This outfit was inspired by recent “create” sessions with clients. It combines a vest with relaxed bottoms, a layering top, and structured peep-toe booties. It’s casual, trendy, interesting and comfortable. It can work in just about any casual setting in mild weather, or in hot weather with air conditioning. 

The most important component here is the vest. There are many, many styles at your disposal, so take your pick. I chose two options in neutrals for the ensembles below. A white moto that’s a little masculine and quite crisp, and a black asymmetrical drapey style that’s more avant-garde. The ensemble on the left is the softer, prettier and more graphic version, while the one on the right has a hard, arty edge. 

Here are the components of the ensemble. Choose any colour palette across solids or patterns: 

Bottoms: Choose boyfriend jeans, or skinnies / straight legs that you can roll at the hem. Ankle skin is important in order to showcase the footwear chosen for this ensemble. If jeans aren’t your thing, choose harem pants, cropped pants, or track pants that you can pull up at the cuffs. 

Top: Choose a fluid T-shirt, a drapey tee, or a T-shirt blouse. Leave it untucked, or partially tucked in front for a little structure. Choose any length of sleeve or go sleeveless. A lightweight pullover works just as well. 

Vest: A fluid or oversized vest with a longer armhole works better over a roomier sleeved top and prevents sleeve bunching. Fitted vests tend to be restricted to layering over fitted tops, which isn’t quite as fashionable at the moment. Leave the vest open to accentuate its relaxed vibe and boxy cut. 

Footwear: I love this look with a peep-toe bootie because it grounds the outfit and adds an extra dose of fashionable interest. Franco Sarto’s Refresh Booties are surprisingly comfy, and also available in lighter colours. Super soft and cushioning with a manageable heel. 

If peep-toe booties aren’t your thing, substitute with shoes that have ankle detail, like ankle strap sandals, strappy gladiators, or cage heels. 

Accessories: Finish off the look with a bag that suits the mood of the outfit. I chose a perforated shopper to add sporty spunk to the prettier outfit. I chose a crisp light blue satchel to soften the hard edge of the second outfit. Add jewellery, eyewear and watch as desired. 

Summer vests are an excellent way to add a structured and interesting third piece to your outfit without overheating.

This recent forum thread about bra shopping once again made it clear that finding the perfect bra can be tricky. Here are a number of articles that might help make your next bra shopping expedition a little easier.

• Glamour’s Are You Wearing the Best Bra for Your Breast Type with helpful infographic.
• The Telegraph’s take on the T-shirt bra, and Rank & Style’s Ten Best T-Shirt Bras.
• Refinery29 asked its staff for input on the best strapless bras out there, while Harper’s Bazaar has tips for the perfect strapless bra for every cup size.
• Into The Gloss selects bras that are pretty enough to put on display. Refinery29 also weighs in on the show off your bra in public trend.
• And if you prefer to keep it covered, they have tips on 6 Tricky Shirts and the Bras to Wear With Them.
• Last but not least, Sally has done some research on various types of bra pads.

Fab Links from Our Members

Alpha sizing (S, M, L) rather than numerical sizes snuck up on Laurinda’s wardrobe. She just realized that aside from shoes and jeans most of her wardrobe is alpha sized. Joy also found a video that explains the phenomenon.

Angie firmly believes that all bodies are bikini bodies, and this photo shoot proves that point. She loved it. 

Angie also encourages our readers to look at Sylvia’s outfits on 40plusstyle more closely because she lives in Singapore where it is extremely hot and humid year round. Sylvia does an extraordinary job of looking on trend, polished, elegant, interesting and as cool as a cucumber despite Singapore’s relentless weather. Angie particularly loved Sylvia’s recent white-out look. Fresh, modern, coiffed and relaxed. 

Lyn* enjoyed learning about how a fashion house — Emilia Wickstead in this case — gets started and all the personal and made-to-measure touches available to its clients.

As a longtime lover of cordonvan leather, Joy had no idea that there is currently a shortage and found this article fascinating.

T came across a fashion blogger who was criticized by readers for repeating a pair of shoes too often. Vic talks about her experience in this post, questioning whether style as a fashion blogger means having access to infinite clothes.

Caro in Oz thinks that The Row’s new flagship store looks amazing.

Vildy likes the blog Dress like a Parisian, and found Aloïs’ post on How to wear a belt useful while trying to determine whether or not to embrace the fluid fit trend.

Deborah would like to introduce us to Lola from Lola Androgynous. She is in her sixties and has a cool aesthetic that is very interesting and might inspire other YLFers too. Deborah adds that while Lola wears a lot of designer pieces, her look can be achieved by people with regular budgets as well.

Annagybe wants to share two articles about fashion blogging: The Golden Era of ‘Fashion Blogging’ Is Over and Why The Era Of Personal Style Blogs Must Come To An End.

It’s a vest to people in the US, but a waistcoat or gilet to some of us who grew up in other parts of the world. To me a vest is an undergarment like a camisole, and not a sleeveless jacket. I’ll stick to “vests” to keep things simple, but whatever you call them, they are on trend for Summer. 

Summer vests come in all sorts of silhouettes, fabrications, weights, lengths, colours and fits. They can be dressy or casual. Rigid or soft. Heavy or lightweight. The photos here show a pretty good assortment of styles that can work in Summer. There are ultra breezy, soft crocheted and silk versions that are super casual and bohemian. There are moto styles, tuxedo styles with low stances, and classic suit style waistcoats for a more androgynous vibe. There are denim and utility styles with lots of pockets. And avant-garde silhouettes that are knee-length with either flowing and soft, or angular and stiff, voluminous drape. 

The fashion forward vests are oversized, like the denim vest that the Zara model is wearing. Fluid fit vests, like most of the other examples below, are very on trend. The fitted vest, although not as fashionable at the moment, is still in style.

You can wear most of these vests open for a ventilating and relaxed vibe, and to accentuate its fluid fit. Occasionally you’ll come across one that looks best buttoned or zipped up, like the Kenneth Cole Luna Vest, which is also fab. 

Vests are extremely useful for four reasons:

1. They add outfit interest because they function like a jacket. 
2. They are THE hot weather jacket solution because they allow you to wear a third piece without overheating. 
3. They provide effective outfit structure. 
4. They camouflage muffin top. 

Most of the photos here show a vest layered over a sleeveless top, and yes, that’s a fashionable way of wearing them. But it’s not the only way. By all means wear them over sleeved tops with trousers, skirts, jeans and shorts. They look fabulous over dresses too. 

I don’t own any vests because when I wear a jacket, I usually need sleeves for warmth. And since I wear toppers so frequently in Seattle, I celebrate the times when I can leave one off. I lived in a warmer climate in the ‘90s and wore dressy longer tunic vests to work quite often, and usually over a sleeveless or short sleeved top. I also wore lace vests and pinstripe suit vests. Fun over a sheath dress. 

Over to you. What’s your take on the Summer vest?

Here’s a roundup of comfortable knickers, many of which continue to rate tops for my clients. I’ve also thrown in the styles that I love to wear. Fabrications, colours and styles vary. And there are cotton options for cotton panty wearers. 

• Wacoal B Fitting Briefs: Comfortable coverage in a cotton-rich spandex fabrication. Not quite boy shorts, but almost there. Smooth and very soft. 
• Nordstrom High Cut Cotton Blend Briefs (Plus): A little less coverage on the thighs but very comfortable if you enjoy a high cut. 90% cotton is a plus for cotton lovers. 
• Wacoal B Smooth Briefs: A nylon-rich panty with excellent coverage and a high rise. Read the rave reviews. 
• Natori Bliss Girl Shorts: I’m a boy shorts fan, but stepped out of my comfort zone last year to try these low rise girl shorts and haven’t looked back. They are nylon-rich with a cotton gusset. They feel like you’re wearing nothing and stay put all day. Extremely lightweight. The lace does not show through your clothing. They launder well too. 
• Felina Aubrie Boy Leg Briefs: A full brief with a low rise and touch of pretty lace. No digging or creeping.
• Wacoal B Smooth High Cut Briefs: These are the high cut version of Wacoal’s B smooth brief, so there is less coverage. More rave reviews. 
• Natori Bliss Briefs: A cotton panty with a touch of spandex. It’s low cut so consider yourself warned. 
• Wacoal B Fitting Bikini: A more sporty version sans the lace that is just as low rise. No creeping and very comfy. 
• Hanky Panky Low Rise Thong: The lace hanky panky thong needs no introduction. I have clients who swear by this nylon style and will not wear anything else, ever. It’s a one size fits all in regular (US sizes 2 to 12), and here is the same style in plus. I find the style uncomfortable, but I’m in the minority. 
• Hanky Panky Lace Trim Boyshorts: This is my type of Hanky Panky because it’s a boy shorts style. I LOVE these knickers. I know they’re pricey but they look really good, and feel even better. They feel like cotton and stay put all day. No digging or creeping. They launder well and the lace trims are fabulous. They are definitely worth the price to me. 
• Calvin Klein Seamless Bikini: A classic CK bikini brief that is still going strong. I used to wear a very similar pair back in the ‘90s but prefer boy shorts these days. 
• DKNY Lace Curves Shaping Briefs: These are great for a little soft tummy shaping, and the operative word here is soft. Do not expect these to work as well as proper shapewear. They gently contour rather than suck the daylights out of you. They are comfortable, quite forgiving, and high rise. I love their retro vibe. Read the rave reviews. 
• Calvin Klein Hipster Briefs: A very lightweight hipster brief in fun colours. Provides more coverage than you might expect. 
• TC Wonderful Edge Briefs: You’ll have to like full briefs and gripper strips on the insides of the leg openings to enjoy this style. The gripper strips cause friction against the skin so that the panties stay put. It’s effective, but can also cause discomfort. Some people love this feature, while others don’t. The only way to find out is to give it a try. 
• Simone Perele Andora Stretch Cotton Bikini: I broke my boy shorts rule to introduce these into my knickers capsule. They are a matching set with a recent bra I purchased. They are cotton-rich and feel like you’re wearing nothing because they’re a little loose and forgiving. Super comfy, lightweight and feminine. I bought three pairs and am not looking back. Also pricey, but worth it to me because I love to wear pretty underwear. 
• Splendid Color Splash Girl Shorts: I bought these last year in an ink blue pattern to match an ink blue and white bra, and I love them.  Very comfortable and they look good too. They’re made of modal, which actually feels even better than cotton on my skin. This modal looks like cotton though, and has a very similar texture. They are low rise in the back, so consider yourself warned. 

I’ve found that one of the most effective ways to stop your panties from creeping up is to NOT purchase them too small. Size up if you need to, especially when they are cotton and you tumble dry them frequently. Truly, tight knickers are not your friend. They create muffin top, dig into your skin and ride up your bottom. Not so fab.