May 2009

“Be prepared.” The Boy Scout motto aptly sums up my approach to summer. It’s all fun and games until you have to pack for the activity du jour. Here’s how to be stylishly prepared for whatever the summer might spring on you.

My parents have a lovely wicker picnic basket, the kind that conjures up images of the French countryside and fields of lavender. What the fantasy never addresses is how unbelievably heavy and clunky that basket is to carry. I’m sure Parisians prefer lighter, storable options like this one.

A day at the beach. Sounds divine and…well…sandy. Treat sand like a two way street. Find a bag that it can go in and out of with ease. Otherwise you wind up carting half the beach home with you.

The beauty of summer days is that brunch has a care free way of rolling into dinner. It’s the season that’s full of glorious weekends when you just need your keys, lipgloss, id and a bit of cash. Why carry anything else?

May is the opening month of graduations, weddings and garden-side cocktails. The next four months are always a flurry of gracious outdoor events. And while I love a breath of fresh air as much as the next girl, all that time in the well manicured great outdoors can be a style challenge. Here’s how to look, and smell, like a rose all season.

My Grandfather use to tease me about ‘aerating’ the lawn with my heels. It might be great for the landscape, but it’s dreadful for your shoes. A wedge heel gives you all the glory of heels, with none of the pain. Kill two trends with one shoe and look for one in a reptile pattern.

Hats are wonderfully fun. But they also give you funky hair and make you crane your neck at strange angles to talk to people. Parasols keep you out of the sun (or rain), don’t mess up your hair and are shareable. What’s not to love?

Even the coolest of cucumbers can get a little…sticky in warm weather. Save yourself from pit stains with a topical, temporary sweat inhibitor. One swipe you’re dry for the day.