If the thought of hot temperatures and baring your skin makes you cringe and want to hide; breath easier. There are several fashion tips that will you keep cool and looking great great.

1. Instead of wearing shorts and T-shirts to beat the heat, wear light dresses and flirty skirts. The best skirts are flared and knee length. Choose them in linen, cotton or rayon. If you have a selection of summer dresses, getting dressed is a snap and you will always look great with little effort. Always wear pumps with knee-length dresses and skirts. The wrong shoes will spoil your look - be careful. Kitten-heeled pumps are a great choice and come in many styles. They are not too high, comfortable and give the leg a longer look.

2. If you are not sure about wearing florals, don't worry. Add a print bag or use a flower on your lapel as an accent. If you wear prints in dresses or skirts, keep the print in proportion to your figure. A large print will make you appear larger.

3. Buy a few white T-shirts to wear with jeans and choose a finer fabric to wear with suits for a more professional look. When you wear whites pay attention to your undergarments - avoid lacy bras - choose to wear nudes, they will not show under white. White is great with black - mix it up with black or white sandals and a black or white purse or accessorizing with polka dots.

4. Bring out the bright colours. Add fuchsia, yellow and lime green to spice up an outfit. It's probably better to keep some colours, like lime green away from your face. If you are not sure how the colour will look on you put it near your face and look in the mirror. If it makes you look sick wear it as a bottom or choose the same colour in a lighter shade. Pairing bright colours with white will also be a winning combination. A word of caution when you are matching colours, don't wear a pink necklace and earrings to match pink shoes. The distance between them is too great and will ruin your look. A pink blouse and pink shoes is better.

5. If you want to wear tank tops and don't want to go braless (no one should) choose a top with straps that are wide enough to hide a bra strap. Or, try a top that has a built in bra.

Sheila Dicks

Sheila is an Image Consultant who helps women choose clothes that make them feel more confident and self-assured.

As an Image Consultant Sheila conducts individual wardrobe counselling sessions and workshops where she uses a hands-on approach to teach women how to dress to suit their body type and look fabulous.