This black bandeau dress from Amazon is the perfect casual summer maxi dress.

My black dress collection is going off these days, from vintage midis I’ve scored in charity shops to classic H&M numbers I wear on repeat. I don’t care whether it ‘s 30 degrees out there, I think a black dress during the summer months is super sophisticated.

The one style I didn’t have sitting in my wardrobe was a black bandeau dress…

Good old Amazon came up trumps with this black bandeau dress and the strapless neckline is a godsend in this heatwave. 

I wore this out for a spontaneous Sunday dinner - the weather has been so amazing here in England so we decided to change out of our gardening scrubs and head down to our favourite Coppa Club in Streatley for a spot of dinner by the river.

Totally appreciate how quaint that sounds but well, here we are living our best lives in the good old English countryside, somewhere that still blows our minds to call home after living in London for so many years!

What was so great about this black bandeau dress was that it was a throw-on-and-go kinda dress.

Put it this way, once we had decided to go out and grab a bite to eat my husband genuinely expected me to be ready in 2 minutes (which frustratingly, he was) and whilst I don’t take forever, I’ll never be able to compete with his level of getting ready speediness!

So what was great about this black bandeau dress was that I literally only had to think about what shoes to wear with it, which meant I was ready in 10 minutes. OK OK, 20 minutes - I still had to have a quick shower and whack on some spf and mascara. But come on, that’s bloody good going!

This dress is a size 10 but I think I could have got away with an 8 as I am quite small chested, it fits well but the next colourway I get will be in a size 8 just for a more snug fit round the boobs.

I teamed it with my black chunky sandals from Next which are ridiculously comfortable BTW, and my usual gold with, might I add, the beautiful addition of this Monica Vinader Cross Ring. I just love the juxtaposition of its modern boldness next to my vintage sapphire.

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So there you have it, a super affordable black bandeau dress, styled with gold and chunky sandals for an edge but worn with a casual feel thanks to the messy hair up and flats.

This is definitely going to be a dress that stays in my wardrobe for many summers to come.

See you next time!

Abbie x