a slight ocean breeze

Random hat from my mom, Sunglasses from Free People, Vintage mesh top from etsy.com, Bathing suit from American Apparel, Gifted scarf used as a wrap skirt from unknown store

Here in Los Angeles, I live close enough to the beach to drive without much of a hassle, but not close enough to go there on a daily basis or without some planning. Personally, I'm not one of those girls who goes to the beach just to lay out and tan in my bathing suit. I'm a beach swimmer, so you'll normally find me in a water as long as I have a friend to go with me. Therefore, my beach trips are most often very exhausting. Don't get me wrong, I adore the beach, but I'm not a surfer or a hardcore California beach kid. This basically explains why my first beach trip was during the second to last week of my summer and not my very first week. But I'll admit, it was worth the wait.

Tim and I packed a couple bags and threw our sleeping bags over our shoulders for a night at Leo Carrillo State Beach. I'd been camping, but I'd never been beach camping. If I'd had it my way, I would have slept directly on the sandy beach (I mean it's softer than a mattress), but our campsite was about a half mile inland, which was probably for the best. I swam, I looked through a giant telescope, we took blankets and lay on the beach at midnight to look at the stars (including a few shooting ones), and just had an overall beach ball of a time.

I'm also not a hardcore beach girl because I don't really like to run around in my bathing suit in public. It's not a matter of modesty or morality. I don't mind others who do. I just don't feel particularly comfortable being exposed in such a way in the open air being watched by strangers. When I'm swimming, the water helps, so that's probably why I spend the majority of my time at the beach in the water. 

During this beach trip, however, I actually spent much less time in the water than normal. The waves were pretty harsh, and I had beach clothing that was really comfortable and perfect for the weather. I wear this mesh top quite a bit, but I'd never used it as a cover up. It was exactly the sort of thing you'll want in a beachy shirt. It's see-through and still shows your bathing suit, and is light enough not to retain heat, but it's also long enough and enough of a shirt to make you feel more comfortable around other beach-goers. This little wrap shirt was the same way. I realized as I was packing for the beach that this scarf was long enough to be tied and used as a skirt. I brought it, hoping it would work, and it definitely did. It was easy to wear, stayed on well, was a perfect color, and was not too light but not too heavy. I recommend going through your old scarves, finding the longest one, and taking it to the beach to test if it doubles as a beach skirt. 

Tim's photography was definitely on point for this trip. 

All photos by Timothy Toda