The Early Summer Edit: Five Handmade Pieces to Build Your Wardrobe Around

The first warm weeks of summer are when a wardrobe either comes together or falls apart. The days get longer, the plans get looser, and suddenly you need outfits that work for a beach morning, a long lunch, and a dinner that runs late. The trick is not owning more. It is owning a few pieces that do a lot.

Here are the five handmade pieces we would build an early summer wardrobe around, and how each one earns its place.

1. A Crochet Dress You Can Wear Three Ways

One good dress covers the most ground. The The Bähia Dress is hand-crocheted in a warm, sunny yellow, and it works as a beach cover-up over a swimsuit, as a daytime dress with flat sandals, or dressed up with gold jewelry once the sun goes down.

Our Brazil Collection is made by hand by artisans in coastal villages in Brazil, and a dress is the clearest example of why crochet is made for summer: the open texture keeps it light and the handwork gives it a finish no machine can copy.

2. An Open-Weave Top for Everything Else

If a dress is the one-piece answer, a lightweight top is the flexible one. The The Sïrena Top is an airy, open-knit top that sits easily over a swimsuit or on its own with denim shorts. It layers when the evening cools and disappears into a beach bag when you do not need it.

3. Shorts That Feel Like a Party

The The Rïo de Janeiro Shorts - Rose Gold are the easiest way to add shimmer to a simple outfit. Pair them with a plain white tank or a bikini top and let the shorts be the whole story.

4. A Beaded Shoulder Bag That Goes With Everything

Summer outfits are often simple, which makes the bag the place to add a little drama. The The Sälvador Bag is hand-beaded in a rich gold that behaves like a neutral. It sits comfortably against white, black, denim, and every color in between. If you want to know how these are made, read about the Adda embroidery behind our beaded bags.

5. One Piece With a Story

Every wardrobe needs one thing you reach for because of how it feels, not because it matches. For many people that is the The Eyë Bag, a hand-beaded bag with a bold eye motif in pink and blue. It starts conversations, and it makes a plain outfit look intentional.

How to Put It Together

You do not need all five to feel put together. Try these combinations:

• Beach to lunch: the Bähia Dress with the Salvador Bag.
• Casual day out: the Sïrena Top with the Rïo de Janeiro Shorts.
• Evening: the Rïo de Janeiro Shorts with a simple black top and the Eyë Bag.

Most of our crochet is designed to fit a range of sizes, which makes mixing and sharing easier. If you want to know why, we wrote about why one-size-fits-most works for resort wear.

Browse the full tops, sets and dresses, and beaded bags collections to build your own early summer edit.