Hot weather dressing is a challenge.
I am a classic dresser. Not remotely fashionable. But I like clothes and take care to try and look reasonably ok. My knees are not my best asset 😂
In winter I am never not in trousers. However dressy the occasion. I just wear very dressy flared trousers and shirts to evening events.
My shorts days are long gone.
In summer though I wear classic denim just- below-knee-length skirts in a dark denim which is light and stretchy .. … I am an apple, and a slightly slim-on-the-hips style suits me better with a back kick flap. There is every possible style available to suit everyone. Believe me, I have tried them all!
I make sure my milk white legs have fake tan applied lightly and wear sandals with a bit of a wedge + bright painted toe nails which is a faff.
And I have just bought a cream linen/cotton slim wrap over skirt in a linen cotton mix which looks ok.
Wear elbow length sleeved bright cotton shirts with the skirts. I sew shoulder pads in them to balance out my silhouette.
Or I wear good quality mid-rise cotton beige or cream jeans cut for older women which end just at the ankle with a light wedge trainer or loafer or backless mule. Coordinate a nice belt with the shoes.
I’d say all of the above are ok for weather up to about 82°
Over that temp then I have two dresses which come out of the woodwork. One is a shirt dress in striped cotton that I try and style so it doesn’t look like a man’s nightshirt! So I have a sort of crochet rope tie thing with a bright tassel as a belt and open the neck to form a lowish v and wear long ethnic chain necklaces.
The other is a sort of ribbed cotton slightly A-line over the head dress with elbow length sleeves and a low v neck and slightly mandarin collar. So it doesn’t look like a tent I tie a soft hair tie in the inside of the waist on one side to give it a bit of asymmetric form but it’s still airy/ swooshy. I bought it in a size larger specifically so I could do this.
I do have a couple of linen mix draw string flared trousers in a light blue and a coral colour which I wear with long white cotton shirts with the sleeves rolled up BUT I chose them VERT carefully:
One, for me they have to be long enough. IMHO they look dreadful if an inch or two too short. This includes being careful about shrinkage. Buy them long and don’t take them up until you have washed them carefully in cold water several times.
Two, they must not have any big pockets, especially on the front.
Three, they must not have an elasticated waist band that draws the undercarriage of the trousers to clump under one’s bum. Or form a camel toe. A very flat front and tailored waistline suits me better with the odd dart.
Four, always look at your rear view before going out out in public and make sure the fabric skims flatteringly over the bum and that the trousers are not see-through and your pants aren’t showing!