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Time to dig out the summer dresses — and if you find you are in need of an update for the 2025 season, there are plenty of easygoing styles to tap into. Many of them will take you from the beach to the office and even to Royal Ascot, if you choose carefully. Here are six fashion editor approved trends to note.
To polka dot … or not
M&S called it earlier this year, when it sent out its spring/summer collection without heavy prints. “It’s just stripes this season,” one representative told me. “Oh — and polka dots. Polka dots will be big this summer.” A statement that has been confirmed before June has even struck, no less. For some, a dotted dress can only be a chilling reminder of “the Zara dress”, a frock that defined the summer six years ago, but for many (and they are an armada led by the Princess of Wales) a cream-to-ivory silk or satin dress with navy or black polka dots will make for the perfect occasion wear frock in the coming months. Kate’s favourites are from Alessandra Rich (£1,685, alessandrarich.com) but Me+Em (£595, meandem.com), the more wallet-friendly Nobody’s Child (£99, nobodyschild.com) and wedding-appropriate Rixo (£275, rixolondon.com) all do similar versions. Now the Telegraph has blasted their popularity on its front page, however, I’d heed caution before wearing one to Ascot — unless you have no intention of standing out from the crowd.
Easy breezy tank dress
On the catwalks of Paris, the tank top — and tank dress — had something of an elevated makeover for the spring/summer 2025 season, from Rabanne’s vest dress worn with chainmail to a string of slogan tanks from Stella McCartney, including one “Mother f***er” style popularised by Dua Lipa. It’s good news back in London, because the ultra ncomfy, extremely easy vest dress is in — and far from a throwaway, casual look. Lean into “snore-core” aesthetic here (read: go subtle, not loud) and select styles in the navy to black remit. There is Cos’s ribbed tube dress which comes in 10 shades (£45, cos.com), Calvin Klein’s quite 1990s “second skin sleeveless dress” (£85, calvinklein.co.uk) and Reformation’s Jules knit dress (£148, thereformation.com). Pair with Ancient Greek Sandals on the beach, or a linen blazer and ballet flat for the office.
I want your bad romance
Floral floor-length dresses can still be in vogue, but think gothic clairvoyant — as suggested by the latest collection from Valentino’s Alessandro Michele. That basically means darker dresses with moody prints: tough, not twee. All Saints makes a fantastic version — the Quinn floral print dress (£299, allsaints.com) — which feels quite McQueen (the architect of this aesthetic). But also look to Rat & Boa (£185, ratandboa.com) and Farm Rio (£235, farmrio.uk) for alternate routes to serving Morticia Addams at the beach bar.
Tomato red
While spring was dominated by an onslaught of all things butter yellow, a sidestep towards the ubiquitous “tomato girl” mood of the past few summers seems inevitable. Why? The shade is imbued with a certain Mediterranean OOO energy — case in point: Self Portrait’s summer imagery, in which a model is draped over a table in Turkey wearing a particularly tempting red embroidered midi dress (£380, self-portrait.com). M&S has a standout tomato red two-piece (pure cotton bubble hem puff sleeve top, £29.50, and bubble hem midi skirt, £39.50, marksandspencer.com) while Omnes has a range of silhouettes in similar shades (£95, omnes.com). Tomatoes themselves are also having something of a moment — Loewe perfume’s pop-up at the Corner Shop in Selfridges is currently a tomato garden, selling candles with a salad scent — so lean into printed T-shirts to tap into the hype. John Lewis stocks Hush’s “tomayto, tomhato” tee (£32, johnlewis.com).
Linen
Never say no to the perennial classic — even in its most basic forms. Particularly good on the high street this season is Mango, which in April launched a dedicated Linen Selection Collection. It taps into the on-trend balloon silhouettes, striped co-ords and fuss-free button-down dresses (£59.99, mango.com). Massimo Dutti has long been my go-to for linen, however, and its dress offering does not disappoint: a yellow, 100 per cent linen halter style is one for the beach and Hampstead Heath picnics alike (£99.95, massimodutti.com). Faithfull The Brand’s newest drop is the deep V-neck white Melia Maxi dress (£310, faithfullthebrand.com) or step out of the box with a piece from Casa Raki, founded by fashion photographer Josefina A Theo and stocked at Harvey Nichols. It is technically a swimwear label but offers a range of lovely resort-wear linen pieces. Note the Vicky linen maxi dress (£325, harveynichols.com).
Elevated shirt dresses
It was Patrick McDowell’s floral shirt dress — complete with erupting red feathers — that caught the Princess of Wales’s eye as she inspected his designs before presenting him with the Queen Elizabeth II award for British design earlier this month. The Freesia shirt dress in question takes 80 hours to complete and costs £4,590 to be made bespoke. While we might not see Kate in that much campery — though what a joy that would be — a shirt dress certainly falls inside the royal parameters. A good spin on a public school dress comes from Anthropologie (from £134, anthropologie.com) while Toast does a baggier, smock-like number in olive and blue which is perfect for the British coast (£245, toa.st). For something sleek, you cannot fault Ralph Lauren’s satin shirt dress, either (£269, ralphlauren.co.uk).
