Not a fan of the one-piece? Two separates alone break you out in hives? Or perhaps you just really buy into the insouciance of lots of layers, to cover every eventuality. Us too. Which is why winter can be so much easier (and anyone who has taken public transport – er, all of us – will know that the tendency to overheat is seriously goddamn high).
But there is a way to work summer clothes – even if you're a self-confessed summer phobic dresser. Essentially, you need to lighten your load: swap sleeves for sleeveless; merino wool for silk; a pea coat for a trench. Here are some other expert tips for layering without overheating.
Try a tee under your slip and a shirt around your waist
Combining two of this summer's biggest microtrends, make the slip dress work for work by opting for some slate grey. Because if suits are now casualwear, slip dresses can be officewear. That's just maths, right?
Silk slip dress in light grey cupro, £241.50, Atea; white cropped T-shirt, £3.99, Zara; checked shirt, £14.90, Uniqlo; gold hoops, £74.99, H Samuel; Internationalist trainers, £66.99, Nike at Selfridges; clear sunglasses, £39, & Other Stories; denim school bag, £48 American Apparel
Oley slip dress in two-tone, £65, Won Hundred at ASOS; skinny-rib crop tee, £8, Topshop; Free Bionic training shoe, £60.49, Nike at TheHut.com; denim paisley backpack, £10, Claire's.
Wear dungarees as if they were jeans
Don't be intimidated by dungas – wear them as if they were jeans and layer tees and trenches as normal. These white ones have been a hero piece this summer (Frame's luxe ones sold like hotcakes), and for good reason – everyone wants to look like a painter and decorator. Wear with a high pony so you look the business rather than on (painter-decorator) business.
Cotton denim overall, £95 American Apparel; tweed frayed crop top, £45, Unique at Topshop; cream jacquard racer-front crop top, £14, River Island; bag, £349, Janvier; silver flat sandals, £104.13, Opening Ceremony at Farfetch
Lightweight white cotton dungarees, £31.99, Dungarees Online; leather leopard pony duffel bag, £38, Topshop; Paige flatform footbed, £68, SixtySeven at Free People; light washed frayed denim T-shirt, £37.45, Our Legacy at Men Look
Offset tailoring with jeans
This is obviously not for the hottest of days – but it's good for an over-air-conditioned office when you want to look smart for a meeting (tailoring ahoy) but with a soupçon of cool. Enter skinny jeans and mules.
Black blazer, £125, & Other Stories; tile-print skirt, £38, Topshop; grey silk top, £24.99, H&M; Whitby low-rise skinny jeans, £30, ASOS; white mules, £65, Topshop; silver choker, £5.99, New Look; mixed metal chain necklace, £12, & Other Stories
Linen-blend blazer, £29.99, Mango at House of Fraser; leaf-print skirt, £38, Topshop; jeans, £71, MM6 Maison Martin Margiela at Matches Fashion; mules, £39.20, Faith
Model: Sarah Burns at Elite London
Stylist: Barbara McMillen
Art Direction: Anna Jay
Make-up: Lucy Pearson
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This article originally appeared on The Debrief.