Viscose is one of those fabrics that either does its job beautifully or lets you down completely, and the difference comes down to cut and weight. When it’s right, it skims rather than clings, moves with actual fluidity rather than just flapping about, and keeps you cool in a way that polyester never quite manages regardless of what the label claims. A good viscose maxi dress is genuinely one of the most useful things you can own in warmer months. Dressed up with sandals for dinner, worn flat for a long day out, thrown over a swimsuit without a second thought. We’ve been pulling together the viscose maxis that actually deliver on the fabric’s promise rather than the ones that look promising on a hanger and go strange the moment you move. The drape has to work. The length has to sit right. And the print or colour has to be strong enough to carry the simplicity of the silhouette. These are the dresses that pass every one of those tests. Viscose done properly is almost unbeatable.