Anna Harvey's guide to poolside elegance: mix your brights and channel Frida Kahlo
I’m looking forward to a holiday in the sun. I try to catch a few rays every year and so am annually faced with the what-to-take-with-me conundrum. I have a drawer of regular summer holiday favourites which I shall recycle again this year; mainly these are pretty tunics and cotton trousers collected on my trips to India when I was working with Vogue there. Similar items can be found at Monsoon and Maharani, and gloriously beaded ones at Juliet Dunn.
I love bright colours in the sun and looking at the array of tops and wraps on my bed as I pack I’m cheered by the wonderful colours. Forget matching, go for a mix instead (visit the Frida Khalo exhibition at the V&A if you need inspiration). If in doubt, take white trousers or a skirt with you. I found a very good pair of narrow trousers at M&S in a range of different summer colours. I bought a lovely giant sun hat there, too, which is pliable enough to be folded to pack.
Printed kaftan, £45, Monsoon; Pom pom beach bag, £70, Boden; Ruched bandeau swimsuit, £250, Heidi Klein
I always take three or four swimsuits as I find putting on a damp one a horrid experience. The high-street selection is not at all bad this year: I have bought two, from M&S and Next. Some of the patterns are a bit overpowering so I chose the simplest two-tone designs I could find. I have also bought a new and rather expensive esther-williams.com swimsuit online from the US. Other very good brands include Gottex and Heidi Klein. I also love trendy Hunza G suits, but they are very much for the younger figure I feel. For a good selection of swimwear and cover-ups beachcafe.com is worth a look.
Everything but the bikini: 32 brilliant summer holidays buys to get you beach ready
It’s also worth considering what to wear poolside, especially if, like me at a certain age, you are self-conscious about your body when you need to move about and present yourself for lunch and so on. I always take a few sarongs (look at the scarf selection in Zara and Mango) to tie around my waist or wear halter-style (like the Duchess of Sussex’s white evening dress after her wedding) to cover the thigh and midriff area when wandering about.
Vero Moda striped hat, £16, Next; Chinos, £19.50, M&S; Printed hair band, £5.99 , Zara
For lunch, a change into something dry but very easy and comfortable is a good idea. You don’t need to spend a fortune. I visited two specialist underwear and swimwear boutiques in my local area, Amazing Grace in Haslemere and Guilt in Petworth, in search of something suitable and found the help offered extremely reassuring. I have also seen some very good cotton cover-ups and long shirts in Next and H&M. I like to buy a bigger size as the last thing I want is to feel restricted on holiday - and frankly, I find that too much cleavage - or flesh generally - is quite off-putting around the table. And that applies to men, too!
