Whenever I think of the defining pieces of ’90s minimalism, my mind goes straight to a simple black silk slip dress. Worn by style icons from Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy to Kate Moss and seen on the runways of Calvin Klein, Miu Miu, and Ralph Lauren, it became one of the decade’s most enduring silhouettes. Given my love of minimalist dressing and things that are timeless, it even surprised me that I didn’t already own one. Then I realized why: I’d been holding out hope of finding the perfect one second-hand, much like my ongoing quest to find the perfect pair of vintage Levi’s.

But as we head into mid-July, I’ve been thinking and writing a lot about how to dress during a heatwave, and the answer always comes back to natural fibers. Alongside cotton, silk is one of the most breathable fabrics to wear in hot weather, making a silk slip dress feel like the ideal one-and-done summer investment—and a wardrobe gap I wanted to fill. As I started my search, I immediately thought of the Australian label Silk Laundry.