Find your summer dress tribe
- FEMAIL has picked out the best summer dresses for each style tribe
- READ MORE: The secret to looking richer than you are - from just £34.50
On the face of it, finding an everyday summer dress should be simple. Yet each summer women across Britain survey High-Street stores awash in frocks with a sense of panic.
The perfect dress must go from dressed down to dressed up, look polished yet be easy to throw on and go. It has to feel current, but avoid the trap of ubiquity.
The key to getting it right is sticking to your style, whether that’s minimalist or bohemian. We’ve picked the best dresses for each style tribe, so you’re sure to find something you’ll love for many summers to come...
The Lady
Dress, £179, houseofcb.com; sunglasses, £187, blackeyewear.com; bag, £58, thecolombiacollective.co.uk; earrings, £99, patspats.org; trainers, £90, gola.co.uk
Secretly long for the glory days of Fifties glamour? Our model wears the Dorothy (£179) by London label House of CB, which makes the best corsetry-inspired dresses on the market.
Emphasis on the word ‘inspired’ — this isn’t the same corsetry as an 18thcentury duchess would know. Today, clever panelling and innovative fabrics in stretch-cotton create the same silhouette, so you can breathe comfortably.
Try Nobody’s Child’s Marina dress (£85, nobodyschild.com) for a similar shape that looks just as good with sandals at a market as with court shoes at a wedding.
The Adventurer
L-R: Dress, £295, meandem.com; Dress, £275, ganni.com
The adventurer likes bold prints but never florals (too predictable). Luckily, animal and fruit prints are everywhere.
Never Fully Dressed has an orange and lemon one (£99, neverfullydressed.com). The most daring might even go for cut-outs.
Me+Em’s cotton dress features a cut-out perfectly placed to show a slither of skin just above the hip.
The Minimalist
L-R: Khaki dress, £44.99, hm.com; bag, £58, thecolombiacollective.co.uk; earrings, £110, patspats.org; Cream dress, £24, Mango at very.co.uk
There’s only one dress for minimalists to be seen in this season. Enter the tank dress. The top is made of one fabric, the bottom of another, so it resembles a skirt and tank top — but can be thrown on in one effortless go.
Don’t be put off if you’re wary about showing your arms: this dress’s clean shape makes it the perfect canvas for an oversized blazer or cropped jacket.
They come in high-waisted and drop-waist styles. Mango has several stylish options under £40.
The Bohemian
L-R: Pink dress, £80, monsoon.co.uk; Una Dress, £210, boden.co.uk
If you’re a fan of Sienna Miller’s style or partial to a bit of wafty linen then you’re in the boho tribe.
Boden’s Una dress (£210, boden. co.uk) comes in four colours and is the ultimate in summer versatility: wear it with trainers, over your swimming costume on holiday and with cork-soled heels in the evening.
A belt means it retains enough shape to nod to bohemia without resembling a Woodstock festival costume. Or try Monsoon's pink maxi dress.
The Classicist
L-R: Dress, £90, river island.com; hat, £69, toa.st; earrings, £99, patspats.com; bag, £95, longchamp.com; Gingham dress, £295, jasper conran.com
The classicist likes crisp white shirts, gingham trousers and basket bags. She does not like busy floral prints.
A white shirt-dress should be your summer investment piece, ideally one that cinches in at the waist for a polished finish.
The River Island dress has added flair thanks to pearl buttons and scallop detailing.
Beaufort & Blake has a similar one in broderie that has a real French Riviera factor (£150, beaufortandblake.com).
