A Stay at Home Mom’s Summer Daily Uniform

Inside: A “better late than never” post (because summer’s halfway over) sharing my minimalist stay-at-home mom’s summer daily uniform. It’s super duper basic with less than 20 items!

I have a love/hate relationship with summer. 

On the one hand, after a long winter in the Poconos, I’m ready for sun, warmth and lots of it. But on the other hand, I’ve never been a fan of summer clothing.

Maybe it’s that I had to measure the inseam length of my shorts and width of my tank top straps for years as an evangelical Christian teen because: modesty? YIKES. Or it could be that five pregnancies did a number on my legs.

I thoroughly resent the need to shave every day (or let’s be real: every other day), and please give me a cozy sweatshirt over tank tops any day of the week.

But alas, at the time of this writing, we’re in the middle of summer, and I’m forced to wear clothing that is conducive to the extra heat and humidity without sweating 24/7 in our no-central-A/C Pocono mountain home. Climate change sucks.

So I pulled together this super simple summer daily uniform because if you can’t beat summer, I guess you have to join it?

(And yes, you will catch me wearing the loose 90’s jeans or sweatpants as many summer days and nights as I can get away with.)

Related: 7 Effective Ways to Minimize Your Wardrobe (& Take Back Your Closet)

My Stay-at-Home Mom Summer Daily Uniform

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I’m approaching 40, and while I’m thankful for where I’m at in life, my body is starting to feel the past five years.

I’ve accepted that I’ve moved up a size or two, likely for good. 

All the running in the world won’t take away my chunky upper arms and my baby belly from carrying five babies (and I have no intention of giving up the foods I love just yet), so I’m finally embracing my current body instead of fighting it.

For reference, I’m 5’5.5″ and 150 lbs, give or take. And my lifestyle is super casual. I work from home, homeschool, and do not need any dress clothes.

The Same Basic T-Shirt

I have a bit of an unhealthy obsession with finding the perfect tee, but for now these GAP vintage soft cotton tees (I’m a medium) are the perfect loose summer tee.

I still love THIS J-crew basic tee, especially with high rise linen pants, buttttt I can get GAP clothes for free, so I have some of each.

(Note: a year later, I’m so glad I kept both because I’m bringing the J-crew back with my high waist jeans and linen pants.)

I have them in several different colors, with some doubles because why does fashion have to change all the dang time and phase out closet staples?! 

A Few Protest T-Shirts (Because: It’s 2025)

Earlier this year, I was feeling pretty low with everything happening in 2025, and buying a few protest t-shirts lifted my spirits. 

THIS “Everyone’s Welcome Here” t-shirt gets the most “I like your shirt”, accompanied by smiles of gratitude. Standing up for people’s rights in a small way makes a difference.

The others say things like “Resist Fascism” and “Toxically Empathetic”.

(Was this supposed to be a low buy year? Yes. Did the current regime break me? Also, yes.)

Shorts

I looked for new jean shorts this summer, but didn’t have any luck. I would like to have one pair next summer.

But often, if I’m just cleaning or running mundane errands, I’ll wear THESE black running shorts (they have an inner underwear liner). I love them!

Well, as much as someone who hates wearing shorts can love shorts, anyway.  

One Pair of Breezy Black Pants

(Update: I recently got a black pair of THESE breezy European linen pants from Quince, and since they can go into the drier, these will probably be decluttered. Remembering to air dry is a serious hassle.)

These loose barrel pants in black are so breezy and cool. Only downside is they require you to remember to air dry them.

They’re a great option for when I really want pants (because shaving is a pain in the butt), but it’s too hot for jeans. 

They’re also my one dressier option. I have zero need for dressy clothes at this point in my life. 

One Pair of Loose 90’s-Style Jeans

I finally caved and got a pair of loose 90’s style jeans. They’re my new favorite! 

I was reluctant to let go of the skinny jeans, especially since I’m short and hated the hems dragging. But I found that the petite is the perfect length.

The wash I chose (bottom far right choice with one ripped knee) is also light denim for breezier summer days.  

Gold Classic Birkenstocks

I finally replaced my Birkenstocks with THIS gold pair because my old pair’s soles were breaking. Turns out too many encounters with water aren’t so great for Birkenstocks.

I needed a break from the thong style that I had previously, and I wanted something that could pass as dressy if necessary, but still go with everything.

As long as I keep them out of water, I’m hoping these will last a decade. Especially since summers here are so short here, I think this is a doable goal.

I have an old pair of hand-me-down Crocs that I wear for things like taking the trash to the dump, rainy days or to the beach to avoid ruining these sandals with water.

Baseball Caps

I resent spending money (and time in a chair with a stranger) on haircuts and will go as long as humanly possible before succumbing to the “I hate my hair and it looks awful” feeling and reluctantly paying for a haircut. 

In the meantime, summer is the perfect time to embrace baseball hats to cover the loose mom bun.

I have one go-to hat that for whatever reason elicits tons of “I love your hat” comments (is it the cow?), with a back-up from our local library.

Earrings

My everyday earring is a simple silver pair I bought on the beach on my honeymoon eighteen years ago.

When I want something different or dressier, I swap them for a round pair of bottle cap earrings handmade in Haiti.

Pairs Toppers

Every time I wear my glasses, I get questions, “Are those the Pairs glasses that you can wear different tops?”

Why yes, yes they are. And I’m a gushing “I love them so much!”, unpaid advertisement for Pairs. 

I settled on THIS Van Gogh “The View of Auvers-Sur-Oise” topper for summertime (I have two others). I also have a pair of sunglasses toppers that probably need to be replaced at some point because I don’t really like them, but for now, they’ll have to do.

Have You Tried a Daily Uniform?

I started my minimalist journey loving capsule wardrobes, but eventually, my capsule wardrobes kept getting smaller and smaller until they became more of a daily uniform than a capsule wardrobe.

I love love love the simplicity of a daily uniform! 

It majorly helps my distracted ADHD mom brain to reduce decision-making about things that don’t matter to me all that much, like clothing. 

Maybe one day I’ll expand my simple wardrobe? But since some of the most powerful people in the world wear the same thing everyday, I’m thinking I probably won’t.

Read Next: The Daily Uniform – The Ultimate Way to Simplify Your Mornings

What’s a favorite staple piece in your summer wardrobe?

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