Trend: Kaftans for Summer!

Jun 7, 2011 | DIY

Hot And Heavy, Baby! Spring 2011 by TheAcademic ♥s Andrej Pejic! featuring flared jeans

Kaftans (or Caftans) seem to be on everyone’s mind lately as a summer staple. Polyvore even put together an array of latest looks featuring caftans – and I’m loving the breezy, lunch-on-the-Riviera feel to them. From Elizabeth Taylor to the Olson twins, caftans have always been a mainstay of A-listers, but now they’re most definitely on-trend for the rest of us.

From left to right: French Connection Diamond Embellished Caftan, ASOS Pleat Front Chiffon Cover Up, Helene Berman Oversized Flower Short Kimono Kaftan; all ASOS.com.

How to get the look without breaking the bank:

Besides sourcing one from a lower-priced store, like TheOutnet.com, ASOS.com, or even Forever 21, a great alternative would by thrifting something sheer, oversized, and fabulous – and just repurposing it as a caftan. (Adding trims or details as you desire.) You could also sew your own in your favorite fabric with a pattern from Burdastyle.

BurdaStyle’s 07/2010 Caftan Pattern

This 07/2010 pattern an extremely simple one, easily made more modest or revealing as you may choose, and for me, the fun part would not only be choosing the fabric – but also finding my favorite trim to adorn the neckline and sleeve-openings! You could make it as glamorous or as casual, as sheer or as opaque, as bright or as neutral a poolside cover-up as you wanted! Speaking of cover-ups, there’s also another item that’s been playing on my mind:

Sienna Bikini, $55; Saskia Attachable Skirt, $40; Rebecca Manning.

(I know it’s not a caftan per se since it doesn’t cover the shoulders…but it’s too pretty not to mention!) This gorgeous convertible bikini cover-up is from Rebecca Manning on FashionStake [a website that allows emerging designers to sell directly to the public by allowing them to secure orders before going to the manufacturers, paying for a full run of items, and then being stuck with excess inventory and no cash at the end of the season – which is a fantastic solution to the incredible waste in the fashion industry by over-manufacturing, and the high start-up costs to the independent designer. Plus because the order is placed by the customer first it allows the designer to offer the item at a high discount compared to what it would retail for if it were manufactured first and then sitting on a retail shelf, waiting to be sold. I LOVE the innovation of this site!!)

Anyway, not only is the above bikini top flattering and chic, but the “caftan” part simply attaches to the front. Choose your favorite color for the bikini and print for the caftan skirt part. Ingenious!

Also: how timely! TheOutnet.com is currently giving away a $920 Missoni Kaftan!