Summer in Düsseldorf: What we're wearing right now

Düsseldorf in June: The city slowly heats up, terraces fill up, and somewhere between the first truly warm morning and the long evening light, one starts to look at their wardrobe differently. What's at the top right now? What do you reach for without much thought? We asked ourselves what we are actually wearing this summer and why.

Patricia: On breathable fabrics and lasting patterns

What concerns me most this summer are patterns. Not as a statement, but as a mood. A floral print on a wide maxi dress that looks like it's always been there. I like dresses in summer because they're one less decision: one piece and you're done. But the piece has to be right in its cut, drape, and fabric.

And then, surprisingly yet logically: polka dots. I wouldn't have thought I'd seriously engage with dots again, but the difference, as so often, lies in the scale and the fabric. Large, calm dots on flowing fabric look completely different from what one remembers from the nineties. They have a cheerful quality without being loud. I find that very relaxing right now.

Linen is the fabric of summer for me, no discussion. It breathes, it lives, it gets more beautiful throughout the day. These light wrinkles are part of it; they are not a flaw. A good linen dress with a calm pattern, plus flat sandals: That's currently my answer to almost every occasion.

What particularly interests me this summer are sets: trousers and top made from the same fabric, often in a calm tone. You wear them together and immediately have an outfit. Or you separate the pieces and suddenly have two new combinations. This versatility is something I really appreciate. 

Bermuda shorts also work excellently in hot temperatures. I like to wear them with a basic shirt or a blouse. A light, airy look that still has a clear shape. For me, Bermuda shorts are not a compromise between a dress and trousers, but an independent choice. They fit well, they move well, and for the heat of a long Düsseldorf summer day, they are often the most honest answer.

What I also always have with me is a scarf. Not as a fashion accessory, but as a real tool: over the shoulders when it gets cooler in the evening, as privacy protection, as a splash of color over a monochrome dress. A good scarf is so versatile that sometimes I think it's the smartest piece in the entire summer wardrobe. 

Clemens: What a man really needs in summer

Men sometimes struggle with summer. The temptation to slide into informality is great, and the result is often neither comfortable nor beautiful. But it's actually simple: it's about fabrics that breathe and cuts that maintain composure without being restrictive.

For me, the shirt is the central piece of summer. One that is cut wide enough to let air circulate, and yet has a shape. In summer, I almost exclusively wear linen and light cotton. When it gets really hot, a good polo shirt. It's about the quality of the pique, the collar, the shoulder. A polo shirt that fits well makes a complete statement. I like to reach for it in summer because it demands less than a collared shirt and still offers more than a simple top. 

And then there's the moment when you shed it all. By the water, on holiday, somewhere where what you wear doesn't matter anymore, except that it should feel right. I wear patterned swim trunks, preferably with a calm print, botanical or geometric, in tones that match the rest of the suitcase. 

As for colors, I consciously go for softer tones in summer. Hues that work with the light: a light sandy grey, a broken ecru, a very delicate blue-green. These colors have a calmness that I particularly appreciate in summer. They demand nothing. And precisely because they are so restrained, they wear comfortably all day long without you feeling you have to second-guess a decision.

What completes a good summer look for me is the shoe. And here I always come back to Santoni. There are shoes you wear in summer, and there are shoes that carry you through a summer. That's a difference. What fascinates me about Santoni is the way the leather reacts over time: it absorbs warmth, it becomes softer, it develops a patina that you can't buy, only acquire through wear. An unlined Santoni loafer on a bare foot is for me the summer statement that doesn't want to be one, and perhaps that's why it's so convincing.

What summer means to us

There's a question we ask ourselves anew every year: What do we really need? Not in a grand sense, but very concretely, in the wardrobe, in the suitcase, in everyday life between boutique and terrace. Summer forces this honesty. It allows for no layers, no distraction by volume or heaviness. What remains is what really works and what you really like.

For both of us, that's a relief. Fewer decisions, clearer looks, more room for the things that matter: a good conversation, a long evening, the feeling of being well-dressed without thinking about it. For us, fashion in summer is not an effort. When it succeeds, it's almost invisible.