On steamy-hot summer days, a cool dress is often your best bet. I spied this one on a recent visit to Zara. I’m a sucker for any blue and white pattern, but especially stripes. And for me, this dress is the perfect balance of easy fit with it’s drawstring waist and tailored details. In fact, it’s such a fun dress I simply had to style it two ways.
LOOK 1
For this look, I went more casual and stayed with a mostly neutral palette : straw hat, stretchy, cutout leather tote (which my new 13″ MacBook pro fits into!), flat leather sandals with an espadrille sole (like how their cutouts pick up the bag’s), my trusty Rolex (thanks, Chris!) and a stack of cheap-and-cheerful bangles.
LOOK 2
So this look is a little more sophisticated, a little more bling-y. Did someone say date night? What’s great is that I could start my day with Look 1, and finish it with Look 2…and barely break a sweat. (It worked for our post shoot anyway!) This cute, colorful straw clutch? It was on backorder at Nordstrom, and I’ve been dying to get my hands on it. Did I say straw…colorful…pom poms…tassel…and actually big enough to fit your “necessities” into? Obsessed. My sandals are another fave. They are by Schutz, a shoe brand that just does it for me. They somehow hit that perfect balance of high style, comfort (even with a heel) and affordability (but not cheapie). The unicorn of shoes? Perhaps. For jewelry I went with a little summertime bling — a bold choker and delicate monogram bangles (love my letters and words!).
One last note, I could easily see creating a version of these looks with a white shirt dress or just a fun, summery white, chambray or navy dress. I’d love to hear what you think!
Dress: (Zara, not available online at the moment as they are having their CRAZY summer sale) but similar here and here
LOOK 1
Hat: (old, NYC street vendor) similar here and here
Bag: (Zara, in-store but not online due to sale) nice alternatives here and here
Sandals: (old, Christian Laboutin) but love these (pom poms!) these (on sale!) and these
Bangles: (old) but beachy option here and rose gold evil eye option here
LOOK 1
Clutch: Nordstrom
Sandals: (Schutz, sold out) but similar here (if you can rock a HIGH heel) and here
Choker: (J. Crew, old) but love this (4th of July!) and this
Bracelets: Sarah Chloe, and also love this version
All photos by Chris & MP Allegaert