For at least 20 minutes on Monday morning there was just enough sunshine to warm us and allow spring to slowly begin its whimsical return, like a stray royal in a farm shop. Put your winter coat aside, start protecting your knitwear from moths and lean on it.
You may want to keep an eye out for wardrobe refreshes. I think it’s safe to say that the tyranny of the floral dress has loosened its petal-covered grip around our décolletage. There’s a tablespoon of Sloane in the air, mixed with a bit of Provençal playfulness. The new mood is a mixed bag of tailoring and comfort, with a striped city boy shirt and wide-leg trousers. A burst of red can do no wrong right now. Small style details and ways to put things together will bring a little more life to your existing wardrobe. Of course, step by step.
Here are 12 tips to help you on this path…
vertical striped shirt
Big news in stripes: put down your Breton and go vertical. This may sound dizzying, but a vibrant shirt with stylish colorful stripes is just the thing. If you’ve got some extra cash to spend, I can’t recommend Yaitte enough, a super sweet independent brand based in London. Buoy shirts are a signature (in mustard and green, £225, yaitte.com). With Nothing Underneath is a great one-liner stop and has a delicious green-striped boyfriend iteration for £120 (withnothingunderneath.com); also see Hush’s brown and white striped Indy oversize dress, yours for £79 (hush.co.uk).
Indy brown striped shirt, £79, hush.co.uk
Boyfriend Tencel shirt, Forest Green Stripe, £120, withnothingunderneath.com
Embrace a denim skirt
I can’t tell you how much time I spent trying to find decent denim skirts beyond the boring knee-length style. But that’s how we drown in events. Stock up before you sneak away again. Levi’s have great long lengths (black, £80, levi.com). Zara has many styles but I really like the one with the fishtail panel (£35.99, zara.com). Also check out Jigsaw (£95, jigsaw-online.com) for a chic, frayed midi style.
Mid Waist Denim Midi Skirt, £35.99, zara.com
easy dress
For those who are looking for a more updated solution to the previous floral midi dress and are done with it, may I offer the easy dress? This one does exactly that. Chuck, pretend you’re done and forget about it. The key is a loose-fitting but not oversized silhouette in a neutral color, and you can play with layers – a polo neck underneath, an open shirt on top; endless combinations will work. ME+EM is the perfect place for a good dress; Her cream-coloured textured maxi dress (£195, averagem.com) is ideal. Also look at Albaray’s two-tone cream and black jersey halter dress (£69, albaray.co.uk), Hush’s Tatum denim maxi dress (£95, hush-uk.com) and Cos’ for a pleated skirt T-shirt dress See (£95, hush-uk.com). £95, cos.com). Pair it with your trench now, stand alone later.
Textured maxi dress, £195, average.com
Tatum denim maxi dress, £95, hush-uk.com
Shacket 2.0
The workwear jacket is the reliable staple every wardrobe should have. US brand Everlane has teamed up with Marques’ Almeida, who is back at London Fashion Week, for a pretty cool collaboration. There are a few options, but the khaki green canvas patchwork (£232) is a real keeper. Available on everlane.com starting March 24. Wear it with everything and enjoy the proliferation of pockets.
Everlane x Marques’ Almeida, Canvas Patchwork Jacket, £232, everlane.com
Loafer vs kitten heel
Choose your shoe warrior. Ballet shoes and mary-janes are still produced, but moccasins are ubiquitous, making them more convenient when traveling around the tube. Uniqlo’s C range by Clare Waight Keller has a great chunky pair (£39.90, uniqlo.com) but really, you can’t beat a classic GH Bass Weejuns; her new white and black loafers are a bargain (£160, ghbass-eu.com). The other resurrection comes from the kitten heel. Russell & Bromley have a cute silver bow pair (£295, russellandbromley.co.uk) that will liven up your most boring outfit; Also look at Charles and Keith’s cream tweed pair (£65, charleskeith.co.uk).
From left to right; Seppe Cropped Tweed Heeled Mules, £65, charleskeith.co.ukPointed Bow Mesh Low Heel, russellandbromley.co.ukEasy Weejuns Soft Penny Loafers, Black & White Leather, £160, ghbass-eu.com
personality socks
Your easiest styling trick: socks. Especially ones that instantly make your outfit look more interesting. Example: your old jeans, white t-shirt? Add a statement block color sock with loafers and voila: instant personality that stands out from the crowd. Uniqlo and Arket are good places to stock up, as is Pairs Scotland, which has a slim red pair made from merino wool (£15, pairs-scotland.com). Note: This absolutely excludes anything patterned. Terrible.
Red merino socks, £15, couples-scotland.com
Get on the plane in shorts
Teenagers and those with lithe legs may be tempted by the micro styles that abound on the catwalks, but for anyone with a real job, turn your head to the new board short mode. Treat them like a pair of pants, meaning make them as smart as you need them to be. I like the idea of pairing it with a t-shirt, under a shirt, under a blazer, and deleting one piece as the weather gets warmer. For the weekends, Cos has a great denim pair (check out the matching shirt, too), while there’s Ghost London’s very chic black satin sweet Bella shorts from the premium Studio range, due out in early April.
Frayed denim shorts, £85, cos.com
Bella shorts, £129, arriving early April, ghost.co.uk
tote again
Rejoice, giant bags are back with us for all your diversion needs. Watch out for Kate Moss with her sizable woven basket bag in the Cotswolds over the weekend; also see Taylor Russell in loose Loewe matching boyfriend Harry Styles and her The Row Margaux. Does the couple he collects together stay together? Watch this space. Sézane and Whistles both have excellent basket bags that work well in urban options (important unless you’re going to a country market). A little leather trim works wonders here. For something a little more impactful for your commute, I opt for ANYDAY’s hot red bag for a very affordable £49 (johnlewis.com).
Whistles, Zoelle Paper Knit Eyelet Tote, £99, arrives April 5, sezane.com
Sia East/West Minimal Bag, Red, £49, johnlewis.com
A white jeans
No one was more surprised than me when I found a wardrobe savior in the form of white jeans. I can also say that I wore them during the flight and throughout the day and never spilled anything on them, which just goes to show that maturity comes to all of us. Mine is a palazzo leg from Good American (currently on sale at Net-a-porter if you’re quick). These want to keep their legs loose; We don’t risk going into ’90s Liz Hurley territory. I don’t know what white is, but it’s an instant opener. Jigsaw has a great pair cropped above the ankle (£95, jigsaw-online.com). Also check out Arket’s wide-leg Cloud pair (£97, arket.com).
Marsh Wide Leg Jeans, £89, aligne.co
dressing tailoring
It works best when worn with smart trousers, a T-shirt or another plain top. We’re in pretty high-low territory here. M&S has a very affordable pair of beige trousers for £29.50, while Uniqlo:C’s beautiful wide-legged gray suit (worn with white trainers by designer Clare Waight Keller at a brand preview this week) is machine washable (£79.90 for the jacket , £39.90 for trousers, uniqlo.com). For a slightly sexier mood, check out Reiss’s camel jumpsuit (£248, reiss.com), which is a big deal for Saint Laurent. A word of advice: ditch the slightly naff tie belt and add your own leather belt for better punctuation.
Cotton Blend Wide Leg Chino, £29.50, marksandspencer.com
Liliana, Lyocell Wide Leg Jumpsuit, £248, reiss.com
joy jacket
Throwback chic is all well and good, but where’s the soul you might wonder? Sometimes you need an addition to your wardrobe that will bring indescribable happiness; Spring break with a jacket that does just that. Pink City Prints’ block-printed lemon and pink Margaret jacket is so festive (£175, pinkcityprints.com). Also check out Toast’s kantha jackets made from recycled saris (£175, toa.st). For something wilder, Ganni’s leopard print is so fun (£295, ganni.com).
Lime Jungle Margaret jacket, £175, pinkcityprints.com
Leopard cotton canvas jacket, £295, ganni.com
sleeveless knit
Get into these and you’ll never look back. Sandwich dressing is a new term floating around, it’s essentially what we used to call layering, which is essentially just another way of wearing different pieces of clothing at the same time. It’s very tiring, isn’t it? Still, a sleeveless knit will be your friend over a shirt/top/dress for now, under a blazer/train/bomber, and on its own later. Reformation is one of my favorite places for knitwear, their Marnie is wonderfully refreshing in soft brown and cream (£148, Thereformation.com). Also check out Uniqlo:C’s cute red-trimmed camel look (£24.90, uniqlo.com).
Marnie Oversized Cotton Sweater Vest, £148, reformation.com