This is What You Need to Wear to the Beach This Summer

We’ll take one in each color, please.

I can take or leave bathing suits. Sure, they’re a necessity, but they’re hard to accessorize (well, unless you’re Rihanna) and I’ve always been more comfortable wearing more clothes than less. Where I really shine on the beach: Cover-ups.

Here’s what it looks like on. I love the slightly uneven hemline, topped off with a sprinkling of fringe.

On vacation, I favor caftans (a note: you look sort of stupid wearing these on the beaches of Ocean City). Closer to home, I wear breezy tunics and short cotton dresses. For those still stuck in the gym-shorts-and-tank-top rut, there’s Lemlem, supermodel Liya Kebede’s line of Ethiopian-made women’s and children’s clothes.

You can find the collection at A Jeweled Menagerie in Wayne. The standout: the handmade Lilly split cover-up ($198)—a semi-sheer cotton tunic that’s graphic and totally chic. I’m absolutely obsessed. How I’ll wear it: oversized (a size large, so it’s extra voluminous—I like my stuff big), with a silk scarf tied around my hair, a wooden bangle, circle sunnies and a pair of simple flip-flops. Voila! Beach chic. Now go get one and let’s leave the days of surf shorts and gym shirts behind.

Buy it now: Lemlem Lilly split cover-up, $198 at A Jeweled Menagerie, Wayne.