How to Accessorize a Swimsuit—Without Looking Like a Try-Hard

Invest in these summer items now and wear them in the fall too

By Taylor Stephan Jul 30, 2015 3:00 PMTags
Jay-Z, BeyonceINFphoto.com

Going to the beach with friends (and knowing an Instagram photo shoot will undoubtedly ensue) can be a struggle. What do you wear with a bathing suit anyway? Alone your swimwear feels kind of sad. Then again, you don't want to look like you tried too hard.

Enter: waterside accessories.

Working it at the beach has a different, more simplified approach than working it on the streets. Thankfully, you only need to invest in a few key accessories to look pulled together. The added bonus? You can wear these staples whether you're relaxing under the sun or headed back to school (or you know, the office) in the fall. 

With summer coming to a close, but with a fair amount of beach rendezvous still on the books, we present you with essential summer-to-fall accessories that you can start rotating in as soon as this weekend. 

Take Beyoncé for example. The queen of the forever-fierce aesthetic serves up the ideal accessorizing situation, channeling "I'm going to live in my bathing suit all day" vibes. For your own excursions, deck yourself in dainty body chains that will luckily also look stellar peeking out of crop tops and flares next season. (Just be sure any jewelry will hold up to your water activities!)

MiamiPIXX/SBMF/FAMEFLYNET PICTURES

Like Beyoncé, classic beauty Michelle Williams knows the importance of a stylish topper. Besides the obvious fact that you should always be shading your skin from direct sunlight in the summer, a chic statement hat is the perfect addition to fall layering. To complement the incognito look, it's a good time to update your shades with colored or mirrored lens in a classic shape.

For a coastal cover-up, it couldn't get easier than an oversized denim button-up. Any take on denim dress shirt (like a tie-dyed version, or one with slanted pockets) will also transition well into you autumn wardrobe, pairing well with leather, tweeds and other cold-weather fabrics. 

Your seasonal wardrobe change? Done.

Wildfox Dakota Metal Round Mirror Sunglasses, $199; Gentle Monster La Rouge Sunglasses, $240; Joolz by Martha Calvo Body Chain, $220; Rosantica Body Chain, $340; Rag & Bone Leeds Dégradé Cotton-Chambray Shirt, $265; MIH Jeans, Oversized Denim Shirt, $295; Sensi Studio Hippie Straw Hat, $130; J.Crew Straw Boater Hat, $45