Hot Tops to Help You Cool Down This Summer

Maybe you’re melting on the city streets on your morning commute. Maybe you’re off to after-work cocktails and then wherever else the night takes you. In either scenario, you’re not alone in the desire for a certain kind of joie de vivre in your wardrobe. Gruesomely hot summer months require some strategic shopping, and this summer, the season’s best tops are backless or tie-front, and keeping your cool has never been so easy (and so fun).

You don’t need to be blessed with Emily Ratajkowski’s abs to show some skin: you can easily keep your midriff under wraps with a top that bares your back. It’s the sophisticated and subtly sexy antidote to the crop top, and has an equally waist-whittling effect, one that’s been celebrated on the runways for several seasons now, from Céline to Proenza Schouler to Hood By Air—for resort, city-ready renditions of styles typically reserved for off-duty moments turned up at Juan Carlos Obando, Rosie Assoulin, and Tome.

With New York’s oppressive heat—in with August, out with clothes—it’s about reaching for easy pieces that can be worn to work and easily adjusted (a loop here, a tie there) for evening engagements. And while a grosgrain ribbon is not a stand-in for jewels, it does count as an accessory. No matter how you tie it—front, back, side to side—the point is this: A generously sized bow holds its own in a modern working wardrobe. The effect? Easy, breezy, and entirely on-trend.