10/10! Boden takes the crown for this year’s best summer dresses

Let me count the ways Boden continues to impress me. Firstly, it’s a British company, headed up by Johnnie Boden. A person, I can testify, whose passion for clothes is utterly infectious, and whose driving force is to make clothes that work in our lives, not just as items, but as outfits. Johnnie and his team think as much about how we’ll style and wear their clothes, as they do about the designs themselves. They do all this, because they want us to not only feel good wearing it but to have proper style solutions for our lives.

Secondly, Boden creates well-made clothes using natural fibres that suit British women. It’s a brand that’s the definition of Tried, Tested and Trusted, the three words behind everything we do at Good Housekeeping.

And so it is with Boden’s new drop of, frankly gorgeous, joy-filled dresses, which are so delightful, flattering and summery it’s a struggle to choose just one! So, I’ve cheated and chosen three.

First up, the Alexa, Boden’s maxi button-through shirt dress, with a belt, collar, puff sleeves and side-seam pockets. Just when we thought we’d seen the best of them, along comes a version in the new ornate vine print, and in the Wimbledon colours of purple and green – surely a shoo-in for Princess of Wales to wear at the Championships? This is an all-day summer dress that delivers for any occasion. This print also comes in the adorable cotton Helena blouse, which I’d wear with jeans and shorts all summer long.

The Cecily, a light cotton midi dress with pockets and a belt, has three-quarter sleeves and a deep V-neckline. In Boden’s new soft blue, bloom mosaic print, it becomes a one-and-done dress that speaks of exotic summer days away, and works equally well for the British summer.

Finally, the Christabel, the Boden dress that, thanks to its elegant neckline, gently puffed sleeves, subtle pockets and more decorative prints – especially the ornate vine and pink wildflower bouquet versions – works as a summer evening dress, as well as for dressier day events. I’ve included all three versions in the edit below, and they are fully stocked in every size, except the blue Christabel, which has been selling out in real time as I write this. Really, all I can say is if you need a dress to make your summer memories, you will not put a foot wrong with one of these. All that remains is for you to choose. PS. After much consideration, my favourite is the pink Christabel. What’s yours?