Beach Bag Must-Haves

It’s getting to be that time of year when my beach-bag remains packed so that it’s ready to go at a moment’s notice. Whether I’m toting it to the pool with a friend or packing it in my car for a trip to an actual beach it’s something I like to have at the ready in the summer. It’s such a bummer to get all set up to soak in the sun and hang out with friends and realize that you forgot something crucial. 

With Memorial Day Weekend mere days away and a trip to the beach on my agenda, my beach bag is officially packed with the following essentials! 

I shared a DIY for the tote above here.

Towel

Growing up near the water beach towels seemed to fill our laundry room shelf after receiving them as gifts over the years. While those towels were great, many of them had run their course, and an update was in order (my brother was still using one with Polo bears on it a few years ago…). With beach towels, my mindset is the bigger, the better and this tassel one from Serena & Lily fits that bill. I couldn’t say no to the blue and white design and stripes, but if that’s not your thing, there are plenty of other towel designs out there. 

Hair Tie

I’m a lover of ponytails pretty much all of the time but especially at the pool or on the boat. I like to keep an extra one on hand in case the one I am using breaks. A breezy boat ride and wearing my hair down do not mesh, so it’s better for me to be safe than sorry. 

Books

While I love the sun, laying out by the pool doing nothing can get boring. If I have a book on hand, it makes it infinitely better. I find that I read so much more in the summer just to have an excuse to be outside. I’m hoping to start making a dent in my to-read list and have a few books packed in my beach bag to read this weekend. All We Ever Wanted, A Beautiful Corpse, and The Wedding Guest were my most recent library finds and I tucked a couple of magazines in my bag to enjoy as well. 

Water Bottle

There is no denying the fact that the sun dehydrates you. To help avoid that I like to bring a reusable water bottle with me to the pool. If I’m not bringing a bottle, I’ll at least bring a Yeti (or similarly insulated) cup and hugger with me. 

Sunscreen

I keep at least two bottles of sunscreen in my pool bag at all times considering if I don’t lather up I am bound to get burned. I like to have one that’s more gentle on my face and another (usually a spray) that is easy and quick to apply to my whole body. Right now, I have a pouch that’s overflowing with sunscreen in my bag since it’s also nice to have varied SPF options.  

Bathing suit top found here (size down a size).

Sunglasses 

Another no brainer for the pool and beach, especially when I am trying to read! My favorite sunglasses for the past few summers have been by Madewell and are reasonably priced (love lenses of this color for summer). This is especially nice given that I’ve had sunglasses fall overboard before and losing these wouldn’t be quite as much of a bummer as losing a pricier pair. Also how fun is this pair for something a little bit different?!

Headphones

Headphones can be tricky when it comes to the pool. If there are a bunch of people and I am trying to be productive, I like having them on hand to drown out the noise, but I’ve always been afraid that I am going to end up with a random tan line across my stomach because of the cord. This is when having airpods or some other type of Bluetooth headphones would be handy. For the time being though I’m careful to make sure I loop them behind my head so that the cord is out of the way. 

Hat

In the summer, even when I use a lot of sunscreen, my freckles tend to pop out. I like my freckles, so it isn’t a big deal, but sometimes I want my face to have a bit more protection. Because of that, I like keeping a hat in my bag. While sunhats are cute, I usually opt for a more classic baseball hat since they are easier to store and take up less space! 

I’d love to know if you have any additional essentials that I should start bringing with me that I may have forgotten!