Beach Bag Essentials

It is full blown beach season. Living at the beach allows us to spend most weekends in front of our house, enjoying the water without the inconvenience of parking and schlepping loads of chairs, children, toys and wagons for miles.

We have a set of standard beach going friends which makes our summer every year. It’s like a party every weekend and creates a real sense of community as we come together summer after summer with new travels, new grandbabies and babies, new jobs, houses and so on.

It’s undeniable the importance of a well packed beach bag, even living close to the water because who wants to go in and out once you’re settled in and ready for a day of R&R by the water? No one.

First things first: A cute beach bag!!! These pom lined baskets are a classic crowd pleaser. They fit quite a bit, look great in transit and also when you’re settled in.

In our beach bags, we have one of our favorite sunscreens, Supergoop. This sunscreen does it’s job but it also leaves a pretty sheen to your skin because lets face it, you want to look dewy on the beach, not dry and dusty from the sand. For the kids, our favorite is Badger.

It was important to me to have a great beach umbrella, chair and towels that coordinate because it’s appalling to me how mismatched everything is at the beach in the states. I so prefer the Italian beach clubs with matching towels, chaise lounge chairs and striped umbrellas. Please, someone, help us.

A good book is also a must, especially if you’re not in a talking mood. Pull those pages out and put your nose in a book.

If you’re feeling more social, a travel backgammon set is a great way for some fun in the sun! These also make for a very cute gift…great if someone is hosting your family for a beach day. We also have a stylish set of bocce ball given as a wedding gift, which is also nice for group fun.

A speaker is imperative for a curated playlist of beach friendly vibes…not too loud of course. Our favorite is from Stelle Audio. They make a great portable speaker that you can hang from your EZ Up or umbrella that has great sound! We also like the beats by dre speaker pill too for a classic.

Of course, a signature pair of sunnies can make or break your look. You need to have the right pair that coordinates with your beach set up and get up. Any pair will not do.

A water friendly camera is awesome because you don’t always want your phone getting sandy… we like a GoPro – you can take it with you right into the water. Great for kids if you want to strap it to a board. We also love the new school Polaroid cameras. Awesome to give out the little photos to the beach crew from the day.

For the kids, I love bringing a few toys and snacks down for entertaining them when they want to relax in the shade. Most of the kids at our beach know they can come to me for the good snacks- aka candy. I love shopping at Old Navy for girls’ swimsuits -every now and again you can find the CUTEST suits for dirt cheap. Since we live at the beach, it feels like we need 100 suits each summer. Old Navy makes it feel guilt free:) We just got an off the shoulder pom pom lined ruffle one piece and it’s so so cute.

A portable cell phone charger is so awesome to have while spending a day at the beach. If you want to Postmates food for lunch or dinner, if you want to add to your IG story, if you want to talk on the phone or stream music, you’re going to need a charge.

A full face of makeup is a bit odd at the beach, but having a few beauty products on hand is smart. If you’ve ever had sunburnt lips you’ll know why we say to keep a lip balm with SPF handy. We also highly recommend a tinted moisturizer that evens out your skintone and protects your face from the sun, but doesn’t make you look like you’re going to prom. We love a great detangler with a wide toothed brush so your hair isn’t seaweed when you get out from taking a dip in the ocean.