Uniqlo’s floaty £40 linen dress is the easiest way to look elegant in the heat

I popped into Uniqlo at the weekend to buy my son some swimming shorts. My first surprise? Uniqlo don’t offer swimming shorts, or any swimwear at all, at least not in the UK.

a model wearing a red tiered summer dress by uniqlo

Courtesy of Uniqlo

Uniqlo’s tiered linen/cotton summer dress comes in five colours and costs £39.90

But what they do very, very well is clothing for heatwaves and hot weather. Uniqlo is Japanese, and Japan has extremely hot and humid summers, which makes them excellent at creating lightweight T-shirts (see their Airism range for this) and floaty dresses that work in extreme heat.

Linen Blend Tiered Dress (Sleeveless, Striped) - sizes XXS-XL

£40 at Uniqlo

Credit: courtesy photo

While hunting fruitlessly for said swimming shorts I noticed a flurry of activity by a rail of dresses. These tiered linen and cotton dresses to be exact.

Off White Linen Blend Tiered Dress (Sleeveless, Striped) sizes XXS-XL

£40 at Uniqlo

Credit: courtesy photo

I saw women of all ages and sizes picking up one of the five different colours, holding them up to themselves, inspecting whether this is a dress with pockets (yes, there are pockets!), marveling at the fact it comes with a separate modesty slip in case the dress might be too sheer, and running their hands over the fabric.

Light Blue Linen Blend Tiered Dress (Sleeveless) sizes XXS-XL

£40 at Uniqlo

Credit: courtesy photo

Obviously, I had to take a closer look, and for the £39.90 price tag I was incredibly impressed by the quality of the linen/cotton blend fabric, the depth of the pockets, the adjustable waistline, and that the tiered skirt is generously cut to create maximum airy floatiness. In short: Uniqlo do linen very well, and this is a dress with air-con.

Red Linen Blend Tiered Dress (Sleeveless) sizes XXS-XL

£40 at Uniqlo

The colours too, are perfect: a bright geranium red (my favourite) a white pinstriped and navy blue pinstriped version, plus plain versions in black and a cool icy blue.

Ok, so this dress doesn’t have sleeves, but a sleeve would take away from the streamlined design of this dress, which in my book is perfectly wearable without the slip. Which by the way is polyester, so not exactly ideal for heatwaves, but worth hanging onto for cooler days when this dress will be the perfect partner to a cropped jacket or crochet cardigan.

Black Linen Blend Tiered Dress (Sleeveless), sizes XXS-XL

£40 at Uniqlo

If you’re in need of an elegant and modern summer dress that is carefully designed and ideal for work or play – ex Givenchy designer Clare Waight Keller is in-charge of design at Uniqlo, after all – you’ve found it.