Kaftan dressing at home and away
Chrissie Stripe maxi, NRBY
Is it a dress, is it a kaftan? If it makes getting dressed in the morning easier, who really cares? The kaftan dress has superb pull-on-and-go properties, for me, it’s a grown-up summer style staple that works just as well in the Med as it does on the Metropolitan Line. Think wafting around holiday markets, pulling one on for a passeggiata and wearing to work during a British heatwave. Kaftan dressing takes a relaxed, decadent approach to daywear but is not the same as going out in your actual beach kit.
Natural fabrics such as heavyweight linen and cotton poplin are always a good option. Toast is an excellent place to look for dresses that could go effortlessly from sightseeing to a coffee meeting. See the Mexican tile print dress, the square cut cotton twill dress and the garment dyed linen smock dress. Scandi favourite Arket is the home of pared-down pieces, such as the striped cotton kaftan dress and the printed viscose kaftan. Sister label & Other Stories linen/cotton blend striped kaftan looks like the kind of cover-up discovered at the medina in Marrakech – and I keep coming back to COS’ petrol blue, striped cotton shirt dress. Another favourite is-it-a-dress-is-it-a-kaftan is Boden’s seriously versatile Freya Linen shirt dress (£85). For something you’ll reach for again and again, there is the Geff kaftan from Yume World (£202). It doesn’t come cheap but it won’t be abandoned at the bottom of your laundry basket before the end of summer (I’ve worn mine all-over from breakfast meetings to press views and festivals).
The fashion crowd are all over Dodo Bar Or and Pippa Holt, and admittedly, they are quite lovely, but when the outfit costs as much as the holiday, it’s time to draw the line.
NRBY Chrissie linen shirtdress
When you read this I’ll be relaxing on holiday in Italy, in the monochrome Chrissie dress from NRBY (first photo, above). This is definitely a new label to watch. Founder Jo Hooper, former womenswear director at Debenhams (part of the team responsible for launching Designers at Debenhams) and John Lewis, developed NRBY in response to increasing numbers of us working flexibly and the demand for just-smart-enough clothes that fit this lifestyle. ‘We call it one-mile-wear’ Jo explains, ‘clothes to be worn within one mile from your front door, on those days when you’re working from home, nipping out for a quick coffee or racing around running errands. Comfort and ease are essential but we all want to feel contemporary.’ The range started with simple shirts in washed cotton and linen, ‘Then we added a maxi shirtdress, some cotton/cashmere blend knitwear, the softest jersey t-shirts, linen jumpsuits – and ta-dah! An edited range of clothes in natural fabrics, to be worn everyday, was born.’
NRBY is available online and there is also a pop-up shop on Elizabeth Street, London, until the end of August. The brand has a summer session lined up at Anthropologie from June 26th – July 14th and will be launching in John Lewis August 1st (in selected stores plus online).
Style Note: To be honest, I would really only wear the cotton Chrissie dress when there’s a beach nearby; it’s a cheesecloth fabric and a bit too lightweight for the city.
Follow my holiday adventures on Instagram.
And there’s a jumpsuit…
More home and holiday ready pieces here:
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Discussion (20 Comments)
I totally agree with you about slow fashion and Pippa Holt’s kaftans are beautiful – just wish I could afford one! Though I’d wear it as a dress (all summer long!)
Ha! I was just thinking about a Kaftan this weekend. It’s getting hot in LA and I think a kaftan would be the answer. I’ll check out your store recommendations. Not sure they ship to the USA. But always love your ideas. How do you think a short 5’4″ would look in a kaftan? Am I too short?
Mrs Tonia says:
Hello Sandra. I’m your height and do wear pull on dresses like those shown here. Only I don’t like them to be too voluminous. I have several shirt dress type dresses but they need to fit the shoulders and bust line and can be looser below. Some I’ve had taken in with waist height darts at back so they fall straight at front. Lengths from on the knee to mid calf. With a loose sash, leather belt slung loosely or in hotter weather just loose with sandals.
Well, the one thing I didn’t state was not only am I short 5′ 4″ but I have an ample busom. Wondering if I would look pregnant.
Like the look of these shirt dresses on you. Especially the dark striped one on Instagram with the Panama hat pulled low. Hope you are enjoying your break and that it isn’t too hot. Still with beach umbrellas and cool water to dip in and gelati to eat it must be agreeable. It’s been sultry back in UK but one has to pretend to be elsewhere and dress and eat for true summer weather.
Maryann says:
I love non waisted shirt dress in summer. I found a great grey pinstriped linen in Muji which was very reasonably priced. I wore all of our Australian summer and it still looks like new.
Martine Large says:
I love the idea of a kaftan, but I’m not only short (5’2″) but big busted, so worry about looking like a bag of spuds.
Thanks Alyson, I remember a while back your piece about the woman writer who took a black kaftan and jeans for the weekend trip that got extended and how she made it work. I was so inspired I bought a wonderful black cotton shirt dress midi kaftan for $11 (USD) by Zanzea on eBay and wore it in various ways for five days on a trip. Really well made and pretty smart. I also bought white and lavender cotton slips that extended just below the hemline for a bit of color block. Perfect, versatile travel gear. (They have lots of colors and styles, too!)
Joyce Morris says:
I’m pleased you mentioned Zanzea Kat. I was hesitant to order because they are so cheap! but they have some really nice stuff. Also, on the subject of bargain prices, I love the H. & M stripesd kaftan with matching, wide leg pants/culottes. I think you could wear them absolutely anywhere.
Alex says:
Your sunny instagram posts make me want to switch up my entire holiday wardrobe – and you’re a far better advert for the Cos dress than the model on the website.
Hi Stacey, it’s not available quite yet, but should be very soon. I’ll post a link as soon as it’s for sale, Alyson
NRBY Clothing says:
Hi there, we have two pop up stores in Elizabeth Street and Anthropologie in the Kings Road where the item is available for purchase. Unfortunately it is not available online at this moment.
Linda Hind says:
How I love this, Alyson! This is what I wear all summer, but in my case it’s more often knee-length tunic or kaftan most often with narrow pants. Always a hat and lots of colourful bracelets like one of my idols, Iris Apfel. The same in winter with long sweaters and wool tunics or suits with long jackets. Best to hide the blobby parts in the middle of my old body!
Kaftans are for ever! I have a high quality one from Positano (Boutique DEA) that is 15 years old and still beautiful even with slightly faded colours. On vacations in Italy I wear kaftans on many occasions, elegant in the evening and protective if the vacation includes a lot of sun on boats or ferries and for visiting churches and other sights.
Thank you for a very inspiring blog/instagram!
Little Brown Bird says:
I’m the same height (well an inch shorter) with a bigger bust and I just cinch it in with a slim leather belt to make it more shapely or cut a piece of the bottom and make a matching belt.
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You’ve shown a lot of great kaftans. I want to defend Pippa Holt and the prices for her kaftans. I know they’re not in everyone’s budget, but they are handwoven in Mexico by women artisans in a small village and some take up to two months to weave. Talk about sustainable, slow fashion…. these are it. I have a few, one is 4-5 years old and I’ve worn it so much, I grew tired of it, and gave it to my daughter – it’s as fresh as the day I bought it. But lots of less expensive choices out there too.