Patriotic Memorial Day Outfit Ideas

The weekend that kicks off summer is almost here! Memorial Day is the unofficial start of summer and I’m so happy because summer is my favorite season! It’s warm, you can go swimming all the time, eat burgers, and basically live in a bathing suit for 3 months. Memorial Day weekend is also exciting because you get a long holiday weekend, the pool opens, and you get to hang out with your family and friends while eating and drinking. To celebrate the long weekend you are going to need a couple of outfits to make you look like a walking American flag. Whether you’re planning on relaxing in the sun or are attending a fun dinner with your friends you’ll need to show off your red, white, and blue!

My family doesn’t do much for actual Memorial Day, which is on Monday, because I always used to work the entire weekend. I used to work in a waterpark and Memorial Day weekend was our opening weekend! So, I didn’t get much time to celebrate the holiday, let alone sit down to a nice meal with my friends and family. But now that I no longer have that summer job and actually get time off for the holiday weekend, I like to spend as much time as I can with my close and extended family. The past couple of year’s we’ve had a backyard barbecue complete with hot dogs, hamburgers, corn on the cob, mashed potatoes, fruit, and a variety of desserts and drinks. We basically eat, swim, and drink the entire weekend, it’s fun.

Below are outfit suggestions that you can put together with items that are probably already in your closet. Memorial Day means a lot of red, white, and blue, as well as stripes, gingham, and lace. These outfits aren’t just restricted to the holiday weekend, you can wear these pieces all summer long AND for the Fourth of July!

 BASIC TEE & SHORTS

You can never go wrong with a simple t-shirt, shorts, and sandals outfit during these warmer months. For the holiday you can wear a plain white tee, dark wash denim shorts, and white converse shoes. Add in a red headband to complete the patriotic look. Another thing you can do is wear a red and white striped tee with blue denim shorts. This is a super casual way to show that you still care about dressing for the holiday but you don’t want to go all out and buy brand new pieces for a backyard barbecue. You can see in my image above I chose to wear a button-down thermal top from Nordstrom Rack, high waist shorts from Abercrombie and Fitch and gingham sandals from Old Navy. If you want to go for a dressier casual look, swap out your shorts for a denim button down skirt.

MAXI DRESS & DENIM JACKET

An outfit that I can guarantee that you already have in your closet is a maxi dress and a jean jacket. If you already have one in a navy blue, red, or striped pattern, all you have to do is dig your jean jacket out! I only have a dark wash denim jacket from Old Navy but I do wish that I had a solid white one because it would look cute with a lot of different outfits. You can go for a super casual look by pairing flat sandals or flip flops with the maxi dress or have a dressier outfit with wedges or heels. This look is very easy and really comfortable, you will also stay warm when the sun goes down because your arms and legs will be covered!

GINGHAM TOP & WHITE JEANS

A go-to outfit that I have been wearing since last year (no literally, I wrote a whole blog post about it last spring) is gingham and white jeans. It’s such a timeless look and I’m glad the picnic print came back into style last year. For the patriotic weekend, you can wear a blue or red gingham off the shoulder blouse with white capri jeans, and sandals. Complete the look with accessories like a straw bag or hat and espadrille sandals or sneakers. This look is semi-dressy and people will certainly give you many compliments on your adorable outfit. Switch out the jeans for white short if the weather is a lot warmer where you are!

No matter what you choose to wear this weekend, just make sure you get in some red, white, and blue pieces. This will show people that you are festive and patriotic even if you just showed up the barbecue for free hot dogs.

I hope everyone has a great Memorial Day weekend!