‘Summer layering’ might seem like an oxymoron as infuriating as smart-casual or happy Monday, but unless holidaying on a nudist beach for the duration of the season, you’ll still need to put some clothes on between now and September.

Fortunately, the warmer months bring with them lighter materials like linen and seersucker, both of which have different properties to their stuffy winter equivalents, so you needn’t resort to a simple shorts and T-shirt combination every day.

But how to put it all together? Here, with the help of fellow style experts, we serve up the recipe for looking (and feeling) cool in the heat.

Line Up Your Layers

There are a handful of layering rules that apply to both summer and winter, formal and casual. Like the further away from your body, the thicker the layer.

It used to be that hems always got longer in that direction too, but the rise of reverse layering (see Kanye and co) has turned this on its head. Plus, the shortness of most casual jackets renders that slightly impractical. The trick is being consistent, whether pieces get longer, or shorter, the further away they are.

One rule that still holds sway, though, is the importance of mixing textures. “If wearing, say, a separate linen jacket and trousers, or a pure linen jacket over a pure linen shirt, it’s going to look a bit odd,” says Simon Crompton founder of the blog Permanent Style. “It’s like wearing a jacket and trousers from different suits: it looks weird when there isn’t enough contrast.”

Count On What’s On The Inside

Just because a layer isn’t visible doesn’t mean you shouldn’t consider it. On hot days, linings will cook you like a boil-in-the-bag chicken, especially those inside impermeable man-made materials.

Not all unlined jackets will keep you cool, however. “You’ll get winter jackets which are unlined, but there’s not really much point when the material is so heavy,” adds Crompton.