The new shapes for summer
It’s still early days, but The Statement Frock is proving to be a sneaky scenestealer for summer 2018. You may recall a wedding in Windsor last week where it performed highly.
Of noteworthiness there were the multiple guises, fabrics, silhouettes and lengths – from the TV presenters’ silk coat-dresses (more Camilla than Camilla) and Carey Mulligan’s casual-but-fabulous Erdem tea-dress to Serena Williams’s Stella Mccartney blush pink body con.
Of yet more interest to those who’ve always considered the dress too proscriptive, was the range of projected dress-aided emotions. Victoria Beckham’s navy body skimming silk said Serious Minimalist. Amal Clooney’s Stella Mccartney tailored banana-coloured form-fitter with side swoosh said Seriously Rich and Expensive Dentistry (only someone with very white teeth should ever take on that degree of yellow).
Dresses are everywhere. Martha Ward, the stylist for whom no dress can be too romantic, frilly or Picnic at Hanging Rock-y (dammit she looks good in them, whereas some would look as though they were in nighties), has just designed a collaboration of charming dresses in the Hanging Rock vein for Queene and Belle. Putting my PHD in Dressyotics to good use, I’d say Ward gets away with it because her slightly déshabillé look is meticulously put together and actually very precise: always lovely, neat accessories, no make-up (so she never looks like a Victorian doll) and feminine, colourful shoes. It’s not an operational manual for every woman, but it merits scrutiny because it demonstrates how specifically each of us can adapt a dress and make it our own.
Cannes has given us gorgeous Statement Day Dresses too. Martha Hunt in a delightfully breezy peony spattered halter-neck maxi dress (at least I think they’re peonies, even though they’re blue) aboard a yacht at the Lark & Berry launch party; the wonderful looking Ava Duvernay in green floral silk.
How – and how much – you accessorise your dress is crucial. Shoes (we’re seeing lots of pops of colour this summer), jewellery, body language and attitude can completely transform it (see Duvernay’s dreadlocks, which guarantee any dress she wears will never look prissy). With a patterned dress, necklaces are best avoided. A chunky gold wrist band or cuff in a toning colour and maybe some earrings are enough. Above all, dress for your shape. This is the summer of the easiest, most flattering silhouettes – semi-fitted bodices with fluid, bodyskimming skirts. Make the most of them.
1. The Waist and Neck Enhancer
Top, £210, and skirt, £285 (michaelajedinak.com) Calling all Jackie Kennedy admirers – is this not utterly perfect? Strictly speaking, it’s two pieces – even better, because if you want to order it in contrasting colours, you can, thereby contouring your body with light and dark the way the Kardashians remodel their faces. Choose from 11 fabrics, including satin or wool crepe, and 20 colours, and they’ll make it up for you in a couple of weeks. Perfect for Ascot and weddings – and all those who feel their floaty days are behind them. Jedinak, who specialises in matching clients to shapes that suit their bodies rather than indulging in ephemeral trends, says the Juliette was conceived with a neat hourglass, rectangle, lean column, pear and inverted triangle in mind. “It’s not good for full hourglass or apple shapes or women who have a big bust,” she says. “The bow detail won’t look flattering.” Check out her website for dresses appropriate to your body – it’s takes out so much of the guesswork.
2. The Hourglass Lover
Floral wrap shirt dress, £99 (finerylondon.com) An everywoman’s shirt dress. Aficionados will love it for the lush florals and fresh white background. Those who like the idea of shirtdresses but find the skirts generally too bulky will find that this one isn’t at all. Crisp, romantic and good for every body.
3. The Thigh Skimmer
Check and floral dress, £79, Studio by Preen (debenhams.com) Asymmetric hems are mostly ugly, but this one is dainty and rather lovely. It also makes this an effortless day-to-night staple. A dark slimming background (but flattering navy rather than harsh black), sleeves that won’t cut into or accentuate any flabby bits and a collar-line that would work on flat or bigger boobs, plus a slightly raised (but not exaggeratedly so) leglengthening waist and hip and thigh-friendly flare, this is the high street’s golden ticket.
4. The Leg Lengthener
Polka dot tea dress, £850 (suzannah.com) Body skimming with a raised waist, this lengthens legs – and looks good on bigger breasts. It may even require them in order for it to look its best. Sleeves, good leg coverage yet light and breezy looking and in an eternally charming print, this is ageless dressing that makes a statement without going overboard. Oh, and those spots can pass as black, so not fussing over which colour accessories to team them with.
5. The Curve Embracer
Golightly dress, £560 (goatfashion.com) With its wow colour, this dress is ultra-flattering. Slightly raised curved waistline, wrist-length sleeves and exactly the right amount of fabric in both the fit and flare sections, this will work whether you’re short, tall, pear – or any other fruit. Depending on your earrings, shoes and hat, this can be day or night. A properly versatile classic, as a dress named for an Audrey Hepburn character should be.
6. The Enhancer
Silk dress, £475 (lkbennett.com) Note the just-above-the-elbow sleeves, the gathered-around neckline, the slyly form-fitting cut that flatters all kinds of curves, without making a song and dance about them…
LK Bennett has excelled this summer with an edit of dresses expertly designed for wedding guests, Ascot etc. If you thought florals were too boho or too young, this makes a convincing case for them for all ages.
Even if you’re assiduously avoiding all Season Events, this dress is hard to resist.