A shirt dress is defined by the placket and the collar, and everything else is negotiable. Cotton poplin is the correct fabric for it, because the shape depends on a cloth that holds a collar and takes a belt without collapsing. Belted and unbelted are two entirely different garments: one has a waist, the other has a column, and they suit opposite body lines. The design descends from the 1950s housedress by way of the 1970s safari shirt, which is a strange lineage for something this useful. In pink it loses the last of its office association, which is why a pink shirt dress gets bought for weekends rather than Mondays.

Both use a belt to pull the shirt shape in at the waist. The Dolce Cabo is sleeveless for warm weather, while the Cinq a Sept Doreen keeps a sleeve and a longer hem.

Outside the shirt dress the same colour does very different things. A linen-blend cross back reads as summer and nothing else, while a jacquard fit and flare pushes straight into occasion wear. Ruffled poplin at full length is the most romantic version and the one that needs the plainest shoe underneath. Stripes in pink are the quietest option here and the easiest to wear into autumn with a knit over the top. All of these are cut to work with a flat, which is a genuine change from how this category was designed a decade ago.

The Dessy fit and flare midi holds its shape through the skirt because the jacquard has body. The Marrakshi Life maxi is softer, with ruffles doing the volume instead.

Pink is harder than it looks because the undertone decides everything and photographs lie about it. A cool pink and a warm pink are not interchangeable, and the difference shows most in cotton. The belted poplin shirt dress is the piece with the longest life here and the one worth spending on. Poplin also creases, so if you want pink with no maintenance the jacquard is the honest answer. Buy the shape that matches how you actually stand, not the one that looks best on a hanger.