SCARLET FEVER

Usually one to gravitate towards separates, I'm both excited and relieved to have found my dress mojo again. (How hassle-free is chucking on a dress? Prepare to see a lot more trouser-free get-ups over the next few weeks...) Plus summer = added bonus of no static – and usually laddered – tights to battle with.

This easy-to-wear, petal-strewn tea dress is such a steal that it's worth getting lined up for the balmy days ahead (fingers crossed). It isn't the oh-so covetable Realisation Par, nor the Kate Moss for Topshop dress that spread like wildfire back in her designing days. This gem is from somewhere I used to raid the rails of back in my early teens, in pursuit of treasures to keep my beloved logo-swathed surfer T-shirts company which also, incidentally, might have found a place in today's wardrobe thanks to the slogan redux.

Looking at these pics now I quite fancy restyling with an oversized slouchy cardigan and chunky lace up boots too...