Jess Cartner-Morley on fashion: there’s more to dressing in May than checking the weather | Fashion

At the risk of breaking the fourth wall, I admit that I’m not writing this on the same day you are reading it. We are probably not even in the same city. So I actually have no idea what the weather is doing where and when this finds you. After all, the only thing you can be sure about the weather at this time of year is its unpredictability.

So getting a May wardrobe right is tricky. Summer makes a big entrance, and is then liable to make a French exit, disappearing without warning. It can be T-shirt and sunglasses weather on the sunny side of the street, but scarf and sweater time in the shade. Grey and moody enough to have you leave the house in black opaque tights, and then so muggy by lunchtime that you are dying to take them off. To complicate matters further, there tends to be a lot going on around now, what with bank holiday weekends and the compressed working weeks.

What you need are clothes that feel fresh and spring-like but don’t leave you at the mercy of the elements. That celebrate the blue sky moments, but won’t leave you out on a limb if clouds roll in. This is equal parts practicality and vibe. It is about shoulder coverage and hemline length. It is about weight, transparency and wind-resistance of fabric. It is adaptability, and layering potential, and how to add warmth with pieces you can roll up and tuck in your bag. But it is also about colour and mood and attitude.

Here’s the thing: a May wardrobe will be useful all year round. Your spring bank holiday weekend wardrobe is also your staycation wardrobe and your coolcation wardrobe if you opt to swerve sweltering Mediterranean climes for a fresh Scandi destination this summer. And it will do you proud as the building blocks of a wardrobe any time between spring and autumn .

Let’s start with what we are not going to do, which is that typical British thing of celebrating the first rays of sunshine by stripping off. There is something about early summer that compels us to go full bucket-and-spade, and it’s not a great look, to be honest. Go into any pub garden on a warm night and you will find folk who are usually quite sophisticated dressed as if for a saucy seaside postcard, with goosepimpled flesh crisscrossed with exposed bra straps and flushed with sunburn.

I know the first flush of summer is exciting, but can we at least try to play it cool? Sunny weather does not necessitate stripping off. Nothing to do with prudery, it’s just not that chic to look as though you’ve lost your mind because it has finally stopped raining. Unless the temperature is truly sauna-hot – and I know I said I didn’t know what the weather was like where you are today, but I’m going to stick my neck out here and say that it is probably not – a cool, loose, long-sleeve top will keep you cool enough, but will also ( crucially) give you a coverage when the temperature drops.

You do want some bare skin, though. Just a glimmer or two. Never underestimate the power of a subtle flash of skin. I’m not pretending that this is completely not about sex, but it’s not just about sex. A glimpse of skin is appealing just because it creates a human-to-human connection with other people. You don’t need to be in a strappy vest, though: I’m talking about trousers worn sockless with flat sandals so that you can see a bit of bare foot. Or jacket sleeves turned back to the elbow. Or go ahead and wear that sleeveless vest, but under a jacket.

May dressing is about reading the mood, not just about reading the mercury. You can hint at warm weather adventures with the texture of what you wear. The artisan-style blanket stitching on these sandals, or the relaxed frayed edges of this coord set. Or a bold jewellery piece that looks like you picked it up at the market. These things will work. Do you need the sunglasses? I’ll leave that one up to you.

Model: Teesta at Milk. Hair and makeup: Delilah Blakeney using Charlotte Tilbury. Styling assistant: Sam Deaman. Blazer, £54.99, H&M. Top, £89 and skirt, £99 both Whistles. Sandals, £120, Boden. Necklace, £290, Alemais. Sunglasses, £14, River Island