I think I've conquered the technical difficulties that had stopped me taking outfit photos, so I'm back in the game!

We've entered the 90/33+ days down here (the high for today is 98/37), and it's a humid kind of heat, although luckily the mornings are still cool for now! Anyway, as an environmentalist I try to not use a/c more than necessary, which means I've been reaching for my go-to very hot weather formula: loose (short) shorts, loose lightweight woven blouse (sleeveless or short sleeved), a light long sleeved cardigan over top, and a brooch for interest (perfect for this weather as it doesn't touch me). Luckily my everyday life allows me to dress at whatever casual/formal level I want, so if it helps me feel more comfortable (I run hot & am not a fan of hot weather), I wear it with abandon.

This summer, as my hair's a bit longer, I've decided to see if adding a few different updos to my formula helps keep me more interested during the long months ahead; if I get tired of messing with it I'll just get it cut back into a jawlength bob.

I opt for long sleeves and shorts, because I prefer not to tan, and I've noticed my arms tan much more quickly than my legs: the shorts give me enough ventilation to not feel terrible with a cardigan for sun protection! Indoors, if the a/c is blasting, the cardi helps keep me warmer, while if there's not much a/c I can just take it off. Yay for layers! I keep my blouse boxy so as to promote air circulation, hehe. Humid heat means me trying to catch every breeze & allow for as much evaporative cooling as possible.

I wear my shorts quite short, obviously: I think my longest pair hits mid-thigh. The shorter hemlines look better in outfit proportions to my eye, plus it's tricky to find anything between short shorts and bermuda shorts (which I have a poison eye for). In my mind, the looseness of the cuts, being very covered up on top, and wearing only flat shoes, takes away any potential sexiness from showing so much of my legs, plus skinny jeans give just as much information about said legs, but objectively this is a less modest formula. Oh well: it's too hot and humid to care & lots of women of various ages & body types wear mid-thigh or shorter shorts here so I'm not breaking a cultural norm. Before I moved here 3 1/2 years ago, I didn't own any shorts, but my first summer here changed all that!

I try to stay true to my style by adding textural details (in this case, the embroidered lace on the blouse and little pintucks on the cardigan), a brooch (the cat seemed just right for this outfit), and wearing my favourite colours. Blue-green is definitely one of my favourites, so I kept my top half neutral to highlight the shorts. I couldn't resist echoing the colour with one of the velvet ribbons I got back in the winter: I love playing with colour and think this is another way for me to vary things up, but I understand it won't be to everyone's taste. My walk was earlier in the morning, so I wore my grey oxfords to bookend the cardi but forgot to take a pic.

Now I've rambled on for far too long, as usual, but I see so many posts on the challenges of hot weather dressing, I thought I'd share my 'solution' in detail in case it helps anyone. With any luck, I'll be moving up north soon enough to avoid the next six months of summer, but while I wait for everything to fall into place, at least I've got a uniform in place to help me deal with the heat. Oh and I added 2 side shots so that you can see just how boxy the tops I wear are: helps the airflow!

Feedback welcome as always! I know this isn't a figure flattering look, but I like to think it still looks intentional. The shorts have cuffs that are sewn at the side seams: I could let them down and get about an inch more length if you think that would look better. And looking at the pics, they could probably do with an iron.