Are you also refreshing your summer wardrobe as this little mini spring-heat-wave hit us? If your wardrobe is a little lacking, I would always suggest to start out by making sure you have your essentials covered. It is how I personally like to assess my seasonal wardrobes and it is a great place to start. Every upgrade here will make a huge difference to your daily wardrobe!

Prefer video? Watch my walk-through of these pieces over on Youtube, CLICK HERE.

Tank Tops & T-Shirts

Starting with an obvious one.. But I always use summer as an opportunity to take stock of my t-shirts and tank tops, because they feature in so many of my summer outfits, I need a little army of them. So for summer, make sure you have a few great quality and elevated ones, and get rid of the old ones that are too worn or have holes or unrelenting stains on them. I like putting a little extra attention into them and look for beautiful tank tops, preferably in a ribbed material and with a nice and flat neckband – the details will make all the difference in how these look in your outfits!

I have spoken at length about my Arket heavyweight ones, but I also really like the COS clean-cut, both of which are social media favourites (for good reason). Both brands also make excellent tank tops, even if I have a found pretty nice ones at H&M as well.

Fun Tops & Blouses

With the boring basic tops out of the way, I want to still focus on tops for summer, because leaving yourself too few options here is the fastest way to feeling like you’re wearing the same outfit every day. And summer is the perfect time for those beautiful blouses and tops that often have to be covered up by warm layers the rest of the year! I particularly let me love for puffy sleeves really blossom this time of year, precisely because they are a nightmare to wear when you need layers over. I still focus on natural materials and a lot of looser silhouettes, to make them as practical as possible, but these truly make summer so much more fun!

Linen trousers

Continuing with linen, because it truly makes up a large portion of my wardrobe during the summer time, I wear linen trousers as often as I can during summer! I love the texture of them and they are obviously so comfortable to wear in hot weather. I keep both tailored versions, as well as a few with elasticated waists, both beautiful and a delight to wear.

I really like long trousers even for warmer days, because they almost provide a bit of shade, without being too clammy or warm, because they’re still so breathable.

Dressy (Linen) Shorts

Obviously, shorts are another summer staple! And, as you might start to realise, if it comes in linen, I want it in linen. And shorts are no exception. I love a pair of tailored shorts that can be worn in situations where denim shorts are a little too casual. If you have a pair of more dressy shorts, they can be worn to work, for example. Because my work place tends to be very air conditioned, I always stick with my tailored trousers instead, otherwise I would keep these exact shorts, just in a longer version, as they are a little on the short side. But still so beautiful and dressy, and they give off such a polished vibe.

Floaty dresses

Summer naturally means dresses, and I absolutely love how easy it is to get dressed by simply throwing on a dress and a couple of season appropriate accessories. And a light, airy and flowy dress is easily the best way to stay chic and as comfortable as possible during warm weather. It always looks like you put more thought into your outfit than you did, and especially the long and flowy silhouettes allow for air circulation on hot days.

I have – over the years – built up a collection of these dresses to get me through summer and I typically add another couple each year. Last year I bought the amazing green maxi dress that was so soft and comfortable, and they have repeated it this year, as well as 4 other beautiful colours.

Either way, it is worth having a few of these in rotation during summer, both more plain silhouettes and neutral colours that can be paired with lots of different things in your wardrobe, as well as bold and fun prints and colours!

Check out my entire wish list of this year’s summer dresses HERE.

Sunglasses

It sounds obvious, but sunglasses do so much for my summer outfits. Because summer is so hot, accessorizing – as well as layering of any kind – can be a bit tricky because you don’t want to add anything that is going to be tight and clammy to the body or make you feel more sweaty. So I like to pay extra attention to my sunglasses for summer to be able to switch up a bit more and get some variety to how I accessorize.

Sandals

No summer wardrobe is complete without some great summer sandals. I have a few different ones, depending on how much walking I will be doing that day. And my sandals need somewhat frequent switching out, because of how much I put them through. So make sure you give your existing ones a little TLC and update where needed. I have really been gravitating towards the criss-cross style of sandal the past few years, so I have a couple of different colours. And I do try to get leather, because it breathes better (and shapes to the foot, as far as a sandal will do that anyway).

Button-up Shirt

I love my slightly over sized button up shirts for summer, because they are excellent layering pieces. Some days I will wear them “as intended”, especially the linen versions, but for days where a jacket (even a light one) is simply too warm, I love layering an over sized shirt over my outfit. It’s great for both providing a little extra warmth on chilly mornings, as well as giving a little shade and shoulder protection from the mid-day sun. I also love throwing these on over my light summer dresses, whether it is a city or a beach kind of day. These are fantastic both in cotton and linen, for slightly different expressions. So I obviously have a handful of both. Such a versatile piece that should not be neglected in your summer wardrobe!

Denim skirt

If you prefer shorts, I feel like they fill pretty much the same purpose, but I absolutely love a mini denim skirt for summer and wear them a ton! Of course you can get the very popular midi or maxi length as well, but I love the ease and comfort level of a mini version. Because denim is a little stiffer, it’s one of the few mini skirts I can wear without feeling like I need to spend a little extra brain power paying attention to hems flying up in the wind and similar. I wear them almost as I would wear jeans the rest of the year, so it’s also super easy to style!

Linen Blazer

I am 100% a blazer girl and I always make sure I have a season appropriate one (or three) in my wardrobe at any time. I think they are simply the most amazing layering pieces that always make outfits look a bit more polished. They still work so well for casual outfits as well! I have a linen version that has stayed in my wardrobe for a couple of years now and I still love it so much! Mine is from Arket, but I am not totally against adding more, so I will share some that I am looking at… For research purposes only, of course!

If you’re not really a blazer person, I would substitute this for a light jacket – I love the rising popularity of the bomber jacket! But a denim jacket is another classic that could serve you really well for summer.

White Sneakers

I always keep white sneakers in my wardrobe, but since getting a pair of Veja sneakers, they’re just about all I want to wear. They are so comfortable, yet still chic and stylish. I can see why they have a bit of a cult following! Either way, a pair of white sneakers is a great summer staple as they are perfect for casual outfits – I also wear mine to work – and especially for those days that involve a fair bit of walking! I cannot recommend them enough.

Are there any other essentials you would add to the list?