DESPITE the long, hot, sultry summers portrayed in countless Merchant Ivory films, the reality of a British summer is a woefully short time to play with the concept of summer dressing. Should an Indian summer be in store for us come September (and here’s hoping very hard it is), it would be churlish to give in to fashion-obsessed editorial by rushing ahead into next season’s wardrobe.
High-street shops may very well be stocking winter clothing but if I can persuade you to hold off from early Maggie Thatcher pussy-tie blouses, slick pencil skirts and even slicker stiletto heels (some of autumn’s key trends), so much the better.
By all means get shopping now to avoid retail therapy angst later, but only an über-stylish dresser could make ten-ply cashmere look enticing when the rest of us are still in vest tops. Meg Mathews looked quite ridiculous on a beach recently with blistered skin, bikini and furry, furry Ugg boots.
So ignore all the tweed tantalisingly displayed in store windows — because you won’t and shouldn’t need to wear this for at least another month.
Concentrate instead on what you’re trying to achieve now: a low-maintenance look that is easy to wear, just structured enough, not too summery and which displays a vague, almost nonchalant, nod to autumn trends. In fashion-speak this equates to something known as the trans-seasonal wardrobe.
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Don’t be deterred by the cheesiness of this American-sounding expression. To fashion editors it conjures up images of belted trench coats, shirt-dresses, lightweight jackets and kaftans (which look great over jeans or trousers).
These are clothes that are neither too rigid nor too obviously of a season. Choose wisely and you’ll want to dig them out again come springtime and next autumn.
Avoid anything too formal. This is where the wrap or shirt-dress really comes into its own. Diane von Furstenberg’s wrap dresses are timeless classics with quirky, continually updated prints, which are covered up yet very sexy to wear.
For a more demure approach, tea dresses in patterned chiffon are a continuing theme, and to pull off the quintessential Mitfordesque ensemble, team one with round-toed, T-bar sandals — remembering that this is probably your last opportunity to do the bare leg look with ease.
September is also a good time to wear all those delicate and difficult to dry-clean fabrics such as suede that (with luck) will not get rained on or splashed with mud on your way to work. The designer Tania has produced a knee-length camel suede shirt-dress with a tasselled belt that can be worn on its own for a truly luxe look or more casually over jeans or trousers.
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Gap has hit the right note with cotton twill or cord cropped trousers and short-sleeve blouses with pretty floral or colour contrast piping that sit well under a cardigan when the weather turns.
Denim is another great staple. For an instant update, choose a pair of culottes and try weaving a scarf through the loops instead of wearing your usual belt. And for the achingly hip who cannot resist a new trend, look to the accessories: an embroidered belt, a long Lurex or sequinned scarf and vintage brooches.
Aside from Notting Hill trustafarians whose footwear of choice is the perennial flip-flop (presumably to ensure that no one is in any doubt of their layabout credentials), barely-there footwear somehow doesn’t feel quite right in the city now, even though the imminent onslaught of knee-length boots with stacked heels probably doesn’t hold much appeal either.
Ballet pumps are one option, light enough to feel summery but with a closed toe. French Sole has everything you could possibly want in terms of pattern or fabric and while you don’t have to take this Indian or American Indian summer look quite so literally, moccasins are an equally chic alternative.
If you are planning to wear open-toed sandals please think carefully about the state of your feet. It’s a myth that sand and beach pebbles exfoliate your feet on holiday. Most people forget to moisturise afterwards, so their feet are more likely to be dry and cracked after a week in the sun.
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A trip to a Scholl Total Footcare Centre for half an hour of dead skin sloughing, from £26 (nationwide, 0870 7290222), should do the trick. It’s also a beauty treatment worth considering at the start of your holiday.
Finally, for an injection of understated sexiness, tousled hair is enough to put anyone in a playful mood before the sobriety and seriousness of autumn return.
Get to work with a pair of tongs for sexy bed-head hair. For the professional touch, head to Sheuneen at Nyumba’s Mayfair salon (020-7408 1489) for that last bit of summer magic.