beach

What to Wear to a Beach??? Are you wondering why this question? Well, if you follow me on Instagram (you don’t, oh please do!) then you probably know that I was in Goa since last weekend. We had an extended long weekend out there but I had the hardest time packing for myself. Why do you ask? Let me tell you why!

My weight has been fluctuating for the last few months. My clothes could either look horrendously tight or baggy depending on the kind of day I was having. Now before any red signals flash, yes I have gotten medical tests done and nothing came off that.
I have been lazy in working out and my body is not in a good shape. I am avoiding any outfits that are knee length or shorter.
We were going to a family beach vacation. Complete with my baby and father in law. This meant loads of extra clothes and bags so I did not want to carry too many backup outfits and had to pack smart
I realised the extent of my blue-black-white obsession when EVERYTHING i laid out as an option was blue, black or white!
Lastly, I did not want pictures in the same outfits as before.(You know we all have that set of vacations outfits? I wanted my vacation pics in new outfits…. vanity alert!)

Packing on the very last day with all these constraints running through my head gave me a massive headache. Off late, whenever I have travelled I have known the exact agenda and have been able to pack outfits accordingly. This time, we had no agenda. I thought of creating a capsule but realised that if I am going to be on the beach then my clothes would get wet and sandy and I would not be able to repeat them. So a capsule was out. Then I thought of what criteria the clothes needed to fulfill:

They should be quick drying. There is no way you can carry dripping wet clothes back and while all resorts in Goa do give you drying racks or ropes, it is a good idea to carry outfits that would dry quickly. If you are going to be on the beach for a long time, this would work well because once the clothes dry, the sand can be easily brushed off.
They should be lightweight and flowy. Goa in Feb is hot and clothes that stick to your body in the humid heat are uncomfortable as hell!
They should look good. Duh!
They should not need too many accessories. While I love my accessories, I prefer to keep things minimal when I travel. My trusted ear studs that can be worn everywhere, a universal brown belt and a large beach bag was all I carried. A pair of cutesy flipslops served me well.

That kind of made it easier and here are the outfits I put together for the beach-

Day 1 – Navy skirt & Denim Shirt

Now this was the day we were going to be on the beach throughout. I wore my bathing suit as a top and wore the skirt and denim shirt as a shrug. Before getting into the water, I just took them off. This is what I looked like:

Once we got out of the water and freshened up, I replaced the bathing suit with a vest and kept the rest of the outfit same..

I really liked how this outfit turned out. The reason for that is I picked this skirt on a whim and then had no idea how to style it for my body. For ideas, I turned to Pinterest and the inspiration for pairing it with a denim shirt actually came from there. Also, this was my first time trying pattern mixing and I do think I did a good job with it 🙂

Day 2: Black Maxi

On day 2, we decided to lounge by the pool in the hotel. We spent hours reading, playing and sipping those icy cocktails under the pool side umbrellas. By late afternoon, the pull of the beach became too much so we headed there for sunset and food. We had no plans of getting in the water but I knew once we hit the beach, there was no way to resist it. So I wore this georgette maxi that would dry within minutes after we came out of the water and allow me to enjoy the meal without any hassles! Of course, the pics were taken before our frolicking or the humidity messed with the hair and lipstick 😉