Top tips for a cool summer

My do's and don'ts:
Stay cool - don't worry about what I look like, wear a hat and suncream.
And for colder times:
Stay warm - don't worry about what I look like, wear layers and a scarf.
Never pay £100 for a cotton kimono style jacket!! (As suggested on the blog.)

I love loose cotton, but it is becoming increasingly hard to find. Everything is acrylic...

Yes grannyactivist the items on the blog are very expensive. I have bought loose colourful cotton tops from local charity shops and wear them with white linen mix wide legs and my Birkenstocks (DD2 is the manager of a shoe shop so I get them cheap or free!!). Comfort and coverage at a reasonable price.

What a strange blog, all it did was state the bl**ding obvious.

I would say the answer is fairly straight forward. Wear cotton, wear loose, wear sandals. When out wear a hat. You can do that in the height and expense of fashion or just as effectively from a charity shop.

Stuff on blog is far too expensive - a bit of sense needed there, pricewise.

Yep, wear cotton and wear loose.
Linen trousers from Primark, or M & S Outlet, or Charity Shop.
I rarely pay more than £5 for anything except shoes, and they are still bought very cheaply.

I have several floaty type cardi tops.... just not quite a kimono.
Got one in TKMaxx for £8.... pure silk, navy with white dots. (orig £112).
And got two M & S ones off ebay - one for 99p and the other was £2.99.
If stuff from eBay doesn't fit then I just list it and resell it, usually at a profit.

All shoes/boots from Clarks Outlet in the Outlet sales.

Linen looks nice for about ten minutes then it's a crumpled mess - on me anyway. It has to be ironed and ironing when it's hot is a chore to avoid. I like to change into loose PJs on a hot evening if there's no-one else around.

I was just going to say that Anno and I wondered if it is worth using spray starch on it - would that make it last longer?

I use spray starch on linen trousers cos they iron easier, and once they start to get creased and wrinkly anyway I just tell myself, they're linen, they are supposed to look like this.

One thing, because they will go baggy at the bum I always make sure I'm wearing either a longish tunic, half way down the thighs, or else a long cardi/wafty top that well covers the ..... bum.

I find linen a bit itchy but I have just bought some linen trousers from M&S; very baggy [someone once told me that a mistake people often make is to buy clothes on the small side..she said go a size bigger and you'll look thinner]. Obviously only works with loose fitting clothes though. I hate showing the tops of my arms but don't give a damn when it's this hot so I wear vest tops usually with a shirt tied round my waist to pop on if it gets cooler [or too protect from the sun] or a cotton shrug. I buy them from Adini and they're wonderful. I have got some cotton pyjamas in a black floral design and I often wonder if anyone would notice if I went out in the trousers as people wear almost identical ones out and about. If I'm not going anywhere I wear them all day. Cool shower last thing at night. Should also sip water throughout the day, but I'm very naughty about forgetting to do so. Crumpled doesn't bother me cause all of my clothes look crumpled . And when I'm walking I head straight for the shade, even if it means crossing the road several times.

Yes, the arms thing. Have only found elbow length t-shirts this year in M&S. Nice cotton & reasonable at £8 but not enough colour choices.
Agree suggested kimono tops ridiculously expensive, Got a good 'Paisley' one from M&Co & some nice loose viscose pants in H&M for £12. How long will summer last?

They recommend swapping a 'nan' cardigan for a kimono style jacket on really hot days.

On really hot days I would wear neither.

I saw a lot of bright, cheerful kimono style jackets in various shops yesterday but none in my size which suggests that well endowed women have been flocking to buy them!

Not saying I wouldn't wear one - I would like one if I could afford one - but would probably not wear it on a 'really hot day'.

I did used to love cotton shirtwaisters- I haven't seen one for a long while they look very tropical but smart. I'm at home or on the golf course mst of the time and I can tell you we are a pretty sight there. I wont wear shorts - I'm assize 14 and 5ft 4 so it looks like I'm standing in a whole and DH will only say ' sing lofty' so that's out but plenty do and don't care its the golf that matters to them. Cut offs for me for golf, Boden dresses for outside the house or Masai, M & S maxis at home in the evening - for some reason not wearing knickers makes me feel cooler and more comfortable. A nice long Campari and Tonic is refreshing but not wine if its very hot- very drying!

I was checking out viscose and polyester yesterday, having bought some trousers in both fabrics [you know, the Waynetta sort that everyone seems to be wearing at the moment ] and was surprised to read that they are supposed to be very cool to wear. Mine will be, anyway because they're very loose and baggy, but I always thought cotton was the fabric of choice if it was hot [silk if money is no object]. It reminded me of a friend that set up a school in Ethiopia and wrote to me saying 'so much for all the white cottony things I've brought with me; the most practical clothing to wear here is made of brown polyester'.

Viscose jersey is ok, it makes lovely cool t-shirts and drapey tops, but the woven fabric creases horribly unless it is mixed with something else. It's worse than linen. I do wear quite a lot of linen, it is so cool and comfortable that it spoils you for anything else. However, cheaper linen is the stuff that crumples. I have some ancient expensive linen skirts that cost a small fortune way back when I had more money, and they crease very little. I bought a navy linen blazer 20 years ago in Chicago in a sale, reduced from $200 to $20, and it is brilliant. Also thick silk shorts, now sadly rather too tight. They know how to dress for muggy weather over there. I think our fashion buyers are at fault here.

Don"t know whether I would want to go commando !!

Laugh !

Not because I am a prude , far from it , just don"t fancy the idea.

Marilyn was supposed to commando !

Have to agree that the blog did rather state the obvious!!

M&S have gone downhill hugely IMHO - I can't find a thing there these days. Thank goodness I bougth 3 pairs of their linen trousers a few years ago as I really liked the style. One still unworn (hope they still fit! ) but the last couple of years offerings have been dire.

A local boutique has the kimono style 'cardis' but I hate fringing so wouldn't have bought one! Matalan is a good hunting ground for reasonable prices and so is TKMaxx

Ridiculous! Some of us are a larger size than 16 which is all the (very nice) shirtwaist er goes up to.

I love viscose! Doesn't crease like linen does, and is cool and comfortable - I've got a couple of pairs of loose trousers I bought about five years ago from Store21 and they're still going strong! They don't shrink in the wash, either.

You don't think the "shirt dress" had something of the Chairman Mao about it?

Ridiculous prices! Useless blog.

Wore a very light silk and cotton top today and was still very hot and bothered.

Jing I liked it and it would have suited me (with pearls of course) but I'm a 20 at present. ( don't think Mao wore pearls did he?)

Prices on blog are far to expensive for a grandma like me !!!!