You don’t need a “Summer Body”
I was recently talking about why getting dressed in summer can feel harder than getting dressed in winter. I was talking about layers, outfit finishers and all the practical styling bits, but I have to be honest, I did gloss over one of the biggest reasons summer dressing can feel harder.
And that’s because dressing in summer can feel confronting.
Suddenly, our bodies are more on show. Fewer layers means less visual interest to build outfits with, but it also means fewer layers to hide behind. So while you’re trying to work out how to pull an outfit together, you might also be quietly grappling with how your body looks in it, even if it isn’t fully conscious.
And if you have insecurities about certain areas, summer can make them feel more on display than you’d like.
Honestly, I think this is a feeling so many of us have. And I don’t think it helps that we’re constantly shown images of women of a certain size modelling clothes, or wearing them on Instagram, as if that is the only body summer clothes are designed for.
But your body does not need to qualify for summer.
You do not need a “summer body”.
You need clothes that fit and support the body you have now.
Not the body you had before children. Not the body you think you should have. Not the body you’re hoping to have later in the year. The one you are actually living in today.
One thing that has really helped me with this mindset is this group. When I first started Joyfully Dressed, one of the biggest and most overwhelming changes I noticed in people’s journeys was the confidence that grew in this area. Not because everyone suddenly looked one certain way, but because women started dressing for the bodies they actually had, sharing photos, cheering each other on, and realising they were allowed to feel good now.
Another thing that helps me is thinking about my daughter. I am so conscious of what I say in front of her about my body. Recently I put on a small bit of weight, and my jeans started feeling uncomfortably snug, to the point where I kept putting them on, taking them off after a few minutes, and then trying them again like they were somehow going to magically feel different.
And it would be so easy to let that turn into, “Ugh, I need to sort myself out.” But I don’t want my daughter to hear me speak about myself like that. So I’m trying to practise saying, “These jeans don’t fit me comfortably right now. That is a clothes problem. Not a body problem.”
Which it 100% is. There is nothing wrong with a body that changes over time. I just need a pair of jeans that fit that body properly, which I currently don’t have.
Another thing that helps is actually going out into the real world, especially somewhere like the beach. Because when you step away from Instagram, movies and adverts and look around, you remember what real people actually look like. Bodies of all shapes and sizes. People with soft tummies, cellulite, scars, wobbly bits, pale legs, tan lines, bodies that have changed, bodies that are changing.
People playing with their kids, eating chips, reading books, swimming in the sea, walking back from the ice cream van. And no one is standing there looking like a filtered swimwear advert. They’re just living.
And yes, we hear “wear the shorts” a lot at this time of year. And there is a lot to be said for wearing the shorts. If you are hot and frustrated because you really want to wear shorts but feel too conscious of your legs, then yes, I will absolutely be your cheerleader. Wear the shorts.
But also, you don’t have to wear shorts just to prove a point.
If you don’t actually like shorts, or they don’t feel like you, there are plenty of other options. Skirts, lightweight trousers, linen, wide-leg crops, loose dresses. This is not about forcing yourself to wear something you hate in the name of confidence.
So maybe instead of asking, “Does my body look good enough for this?” try asking, “Does this item help my body feel comfortable, supported and like me?”
Because that is the actual goal.
It’s about giving yourself permission to dress the body you have now in a way that feels comfortable, joyful and like you.
Your body does not need to be fixed before you can enjoy summer. Your wardrobe just needs to support the life you are actually living.
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