For most of us, the summer heat is license to forgo all formality in the pursuit of comfort. But comfort comes in multiple guises, and there are plenty of occasions when shorts and flip-flops are not—if you care about style—a viable option. In such situations, it pays to know your textiles. Chosen well, summer’s best cloths have the power to make dressing up a pleasure rather than a purgatory. Lightweight linens, blends of silk and wool, and even (perhaps counterintuitively) wool itself can be our friends, allowing relaxed layering to deliver style in spades without sacrificing one ounce of ease. As you can see here, it’s largely about attitude. The secret, according to Savile Row great and dressmaker to Her Majesty the Queen, Hardy Amies, is this: “A man should look as if he had bought his clothes with intelligence, put them on with care, and then forgotten all about them.” Truer words were never spoken.
Lead image: Aiden Gilbert, musician, wearing a suit jacket ($5,750), shirt ($1,890), suit trousers ($1,850), boots ($2,390) and sunglasses ($550) by Tom Ford; tie ($185) by Fursac; watch ($13,700) by Jaeger Le-Coultre. Above: Luca Apple, actor, wearing a suit jacket ($6,025), shirt ($1,375), and suit trousers ($1,250) by Loro Piana; sunglasses ($550) by Ahlem.
If you think the height of summer elegance means investing in a suit, well, of course that works. But putting together a tailored look using a jacket, trousers, and shirt in different weaves can make things more casual because it gives a subtle variation in tone, even when all three appear to be of the same color.
Suit jacket ($2,140), shirt ($1,200), and suit trousers ($1,225) by Giuliva Heritage; shoes ($690) by Santoni; sunglasses ($550) by Akoni Eyewear.
Wool is nature’s most versatile fiber. It can be spun in winter into thick sweaters or heavy overcoats. But in summer, finer merino fibers can make for a lightweight and surprisingly comfortable material for tailoring.
Jacket ($5,500) by Isaia; shirt ($190) by Velasca.
One of summer’s great sartorial imponderables is how you can sometimes feel more comfortable in suit cloths that seem thicker than in those that seem wafer thin. Flat, superlight weaves can show your discomfort more than something substantial. But cloths with body can surprise—and offer more texture, too.
Jacket ($1,395), shirt ($480), and trousers ($610) by Massimo Alba; shoes ($895) by Manolo Blahnik.
For a more casual approach to dressing up in warm weather, make your clothing a combination of soft sorbet tones from vanilla to pink to pale yellow. It’s instantly less formal.
Juan Heredia, artist, wears a jacket ($7,500) and trousers ($1,950) by Cesare Attolini; sunglasses ($590) by Ahlem; jewelry, his own.
It’s less important that top and bottom match but way more important that they are well constructed. Properly constructed tailoring will last you much longer and always justify the money you invest.
Suit jacket ($1,098), shirt ($198), suit trousers ($498), and tie ($118) by Todd Snyder; sunglasses ($935) by Barton Perreira; shoes ($925) by Jimmy Choo.
Creases are a natural corollary of 100 percent Irish or Italian linen. Embrace it, for the upside is that nothing in summer takes color quite as well as pure linen.
Michael Buscemi, actor, wears a suit ($2,625) and shirt ($465) by Caruso; watch ($11,900) by Glashütte Original; tie, stylist’s own.
The temptation may be to opt for as few layers as possible when the temperatures rise. But for a really special occasion, consider the counterintuitive route and add a waistcoat. If temps dip a touch, you’re good. If not, you can leave it at home.
Sweater ($1,495), shirt ($495), and tie ($235) by Ralph Lauren Purple Label; watch ($23,400) by Glashütte Original.
Because it’s not all shirt and tie when it comes to dressing up in the summer, add a cricket sweater (okay, you can call it a tennis sweater if you like) to your armory for when the sun dips below the yardarm.
Suit ($1,320) by Fursac; shirt by Dunhill.
Cotton tailoring is summer’s most casual default option, but that doesn’t mean it has to be a boring color. Look therefore for unusual shades like this sage green. Your cotton suit may have a short season, but it can be a memorable one.
Photographs by Billy Kidd
Styling by Nick Sullivan
Grooming by Sandrine Van Slee for Art Department
Grooming by Devra Kinery for Art Department
Casting by Barbara Pfister
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