Yesterday, upon returning from Doggiestyle Bakery with a five-inch carob and peanut butter cake that read "Monte's Two!" in yogurt-piped icing in one hand and my Nano tuned to "Maneater" in the other, I snagged my favorite heels not once, not twice, but four times in the 18th St. cobblestones, because the woman in front of me - the woman to whom I was paying such rapt attention on my walk home I didn't even notice my skirt had done a 180-degree turn - was wearing the most distractingly cheap-looking, shiny satin, Pucci knock-off printed, ankle-length halter-style sun dress I'd ever seen.
It was so bad, I tell you, I barely even noticed her thick-strapped comfort sandals, chipped Grimace-purple toe polish and flagrant disregard for my shave-the-morning-of sleeveless-ness rule.
As nose-wrinkling and almost Hall-and-Oates-ruining as it was to walk two feet behind her accidentally-went-off-Yasmin-for-a-month induced back "rash," I had to acknowledge this woman's fabric fun-tent did remind me there was a very necessary Summer wardrobe staple still missing from my closet.
Perfect for sultry Summer nights monument-hopping with a lov-ah, lakeside picnics with the family in Michigan and girlfriends-only Champagne brunches at the Beacon, the long flowy sun dress, depending on the style you choose, is a nearly universally figure-flattering, not to mention minimal-effort-requiring, best-bet when it comes to warm weather outings.
Just please, go for cute flats like these instead of the Mephistos, commit to either on-or-off the polish, and for God's sake, if you can't remember to pick up your birth control, wear a cardigan.
Happy shopping!
Army topaz long dress by Sky ($138 at fashionchateau.com)*
Shiva dress by Free People ($148 at freepeople.com)
Long silk dress with gold belt by Rozae Nichols ($638 at ronherman.com)
Lucia maxi dress by ingwa;melero ($306 at shopbop.com)
Thick strap maxi dress by C&C California ($125 at revolveclothing.com)
Empire gown by Plenty by Tracy Reese ($150 at couturecandy.com)
Long chiffon dress by Tricia Fix ($275 at couturecandy.com)
Long flutter-sleeve dress by T-Bags ($220 at pinkmascara.com)*
