A great day at the beach is all about being prepped and ready. Towels and totes? Check! Sunscreen? Check! Cooler full of food and drink? Check, check! Below, we’ve got an ocean’s worth of beach day-perfect suggestions and places to grab what you need for the ultimate awesome ocean or bay day.
Tenet, 91 Main Street, Southampton, 631-377-3981 and 21 Newtown Lane, East Hampton, 631-527-5848. For sunscreen, tanning mists and bronzers, look no further than Tenet, for popular boutique brands like Super Goop and Hampton Sun. With shops in both Southampton and East Hampton, Tenet has nearly every inch of your body covered, with mineral-based formulas, hand screens, body mists and lip balms.
Hildreth’s, 51 Main St., Southampton, 631-283-2300. Of course Hildreth’s has the perfect beach chair and umbrella. This nest-feathering staple has been Southampton’s go-to for great customer service and beautifully curated housewares, furniture, hostess gifts and the like for over 180 years. Their Frankford beach umbrellas in bright French Riviera blue don’t just look great; they’re super sturdy, too, made from marine-grade fabric and with hardware that keeps them firmly anchored, no matter how blustery the beach. The perfect accompaniment: chairs to go beneath, Business & Pleasure easy-open wood-frame beach chairs in UV-resistant fabric.
Emporium True Value Hardware, 72 Main St., Sag Harbor, 631-725-0103. If you’re going to plant yourself in the sun and sand all day, you need storage for sustenance. Sag Harbor’s wonderful Emporium has the Yeti Hopper Flip 18, the coveted soft cooler that lets you pack in your lunch and bevies and keep them cold for up to three days, is mildew and leakproof, and is still manageable for traipsing across the sand. Also at Emporium: Yeti Colster, the can-insulating cooler that keeps your 16 oz drinks ‘fridge cold.
BookHampton, 41 Main St., East Hampton, 631-324-4939. Of course, you need a beach read, which East Hampton’s BookHampton will be most obliged to help you select. But even better, they carry the Ladies Village Improvement Society Cookbook: Eating and Entertaining in East Hampton by Florence Fabricant (Rizzoli) and, within its pages, a glorious lobster roll recipe compliments of Topping Rose House. Grab your copy and make your best beach lunch ever!
Bliss’s Department Store, 186 N. Ferry Road, Shelter Island, 631-749-0041. This island staple has been loyally serving the town with its household and vacationer needs since 1927. In addition to pretty much anything you could possibly ever need for yourself or your home (sewing kits, band-aids, Shelter Island tees, kitchen gear, toys for the kids and too many other useful bits and bobs to list), in recent years they’ve upped the ante on their men’s and women’s bathing suit options. Young or older, there’s something satisfying — and even downright cute — for everyone. And when you’re stuck on an island and forgot your bathing suit from whence you came, Bliss’ has you covered, along with cover-ups, sunscreen, hats, flip flops, boat shoes… you get the picture.
Drift’s East, 478 West Lake Drive, Montauk, 631-668-8017. Practically a one-stop shop for cute beach accoutrements, Drifts East is owned by 12th generation East Ender Erica Remkus, who designs and hand-makes many of the items she carries in her year-old store, along with other locally made items (representing!). And what she or other local craftspeople don’t make is sourced for with high-quality in mind. We love the roomy MTK embroidered beach and boat bags from the ethically minded company Shore Bags, who make their totes from sustainable raw materials. Want to get something else embroidered on the bag? Just give Remkus a heads up and you’ll have your own unique tote in two week’s time. While you’re there, grab a couple of her super-soft, sand-eschewing, lightweight Sand Cloud towels to plunk in your bag for the beach.
Skidmore’s Sports & Styles, 9 E. Montauk Highway, Hampton Bays, 631-728-0066. No day in the surf is complete without the rush of a bodyboard ride in the waves. Skidmore’s is a Hamptons go-to for many of your beach, surf and sporting good needs. And bodyboards? Yeah, they’ve got ‘em in abundance. Owner Rick Martell carries industry-standard brands like the original Morey Boogie Board and California Board Company bodyboards, along with BZ Waveline, and Legendary Body Boards for a day of surf-skimming at your favorite South Fork beach.
