Rain Check: 16 Ways to Stay Dry and Look Cool

Left, designer Junya Watanabe’s sharply pleated trench in twill is a terrific riff on the classic trench. $1,040, netaporter.com. Right, Ralph Lauren styling comes through in this lightweight, water-resistant jacket with plenty of practical pockets. $150, nordstrom.com.

Left, we’re a sucker for slickers, especially this Topshop version with navy and white stripes on the hood and cuffs. $150, topshop.com. Right, be a runway star wearing Tibi’s Invisible Anorak, breezy and sporty, in candy pink. $750, tibi.com.

Orvis’s lightweight hooded poncho (in olive and inky blue) will keep you dry and dashing in wet, windy weather. Washed nylon-blend fabric is water- and wind-resistant. $169, orvis.com.

Dodge raindrops in Asos’s gaily striped mac with waxed finish. $76.24, asos.com.

Be impervious to the puddles in Walker Spray Rain Boots, reduced from $90 to $69.99. They’re from Sperry, a company that knows a thing or two about water.

A lining and reinforced tread makes these short wellies in a bulldog print a good get for gardeners sloshing through mud. $62.95, joulesusa.com.

You won’t have to consign this bumbershoot to the graveyard of dead umbrellas when the wind kicks up. It’s designed to withstand up to 60 mph. No folding under pressure. $89, bergdorfgoodman.com.

An explosion of multicolored dots dances on Longchamps’s delightful mini umbrella. $170, us.longchamps.com.

Act global and carry an African textile-covered umbrella, like this one from the House of SafiHadi. $54.99, houseofsafihadi.com.

JUST WHEN YOU THOUGHT it was safe to stash your sweaters and winter gear and haul your spring stuff out of storage, Mother Nature cautions, not so fast.

If the past few days of April are any indication, we’re going to have to fasten our seat belts for a few weeks of wild — shall we say, schizophrenic weather.  Here at MyLittleBird, we believe, as Louis Pasteur said, that fortune favors the prepared mind. (Or something similar). So, we’ve scoped out a couple of modern-looking anoraks for gallery hopping amid the raindrops. (Did anyone notice how stunning Charlotte Rampling looked in her anorak in the film 45 Years?) And, slickers have not disappeared, we’re happy to report. We’ve uncovered a couple of updated ones.  We also found a ravishingly fashionable non-traditional trench coat guaranteed to garner admirers wherever you go. And, let’s not forget our picks of oh-so-cute boots that you can fearlessly jump puddles in — or not.  We couldn’t resist the blue-and-white striped ones from Lillybee, in homage to Villanova and that amazing last-second dunk at the NCAA final. And, finally,  a quartet of sophisticated-looking umbrellas.  You won’t want to save these for a rainy day.

And for anyone else who wants to merge fashion with function, we’re looking at you,  home gardeners  and sailor friends, see the photos above.

— Janet Kelly
Janet Kelly is the editor of MyLittleBird.
Read more about Janet here.