bit more flattering than floating free.  I used to iron them damp after each wash (much easier with linen than ironing dry) but recently I decided to wear un-ironed because I've seen a bit of the wrinkled linen look lately and I like it for a change. I am a little relaxed about ironing, but I truly would not wear something unironed if it looked terrible.

And the last dress is an Australian brand - Sportsgirl - which I bought probably in the late 90s and it still looks in as good a shape as it did then.  It predates 'Made in China'.  An Australian dress brand actually made in Australia.  Revolutionary!  That's probably why it has lasted so well.  It is some kind of synthetic but the writing has long gone off the care label so I don't know what type.  You can click on each photo if you want to see them bigger.

As you can see from the varying ages of my dresses, if you find one or two flattering ones that you love each year, you can add to your collection. Because they are such a seasonal item I might only wear them for three months so they last longer than something that I might wear more often.

You will see one of my strategies in the dress photo too – when I find a shape I like, I buy all the colours available (as long as I like them and they're good for my colouring of course).  I did the exact same thing just last week with my new winter wardrobe.  The black merino cowl neck top I bought a few weeks ago was so cosy and flattering that I went back and bought the other two colours they had it in – teal, and berry (the top I am wearing in my reading glasses photo).

And below are the shoes I wear with these dresses.  Please don't think my Birkenstocks and tan sandals are dirty - that's just what happens when your feet rub against the leather.  I don’t know if Birkenstocks will last another fashion season, time will tell, but I will still wear them at home because they are so comfortable and supportive for your feet, knees, hips, spine etc.

I usually wear the flat sandals with my three knit dresses (on the left in the photo), and the wedges/heels with the three dresses on the right – they are more flattering to my legs with those dresses.

So that's what has worked well for me in the hot weather.  Summer used to be my biggest problem regarding what to wear.  I was too hot in jeans, but skirts felt frumpy on me and still do.  I do have a couple of jean-style skirts that are too short for work that I wear at home because I feel too masculine in shorts, but they're different.  I'm glad I have collected together dresses that work for my current job and that I think are age-appropriate.

With dresses the cut and fit has to be right, but after you've found that, they are a dream to wear - one piece and you're ready! Plus accessories of course, but there's no matching top and bottoms.

What's your summer go-to?  What are your summer wardrobe plans?