Sometimes women hire me to help them with their weekend wardrobe only. Often these women have jobs that have a very specific dress code, so dressing for work is simple for them—it’s as close to a uniform as it gets.
Unlike a corporate dress code, weekend attire is versatile with many choices that work well. This can make it more difficult to figure out what to wear… there are very few guidelines!
To help you with this, I’ve designed 3 style formulas to make dressing for a summer weekend really simple.
…But before we get there, I need you to know a few essentials for designing a just-right-for-you weekend outfit:
- Comfort: comfort is different for everyone. Whatever it means to you, you need to feel it when you get dressed for a casual day. Comfort does not always equal sloppy or mean that you’re wearing athletic wear… it does mean that you feel like you, you’re not fidgeting with anything and whatever you’re wearing makes you feel beautiful (aka comfortable in your own skin).
- Practicality: this is key. What you’re wearing needs to be practical for what you’re doing that day. For example, if you plan to walk around the zoo all day, your footwear needs to support you for an entire day of walking.
- Style: do you think style and comfort/practicality are an oxymoron? They are not. You can have both, I promise. Sometimes all that means is adding a really bold accessory to a simple outfit. These formulas will help you get a feel for what I mean.
So, without further ado… the 3 simple summer style formulas!
Formula 1 = Shorts + tank top + stylish backpack + comfortable walking shoes + one bold accessory
This outfit is great for a full-day summer outing.
Pair your favourite shorts with any tank top, a comfortable walking shoe and a large bag to carry all the essentials for the day.
The key to this style formula is the bold accessory (like the chunky bracelet pictured above) but you could also choose bold earrings, a necklace, or a statement ring. The accessory needs to add that “je ne sais quoi” to simple clothing pieces.
Also, make sure that your comfort shoe is not too clunky. I know you’ll be tempted to throw on a true running shoe when you know you’ll be walking all day, but that kind of shoe detracts from the stylishness of the rest of the outfit.
You can examples inspired by this style formula here, here, and here.
Formula 2 = Light-weight pants + loose-fitting T-shirt + fashion sneakers + pendant necklace + large tote bag
This is a great option for women who prefer not to show too much leg in the summer. It’s elegant, sophisticated and very “with it”.
To style this look really well, look for ankle or cropped narrow pants or roll-up the bottom of longer pants.
Slip-on sneakers (as pictured above) are a great option, but you could also choose converse or keds or something of the like.
The pendant necklace is a key piece here because it creates definition to an otherwise loose-fitting outfit. Make sure the pendant ends at the narrowest part of your waist for the most figure-flattering look.
You can see examples inspired by this style formula here and here.
Formula 3 = patterned summer dress + metallic sandals + large cross-body bag + simple accessories
A patterned summer dress is one of the easiest options for summer. The pattern creates a statement without you having to do a thing and there’s nothing to match—the whole outfit is done with one slip-over-the-head.
With a patterned dress, the accessories can be kept simple—no muss, no fuss.
You can see examples inspired by this style formula here, here, and here.
If you have room, toss a cozy cardigan or stylish sweatshirt in your bag to layer over any of these options. You never know when summer weather will change and you’ll need a layer to keep you from getting chilly.
If you liked this article, please share it with your network on facebook, twitter, pinterest and linkedIn. Thanks so much for spreading the word!
Leave a Reply