The Dress I Wear All Summer Long

As someone who has a job that offers her free clothing, I really examine what stays in my closet year after year, especially in my summer wardrobe. That which I find comfortable yet stylish, breezy and fun to wear. And below I share the dress I wear all summer long. It's a certain fabric and silhouette that is fantastic for hot and humid Maryland summers, and I've found this dress at different retailers for a really great price.

In 2021, Christopher John Rogers ha a collaboration with Target. I love his colorful style, and knew I'd be getting at least one piece from this Target designer collaboration. I ordered several pieces, but the only one that I was really drawn to was an orange sleeveless cotton midi dress. But I was worried it would be… too much. My shape was hidden, the color is so bold, and of course my Gen X mind was going towards all the style rules it was breaking. This wasn't “flattering.”

I even polled my audience on Instagram stories, and the audience was truly torn with half loving it and half hating it. I decided to keep the dress, and I am so glad as I have worn this dress for four summers… in fact, I am wearing it right now as I update this post from last summer raving about it. However, after four years of wear and washing and stain removal, the dress has faded a bit. It has become more of a “house dress” that I slip on for morning coffee on the deck, puttering around the house braless, and just loving how hardly anything touches my body while I still have pockets and coverage.

The Dress I Wear All Summer Long

In 2021, I found a similar dress on Amazon. It's a very similar dress to my beloved Christopher John Rogers for Target dress I got earlier that same year. I thought the black would be a dressier option of what proved to be a fantastic silhouette for hot summer days, this Amazon dress also available in 100% cotton. Like the Target designer collaboration, this Amazon dress is size-inclusive, offering every color in XXS-5X.

The size large in the Amazon version of the dress fit everywhere except my bust. I tried a minimizer bra, but this dress was supposed to be easy, not require specific underpinnings. The top part of this dress is lined so I thought maybe if I cut out the lining it would have more room for my chest. I didn't realize the lining was the same fabric as the actual dress and I ended up making a real mess of things.

I tried sewing the arm and neckholes to hide the chopped-out lining but it didn't look as polished or crisp. That being said, I still wore the heck out of this dress all summer long, just in more casual situations. Removing the lining did give my bust some more room, but the dress looked a lot nicer when the lining still intact. I couldn't justify purchasing another of these dresses with two dresses in my closet that were already so similar.

But at the end of the Summer 2021, I decided to donate the black dress. It served its purpose being an easy thing to throw on with Birkenstocks and a pair of Thigh Society slipshorts to run errands, walk the dog, or wear as loungewear around the house. But it wasn't quite right offering the versatility of the original orange Target dress.

The Christopher John Rogers for Target dress continued to be worn a LOT.

The original CJR x Target dress was still a summer wardrobe staple. I wore it on a 2021 12-day road trip up the East Coast, finding it perfect for sightseeing in NYC with a pair of sneakers, and enjoying an event at a farm in Vermont (that time styled with a pair of Crocs).

Last summer, I took it with me for a romantic DC weekend for our wedding anniversary. It again proved to be perfect for sightseeing on a hot summer day, not clinging to my sweaty back and legs, and having pockets deep enough to hold a water bottle. But the end 2023, this orange dress was looking a bit faded from three summers of hard wear.

So I returned back to that Amazon dress, and checked out the current colors.

I went back to see if the Amazon dress was still for sale, and it was. I decided to try it again, one size larger. All of the color options are pretty great; you can find neutrals and brights. I was torn; did I want to be classic with navy (so cute with white sneakers, tan sandals, a denim jacket in spring and fall), or do one of the bright colors.

I was thrilled to see the dress in chartreuse. Like orange, it's a bold color that is surprisingly versatile, and a color that even if it's not “your color,” it's enough of a statement to look great on almost anyone. And chartreuse, highlighter colors, and styling neon colors are something I love in summer.

I found the XL dress roomy enough for all my curves, but not gaping under the arms or too long on my 5'3″ frame. I washed it on hot and put it in the dryer to see if it would shrink a hair and it did, but not so much it was too snug anywhere.

Chartreuse with olive, chartreuse with denim, chartreuse with wood and brown leather, chartreuse with bold black and white, chartreuse with gold sandals and jewelry, chartreuse with my red leather or hot pink EVA Birkenstocks, with my magenta heeled sandals, white sneakers…

Some ways I have styled it:

• Before it was truly summer in the DC area, I wore this dress with my Universal Standard Kelsey denim jacket and my Birkenstock Bend sneakers.
• I have a lavender canvas ball cap I got a couple of years ago and this belt bag from Dagne Dover in the same shade (a color from a previous year). For a day when I was helping the Girl Scouts with their Silver Award, I wore this combination with the dress, and on my feet, I wore my white Teva Hurricane Drift sandals.
• I went to lunch with my friend in DC and knew I'd likely have to walk a few blocks to get parking. It was a warm day and I wanted to be comfortable. I wore this dress with gold hoops, my gold “1975” necklace (my birth year, not a tribute to Taylor Swift's ex), my brown leather saddle bag as a crossbody, and old brown leather gladiator sandals seen in this blog post.
• I had to sit outside for a kid's event. There was no shade. I wore this dress with a straw hat and white Birknstock Arizona sandals.
• I went to a get-together at the house of someone with a pool. I didn't know if we would be in the pool, so I wore my swimsuit under this dress. I glammed it up with my turquoise Simon Miller ball earrings (seen in this blog post) and then had a towel and EVA Birkenstocks in the car in case I took a dip.
• I went to lunch with my husband. I wore the dress with my tomato red Birkenstock sandals.
• I went to dinner with a friend and wore this dress with my magenta suede heeled sandals, my hair slicked back into a ponytail with the pink earrings from this blog post and a glossy magenta lip.
• I styled the dress with the ivory Better Than Wool cardigan from Universal Standard around my shoulders and chunky sneakers. I finished the look with gold jewelry.

The dress is 100% cotton so it washes well.

Though I put it in the dryer the first wash, I now let it air dry by just hanging it on a plastic hanger off my shower curtain bar. It's dry overnight, and it looks okay being a bit rumpled. If you want it crisp, it's easy to iron or steam, but I don't think it's necessary. In fact, I think it looks cooler and, dare I say, more expensive when it's imperfect.

Like my orange dress, the Amazon dress has deep pockets so I can fit a water bottle, my sunglasses, and my phone without issue. It's opaque; I can wear any color underpinnings of any texture or style and they're hidden. It doesn't crease easily; I can sit in it for hours in the heat, stand up, and not have an accordion at my crotch or a butt imprint on my backside.

Last summer, I was in The Washington Post for an article about Amazon fashion. The journalist found my post about how I am over Amazon's The Drop and wanted to get my perspective as someone who isn't all sunshine and rainbows regarding Amazon. In the interview, I shared how I do find most Amazon fashion crap, a lot of the brands sold there sketchy, but I have found the occasional gem such as this dress.

And now it's 2024 and I am wearing this chartreuse dress as I update this post. I wore it earlier today with ecru Birkenstocks with a large gold buckle, gold earrings, and a cream woven leather crossbody I got at Chico's several years ago. It's a go-to for summer errand running and casual occasions. It hasn't faded since last year.

I wouldn't call this a “flattering” dress, but as a grown-ass woman, I know that comfort and joy trump style rules. This color brings me joy, and being breezy both literally and figuratively with this versatile dress is why this is the dress I wear all summer long!