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10 Dresses That Will Help You Manifest Your Perfect Weekend
We’re huge fans of the “weekend dress”—a ride-or-die piece that can go from the farmer’s market to dinner to an after-dinner Netflix marathon...and back again.
It’s amazing what a little Vitamin D can do. As we round out May and start thinking about the summer, it feels like anything is possible. The weekends look especially promising; our calendars are filling up with family and friend reunions, backyard bbqs, and (I’m very excited for this one) trips to the beach. But if I’m being perfectly honest with myself, what I’m most looking forward to are those random, excruciatingly beautiful Saturdays when you wake up and realize you have nowhere to be and an entire day ahead of you.
Those are the summer days I am trying to manifest in 2021. Maybe I’ll walk a mile to get a manicure at a new spot, stopping for a bouquet of flowers on the way home. Or perhaps I’ll bump into friends, and we’ll end up sitting at a brewery for a couple hours, drinking IPAs until one of us decides to order pizza. Or maybe I’ll take my daughter to the park and she’ll feed ducks for the first time before bathing herself in ice cream. Or I’ll just stay home with a book, a couple of not-so-annoying chores, and a decadent charcuterie board. The options are endless, but whichever of these adventures I choose, I know what I’ll be wearing: a weekend dress.
Simple, classic, fun, and exactly what we all need right now, a weekend dress is the closet staple that makes your weekend plans (or lack thereof), just a little more special. And I can’t recommend them enough.
Here are 10 dresses that will help you manifest your perfect weekend.
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The Malala Dress
The Malala is made of Recycled WonderTex, our new, eco-conscious fabric made from recycled plastic water bottles. If that isn’t cool enough, it also has pockets, and it’s machine-washable, which means it’s just the dress for sitting on the grass during my toddler’s outdoor music class with a supply of cheddar bunnies at the ready.
The Maaza Dress
It’s time to finally meet that Zoom date in person, which is exactly what the Maaza dress was made for. This is a dress that doesn’t take itself too seriously. It’s just short enough to be fun yet loose enough to breathe in. Pair it with the Anna jacket for a dockside dinner date, and you’ll be all set.
The Lara Dress
Crafted from our luxe, eco-conscious crepe—a material made from sustainably managed wood fibers—the Lara is a showstopping, summer wedding-ready piece that encapsulates the phrase “revenge dressing.” It’s not like anything you’d wear this time last year, and that’s why we love it.
The Gigi Dress
The Gigi is the weekend dress of my dreams, not only because it looks how summer feels (the blue gingham seersucker fabric just screams barefoot dinners at a picnic table), but also because it’s wrinkle- and odor-resistant, meaning it was practically made for those long, hot, August afternoons.
The Juliana Dress
There will be slightly cooler summer days—and also days that are so hot you can only find refuge in an air-conditioned movie theater (remember those?). For those sub-80-degree temperatures, the long-sleeved Juliana is your best bet. It’s made with a silky, stretchy Italian jersey, which means it feels just like you’re wearing the softest PJs, while its design details (a pin dot pattern, shirred neckline, and flirty length) ensure you look anything but. Paired with Koio sneakers, it’s a match made in petite-friendly heaven.
The Dylan Dress
Another dress that looks exactly how summer feels is the Dylan in Tuscan yellow. This yellow reminds me of the ripest mango (one of the most delicious summer treats), and the stretchy, form-fitting design of the dress is pretty sweet, too.
The Lou Dress
There are some weekend mornings when only a T-shirt dress will do. On those days, you’re going to wish you had a Lou in your closet. Made from the same Pima cotton as our best-selling Leslie and Alina T-shirts, the Lou can easily go from kind of fancy brunch to beach cover-up, meaning it’s great to throw in your weekend bag.
The Hayden Dress
Another T-shirt dress to have in your arsenal is the Hayden, a Padma Lakshmi-approved number that is short and sweet, stretchy but structured, and can be worn all day and night (seriously, we’ve slept in it).
The Medina Dress
The Medina looks like it’s straight from an Instagram-ready photoshoot of a woman who gardens in the South of France—but that doesn’t mean it isn’t built for real life. This dreamy, hand-washable dress is the piece you always wish you had in your closet. It’s just right to wear to last-minute brunches, your niece’s baby naming ceremony, and maybe your City Hall wedding. Or you could just wear it while sipping wine on your fire escape. Just as fun.
The June Dress
Weekend dresses tend to be methodically simple—just one or two colors, not a lot of shape or intricate design elements. The June dress laughs in the face of such practicalities. This is the grown-up version of your favorite floral sundress. It’s colorful to the point of whimsical, but somehow sophisticated and elegant, and it’s as easy to wear as all the other dresses on this list. What’s more, if you wore this dress for all your weekend shenanigans and happened to wear it to the office again on Monday morning, no one would suspect a thing.
Written By
Caitlin Abber
Caitlin Abber is the Brand Editor at M.M. LaFleur, and an award-winning writer and content creator. Over the last decade she has held senior editorial positions at MTV, Women's Health, Public Radio International, and Bustle, and has bylines at InStyle and OprahMag.com.
See more of Caitlin's articles
