Have you ever gone boogieboarding? It’s enormously fun, which is why I’m grinning like crazy in the photo above. I probably only caught three or four waves my last time out, but when I did get right on top of the wave and it shot me to the shore I screamed with delight. So did my kids and everyone else who had a boogie board that day. Continue Reading →
A beach coverup isn’t really a necessity, but I wouldn’t dream of going to the shore without something to layer over my bathing suit. A coverup can be practical, pretty or sophisticated, and like a chic beach tote its a great way to express your personal style. Often I take a practical approach and wear a big white cotton shirt over my bathing suit. Over the last few years I’ve found that an inexpensive sundress can double as a pretty coverup especially when I’m feeling insecure about my figure. But this year I wanted something a little more elegant. For years I draped a long printed sarong around my hips and felt it was the pinnacle of elegant beach style, but the glamorous classic does get a little boring after, oh, a decade. One of the trends that hit the beach this year is the lacy beach tunic. It’s a flattering and feminine look that I gravitated toward immediately. Continue Reading →
This summer my family and I spent a week camping on the beach near the charming town of Carpenteria. I packed all my bathing suits, including this ruffly stripe one by Kenneth Cole Reaction. I also did a bit of shopping prior to the trip as I wanted to be well supplied with cover-ups and other beach camping essentials. Among the new purchases were several white shirts from the Goodwill and other local thrift stores. This one is made of a nice, medium-weight cotton but it has a few pen marks on the sleeves. It doesn’t matter. It didn’t stay on long enough for anyone to notice. The waves were much too enticing. Continue Reading →
It’s summer! Time to hit the beach. I’m lucky. I live within driving distance of some of the most celebrated beaches in the world. Yes, the places where the ocean meets the land in California really are as wide and sandy as they are on television. There is, however, one big difference between the fantasy of TV and the reality of the beach: the people. On the tube perfect blond beach bunnies and hunky, muscled life guards populate the sand but in real life the scene is much more varied. Sure, the life guards are super-fit and the bunnies frolic in the waves, but they’re joined by their grandmas and grandpas, parents, aunts and little nieces and nephews too. Everyone is having fun in the sun and no one cares if your cellulite is showing, because everyone over the age of 22 is showing off something imperfect and they’re doing it with aplomb. Continue Reading →
Summer. It’s so evocative. I imagine long days spent lounging in a bikini drinking home-made ice tea while reading delightful novels on a chaise lounge under the shade of a large umbrella. The reality will be more like the rest of the year. No doubt I’ll spend most of June, July and August working in my studio, driving kids to their activities, and running the usual errands. The main difference is the weather will be warmer, the days longer and I’ll cook most of my family’s dinners on the outdoor grill. It’s not that I dislike the reality so much as I’m frustrated by the fiction. Where did I get this idea that summers should consist of days doing next to nothing? It isn’t just the fashion and lifestyle magazines that project this delightful summer fantasy, it’s my childhood memories of long days spent in idle pursuits that lull me into believing that summer should be a relaxing void of blue skies, blue water and palm trees. Continue Reading →
