Gifs & Garb: What's In My Beach Bag

As summer is coming to a close (cue tears), it's time to transition our beach bags to our school/work bags. But before that happens! I'll share what I had in my beach bag a couple weeks ago. For those of you getting in one last beach trip during Labor Day weekend, or those lucky enough to visit a beach year-round, here's what I take with me.

Normally, I'd show what my beach bag looks like, but I don't really have one! I tend to go for a backpack or just a cheap bag that I don't mind getting sand all over. So when I was in Myrtle Beach, I borrowed a random tote my boyfriend happened to bring. Inside were my beach essentials:

water bottle: on a hot, sunny beach day you definitely don't want to get dehydrated! I had to have my trusty Camelbak with me on the beach.

sunscreen: I'm sure this is a given! However, I did have two kinds: a cool and creamy SPF 30 for my face and a spray tanning oil SPF 4 for my body. I'm naturally fairly olive-toned so my body doesn't burn easily but my face sure does!

leave-in conditioner: everybody loves a good beachy wave. To keep it a little more tame and healthy, I sprayed my Healthy Sexy Hair Soy Tri-Wheat Leave In Conditioner (mini size courtesy of my hairdresser!) when I came out of the water. It smells amazing too!

sunglasses: I purposely wore cheap sunglasses in case anything happened to them, and boy am I glad I did because the ocean ate my glasses. I wore them in the water the first two days with no problems but the third time a big wave hit me and I never saw my glasses again. Thankfully, they were only $10 and I found them on amazon when I got home.

phone: I take my phone everywhere to take pictures and the beach is no exception. I don't have a waterproof case, so I just put it in some tupperware and tried my best not to get it sandy.

camera/s (not pictured, sorry!): one camera was being used to take these blog photos and the other I didn't include because I wasn't sure I'd bring it on to the beach (but I'm glad I did!)

flip-flops: my favorite flip-flops are by Rainbow. They're pricey for the average flip flop but they're superb quality and will last you a few years. Besides, they're super comfy!

sun hat: I actually bought this the day I got to Myrtle Beach and it was a lifesaver! Now I don't think I could go to the beach without one.

towel: (again, not pictured but I'm sure you know what a towel looks like)