Channeling Tilda Swinton Cool for DC

Tilda Swinton as rock star Marianne Lane recovering from voice surgery on an Italian volcanic island. Her blue-and-white dress/beach coverup was designed by Raf Simons, former artistic director of Christian Dior. Her partner Paul De Smedt is actor Matthias Schoenaerts. / Photo courtesy of Fox Searchlight.

Tilda Swinton and Ralph Fiennes playing rock star Marianne Lane and her record producer Harry Hawkes in “A Bigger Splash.” Swinton is elegant and icy cool, despite the heat, in a Dior-designed white silk jumpsuit. / Photo courtesy of Fox Searchlight.

After a harrowing event, Swinton keeps calm and carries on in a Christian Dior print silk dress. / Photo courtesy of Fox Searchlight.

Swinton floats through a scene in “A Bigger Splash” with her rock star-inspired mirrored sunglasses, a fluttery black silk blouse and white flowy skirt. Could anyone look cooler? / Photo courtesy of Fox Searchlight.

An airy, blue-and-white striped shirt dress for oppressively hot days. $34.99, hm.com.

Crisp, lightweight poplin long shirt dress with summery stripes. $78, everlane.com.

When temperatures climb to stifling, slip on this cream V-neck jumpsuit from Black Crane, which promises ease and elegance in one outfit. $235, totokaelo.com.

Massimo Dutti’s flared-sleeve blouse will catch any passing breeze. $98.50, massimodutti.com.

Sporty-looking but feminine, this breathable pique polo shirt is a universal donor. $65, zady.com.

Channel your fave celeb in mirrored, uber-cool aviators, $14, urban outfitters.com. Swish through the heat in Lisa Marie Fernandez’s buttoned A-line cotton skirt. $545, farfetch.com.

Look hot, but stay chill in a coral cotton Sayaka Davis loosely styled sleeveless cotton dress. $248, stevenalan.com.

Vacation or staycation, avoid hot heads with Helen Kaminski’s hand-crocheted raffia topper that’s rollable and packable. $220, nordstrom.com. Keep summer’s sizzle down with a relaxed, oversize-cut jumpsuit with cinched belt at the waist. $300, zady.com.

AS THE TEMPERATURE threatens to hit triple digits this weekend, I’m thinking about Tilda Swinton’s hot-weather wardrobe in the movie “A Bigger Splash.” The actress plays rock star Marianne Lane, who is on vacation, recuperating from voice surgery on the Italian island of Pantelleria with her boyfriend when a record producer and former flame (Ralph Fiennes) and his daughter arrive to make mayhem. The film itself didn’t make especially big waves, but Swinton looked enviably cool and chic (see trailer) in clothing all designed by former Christian Dior artistic director Raf Simons. Among the greatest hits: a blue-and-white shirt dress that doubled as a beach coverup, a white silk V-neck jumpsuit for a trip to town, a black-and-white silk print dress and a black silk blouse with fluttery sleeves paired with a white silk full skirt.

For the rest of us on a mere-mortal budget, is it possible to look — if not feel — chill during the hottest, sweatiest days of summer in D.C.? We’ve got some ideas on how to keep your own thermostat down even when the Fahrenheit soars. See our picks in the photos above.

— Janet Kelly
Janet Kelly is the editor of MyLittleBird. Read more about Janet here. She last posted her very personal opinion on makeup.