Turn up the heat

Some women are too short and too petite for such a body-swathing and swamping item (although they could learn much from both Dannii and Kylie Minogue, who both manage to look goddess-like in their maxi dresses by choosing ones that drape to give a pretty clear indication of their small but perfectly formed frames beneath).

Still, a sun dress is a far more forgiving and easy-to-wear option, and the perfect choice for so many occasions, from lazy weekends to more formal weddings and special occasions.

Florals are big this season and work particularly well on sun dresses, bringing a pretty and feminine appeal to an outfit, rather than the scary wallpaper look that can sometimes happen with floral patterns on maxi dresses. If you are small, go for a smaller pattern as again you may well find that bigger blooms look as if you have been eaten by a triffid.

Also, smaller blooms work so well with the mis-matching trends, that is, mixing together different prints for an artfully mis-matched look (try keeping the patterns on a similar scale – blooms and buds or dots the same sort of size). The joy of sun dresses is that the look can be changed quite dramatically, from simple to sophisticated to rock chick, by a quick change of accessories. Dress up a white cotton or little blue floral sundress with cream heels and metallic clutch, or dress it down with flat pumps or trainers and slouchy leather or fabric bag (again, think mis-matching prints). I think my favourite look at the moment is the knee-length summer cotton dress with distressed, cuffed, lace-up ankle boots.

Add a military jacket or a leather one, or throw over an open blue denim shirt. Toughen up the look of a feminine pastel sun dress with studded shoes, bangles and belts (not all at once).

Ebay is a bargain place to pick up a sun dress right now, as are vintage shops and charity shops. That's the beauty of sun dresses – they don't date and they adapt easily to suit each season.