Can’t take the heat? Try these 5 simple summer style changes
Chester Barrie's new range is perfect for warmer climes. Here's how to upgrade your wardrobe
Words: Jonathan Wells
Summer can be rough on your wardrobe. Your coats, jumpers and jackets hang unneeded and unwanted. Your boots lay unlaced. Even your heavier jeans don’t get a look in when the sun starts to shine.
It is, without doubt, a style-limiting season. In fact, it’s making us hot under the collar just thinking about being hot under the collar.
"It is, without doubt, a style-limiting season..."
But the foward-thinking fashionistas over at Chester Barrie have approached this summer season cleverly. Rather than submitting to shorts and loose-fitting t-shirts, the Savile Row tailors have taken inspiration from the materials themselves, and employed quirky, inventive cuts to tackle the temperature.
And, from layering to long sleeves, they’ve opened up a whole new wardrobe of summer dressing possibilities.
Invest in a chambray shirt
The thought of throwing a denim shirt on during summer might have you breaking out into a not-so-cold sweat, but believe us. Chambray is the finest of all denims, and one of the most versatile and interesting fabrics out there.
It can work in formal or casual situations, is still a little textured and — most importantly — is very breathable for the hotter months.
Go sock-less with a suit
Of course, this isn’t as broad a rule as it sounds. Sock-less is a tricky sartorial line to walk, even more so during the summer months when you haven’t got a great big sweeping coat or fluffy hat to detract from your exposed ankles.
The trick here is to wear the right suit: Nothing too formal, nothing too texture-less, nothing without even a hint of a pattern. Got that? Then by all means whip your socks off.
Don’t be afraid of layering
Another cardinal sin of summer is layering. But why should it be? Those men you see swanning around under the sun with nothing but a t-shirt on their top halves simply don’t know how to prepare accordingly.
Start with a light shirt, and delicately layer up. That might mean a breathable blazer, a light scarf, or an overshirt. Hell, if you’re brave enough, dig out some knitwear — just a finer example than your heavy winter waffle knits.
Long sleeves aren’t just for winter
Similarly, long sleeves aren’t just for winter. The polo shirt, a timeless classic, has had a summer makeover by Chester Barrie, who have crafted a new range in summer pastel colours — think camel, light blue and lilac — with long sleeves.
Similar to the chambray shirt, this ups the versatility of the polo by a factor of ten, and gives you an even-more-stylish alternative to the short-sleeved classic. Cool.
Light-coloured trousers will be your summer saviour
Men are scared of light trousers. That’s the long and short of it. From errant spilled drinks to unpredictable puddles — this is the Great British summer, after all — they are seen simply as a liability, a blank canvas on which to accrue stains.
But light-coloured trousers will reflect the heat away, and lightweight wool is beyond breathable, meaning that if you’re dead set on wearing trousers over shorts this summer, then a light colour is the way to go.
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