Summer in Düsseldorf: What we're wearing right now

Düsseldorf in June: The city is slowly heating up, the terraces are filling, and somewhere between the first truly warm morning and the long evening light, you start looking at your wardrobe differently. What's on top? What do you reach for without thinking? We asked ourselves what we're actually wearing this summer and why.

Patricia: On fabrics that breathe and patterns that last

What I'm most focused on this summer are patterns. Not as a statement, but as a mood. A floral print on a 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 cut, drape, and fabric.

And then, surprisingly yet logically: polka dots. I never thought I'd seriously consider dots again, but the difference, as is often the case, lies in the scale and the fabric. Large, subtle dots on flowing fabric have a completely different effect than what you remember from the nineties. They have a cheerful quality without being loud. I find that very refreshing right now.

Linen, for me, is the fabric of summer, no discussion. It breathes, it lives, it gets more beautiful throughout the day. Those slight wrinkles are part of it; they're not a flaw. A good linen set in a calm color, with flat sandals: that's my answer to almost every occasion right now.

What I'm particularly interested in this summer are sets: trousers and top made from the same fabric, often in a calm tone. You wear them together and instantly have a complete look. Or you separate the pieces and suddenly have two new combinations. This versatility is something I really appreciate.

The Bermuda shorts also work wonderfully 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 a distinct choice. They fit well, move well, and are often the most honest answer to the heat of a long Düsseldorf summer day.

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

Clemens: What a man really needs in summer

Men sometimes struggle with summer. The temptation to slip into informality is great, and the result is often neither comfortable nor attractive. 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 allow air through, yet still 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 is a complete statement. I like to reach for it in summer because it demands less than a collared shirt and still gives more than a simple top.

And then there's the moment when you shed all of that. By the water, on vacation, or in the garden with friends – somewhere where it no longer matters what you're wearing, except that it should feel right. I wear patterned swim shorts, preferably with a subtle print or Listra print, in tones that match the rest of the suitcase.

As for colors, I'm deliberately softer in summer. Tones that work with the light: a light sand gray, a broken ecru, a very delicate blue-green. These colors have a quietness that I particularly appreciate in summer. They demand nothing. And precisely because they are so subtle, they are comfortable to wear all day long, without feeling like you have to revise 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 wear. An unlined Santoni loafer on bare feet 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 the grand sense, but very concretely, in the wardrobe, in the suitcase, in everyday life between boutique and terrace. Summer forces this honesty. It allows no layers, no distraction by volume or weight. What remains is what truly works and what you truly like.

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

Patricia & Clemens Wirschke