I’m going to San Diego next weekend! After all the rain and cold recently (yes, even in June!), I can’t wait to get away to sunny, beachy San Diego and I’m not even a beach person! In fact the last time I went to a beach was probably last March in New Zealand and the last time I actually swam in the sea would be… never. I can’t even remember the last time I swam in a pool….  I wonder if I still remember how to swim. Regardless though, this time I need to be beach ready because we’re planning to go on a kayaking trip to explore the caves and my friend is trying to convince me to paddle surf (whatever that means). I’ve already got a swim suit and flip flops (Old Navy has really cute stripey flip flops for $5 btw), but what I really need now is a beach cover up: a) because I’m conservative and b) because tanning is not my thing.

Initially I considered getting something sheer and fun like these beachy dresses above from J Crew and Victoria’s Secret. I even went to J Crew and tried on that dress. But then I realized that it would totally defeat the purpose of point b) and then what would be the point? I’d probably even get a weird tan line!

So I continued to search. I went to H&M, Old Navy and even Filene’s Basement (considering that I go to the beach exactly once a year, I really don’t want to be spending too much on it!) but came out each time with nothing. Has no designer ever considered that some girls might just want a simple, long sleeved sheer beach cover up instead of sleeveless maxi dresses? I was pretty sure I’ve seen them around in abundance when I was not looking for one. Finally I came across the PERFECT beach cover up at American Eagle. It is white, it is sheer, it is simple, long sleeved, at just the right length with the perfect amount of subtle feminine detail at the neckline. It is machine washable. It is at the right price point. It is exactly what I’ve been looking for! But alas, as with all things perfect-  they are already sold out.

Rendered back to the drawing board, I decided to maybe widen my idea of perfect a bit and came across the above beach cover ups. I like the idea of a simple long sheer dress shirt. It’s as if someone just casually threw it on! And I am also loving the J Crew tunic cover ups (bottom two)- especially the white one. The sleeves are not quite the right length (ew..tshirt tan!) but maybe I can deal with it? I will try them out tomorrow.  Hopefully they will be available at the store. Fingers crossed!

During my search I was also very surprised to find that Victoria’s Secret has one of the best cover up collections around! I actually rather like the sheer deep v neck long sleeve dresses above (top two), they’re really feminine and pretty! But then, I realized that they might look a little too night dress-ish for the beach and that I don’t have the assets to carry off such a deep v dress anyway. If you do have the assets however, do consider them!

Image Source: Victoria’s Secret, American Eagle and J Crew