I was S'arong
The thing about style and fashion is that its ever evolving, you learn new tricks every season, at this time of year thanks to travel I have the opportunity for some extensive people watching, specifically europeans who being used to more favourable weather are the inevitable experts when its comes to dressing for higher temperatures, the way they do it captivates me and provides endless inspiration, for us brits travelling to sunnier climes this amounts to finding new ways to nail chic beach dressing,
The beach people whose style i most admire are those who look comfortable and effortless, lets be honest that’s tricky in the heat, especially in peak season, so i look for people whose looks are relaxed, nonchalant and cool, not hip-cool, cool as in not sticky / overheating, that in part is achieved by wearing breathable fabrics such as linen and pure cotton, while its a practical option its also an aesthetically pleasing one, prints look more subtle on natural fabrics than they do on man-made, and speaking of prints, the most stylish in the sun opt for subtle prints over monochrome zebra or loud florals, think sun bleached abstract prints in a low key palette, off-white, khaki, terracotta, lavender and ochre.
Im going to caveat my next observation by acknowledging i have been dismissed of the item in question in the past, I used to wear one, i don’t know what happened but they fell out of fashion favour, verging on naff, but like i said earlier, fashion is ever evolving and this piece has evolved, its the humble sarong, 20 years ago my sarongs were sheer, printed, probably polyester and worn as a jaunty skirt, potentially over a matching print bikini, the sarong in 2024 is cotton or linen, still printed (again abstract prints work great) it might have a tassel trim but tonal small knotted cotton tassels not long thin silky ones of old, and the bigger the better as this is the ultimate expert holiday multi tasking item, folded in half you have a wrap skirt, wrap around your torso you have a bandeau dress, dab hands can make an a-symmetric dress with a little belt (search #saronghacks for a visual) you can sit on them on the beach, use them as a little cloak to get changed out of wet swimwear, i saw one woman turn hers into a turban and walk off looking like a bond girl.
Beach dresses were mostly eschewed for beach pants, pulled on over a bikini and a giant shirt in plain linen or cotton pinstripe worn open over the swim wear, hats were wide brimmed (sans ribbon or kooky embroidery) and well worn, a gentle reminder to other beach goers this is not their first beach rodeo and always always always, excellent sunglasses.
Subtle, breezy multi functional beach ideas where less is more, Bon Vacation.
