Aligne’s Viral Waistcoat Is Back As A Linen Dress For Summer

It's officially the first day of summer and, as if by magic, the weather is finally delivering on the sun front after a decidedly lacklustre build up. In the UK, a bit of warmth stirs up something of a frenzy in the population - and rightfully so as you never know how long it's going to last - meaning it's perfectly normal to see folk wearing flip-flops, itty-bitty shorts and strappy tops as soon as the clouds part.

That's fine and dandy, truly, but if you're looking for something that's a little smarter, say, for the office, the answer lies in a little red dress that's already got the influencer seal of approval. If Aligne's button-down linen mini, available in tomato or black, looks familiar, it's because it first began to dominate your feed earlier this year in the form of a butter yellow blazer. Worn by tastemasters like Ellie Delphine, who styled her jacket simply with jeans, its crew-neck collar and cute split hem cut through the noise of oversized tailoring that was previously dominating our algorithm.

Then came, wait for it, the waistcoat version, which quickly became the silhouette of the season. Now, it's available as a dress with the same cute as a button silhouette as the waistcoat. Team Grazia tried on both versions in tomato red - the fruit is having a moment thanks to a tweet that called a certain species very 'Loewe' - and can confirm that it's an early contender for the outfit of summer 2024.

I styled the dress with a pair of 'day' heels from Miista, which meant the finished look was a little more put together than my usual style. I have to say, though, it was a nice step change from wearing jeans and trainers - and would be super easy to throw on when temperatures really turn up a notch.

Grazia's shopping editor, Julia Harvey, tried on the black version of the mini dress, styling it with flat leather sandals for a no-muss, no-fuss vibe that, to be honest, is the ideal approach to summer dressing.

Natalie Hammond is Grazia’s Senior Fashion News Editor. She loves winter, hates summer and can often be found writing about the weather (and what on earth to wear).