In Australia and New Zealand, Boxing Day is a beach day. The presents are open, the fridge is full of leftovers, and half the family is down the coast by ten in the morning. The kit is short: something you can swim in, something on your feet that survives sand, and a towel. What follows is what actually goes in the car, and why a dark print is the smarter choice at a beach where everything else is pastel.
In this article
- What goes in the car
- Why dark prints
- Swimwear that lasts
- What about the kids
- Looking after it
- Frequently asked questions
What do you actually need for Boxing Day at the beach?
Five things, and most families forget the same two.
- Swimwear you can move in. Not the one you bought for a pool in February
- Slides. Sand ruins anything with a lining. Foam does not care
- A towel per person. The forgotten one, every year
- Shade. An umbrella beats a hat at midday
- Something dry to put on after. The other forgotten one
Everything on that list is sold on the Boxing Day shelf, which is built around exactly this day rather than around summer in general.
Why wear a dark print to the beach?
Two practical reasons and one that is not practical at all. Dark prints do not go see through when wet, and they do not show the rust stains that sunscreen leaves on pale swimwear. That is the practical half.
The other half is that every beach in December is a wall of pastel and floral. A dark linework print reads from a distance, which is the point of wearing a Pacific pattern in the first place. You are not trying to blend in.
A one piece swimsuit and slide sandals in the same dark Warrior linework, sold together for less than the two on their own.
See the Boxing Day shelf →What should you look for in swimwear that lasts a whole summer?
Look for a polyester and spandex blend rather than nylon, because polyester holds its colour against chlorine and salt for far longer. Look for a lined front and proper elastic in the straps, because that is what fails first. And size up one, which is the single most common mistake in Pacific swimwear sizing.
| What to check | Good | Bad |
|---|---|---|
| Fabric | Polyester with spandex, chlorine resistant | Thin nylon that fades in one season |
| Straps | Elastic, wide enough to stay put | Thin ties that stretch out wet |
| Dark or high contrast | Pale, which goes see through wet | |
| Fit | Size up one | True to a standard size chart |
What do the kids need for a beach day?
Slides they can put on themselves, because you will be carrying everything else. Foam slides dry in minutes and wash under a tap, which no other beach shoe manages. A rash top matters more than a hat between eleven and three.
If you are buying for more than one child, the Summer Edit carries the footwear in youth and adult sizes in the same print, which saves the argument about who has the good pair.
How do you make swimwear and slides last more than one summer?
Three habits, none of them difficult, and together they roughly double the life of everything on the list.
- Rinse in fresh water the same day. Salt crystallises in the fibres as it dries and then cuts them from the inside every time the fabric flexes. A thirty second rinse under a tap prevents it
- Dry flat and out of the sun. Hanging wet swimwear stretches the elastic under its own weight, and direct sun breaks down spandex faster than chlorine does
- Never wring it. Press the water out. Twisting is what destroys the shape across the chest
For foam slides the whole routine is a tap and a shady spot. Foam does not absorb water, so there is nothing to rot, which is the entire reason it beats canvas at a beach.
Sunscreen is the quiet killer. The oils in most sprays stain pale fabric permanently and there is no washing it out, which is one more argument for a dark print if the swimsuit is going to see three summers rather than one.
Nothing here is sitting in a warehouse. Each piece is printed and sewn after the order is placed, which has two consequences worth planning around. The good one is that there is no dead stock, so a print does not get discounted into landfill at the end of a season and sizes that sell slowly still exist. The inconvenient one is the production window: there are several days between you paying and anything being handed to a courier.
The practical rule is three weeks from order to door for Australia and New Zealand, and closer to four if it is crossing an ocean. Work backwards from the date you need it, not forwards from today. There is more on why the model works this way in why made to order is the future of sustainable fashion.
Frequently asked questions
What do Australians do on Boxing Day?
Beach, leftovers and the start of the Boxing Day Test. For most families it is the most relaxed day of the year and the busiest day at the coast.
Is Boxing Day a good time to buy swimwear?
Yes, because it sits at the start of the southern summer rather than the end. Anything bought on Boxing Day gets a full three months of wear.
What swimwear fabric lasts longest?
A polyester and spandex blend. Polyester resists chlorine and salt far better than nylon, so the colour and the shape last for more than one season.
Should I size up in Pacific swimwear?
Usually yes. Most one piece swimsuits are cut to a standard chart, so sizing up one is the safer choice, particularly across the shoulders.
The kit for the day after Christmas
Swimwear, slides, towels and shade, in prints that read from a distance and survive salt.
Shop Boxing Day →Made to order. Order before Christmas if you want it for the 26th.
Read next: Samoan Patterns and What They Mean · Polynesian Fashion Hub
