When you get out of the freezing deep blue, roaring ocean for that first dip of the season the last thing you care about is what your towel looks like. You have one and you want it wrapped around you tight and stat! Aside from this particular scene however, maybe you do care for the tropical palms knitted through the six feet of fabric. Maybe you won’t even use a towel with the logo of a liquor that’s burned you, a movie you hated, or a rivaled sports team. Or maybe all you care about is that your beach towel is long enough to cover your body - its intended purpose. Despite the popular belief that towels are used to merely serve a function, 2020 mass markets are hypersegmented to evoke a personal connection with its owner. Making certain towel shapes, adornments, and prints a top trend.
Towels echo fashion trends in bolder colors with thicker lines. They might be slower to evolve since they do in fact have an “off season,” but they often take on trends in a louder light. We are quick to spend $30 on a blouse we just love when really $30 for a towel allows you to get more use out of your dollars. Shopping smart is the 2020 way!
*All photos are taken from online retail sites and were not shot by me. I take zero credit for the production of any image below. Each image is hyperlinked so click away and happy shopping!*
Do you want a snack? The whole fruit thing? Yeah, we’ve seen it. If you search “beach towels” on Amazon there will be a whole slew of watermelon and pineapple printed towels popping up almost as frequent as classic stripes. And the reason fruit on towels specifically is such a popular design choice is most beach towels have a summery print yes, but also, it's whimsical enough to make the standard consumer smile. The latest fruit in the resortwear salad is papayas. On a towel they look just like an avocado but pink! And on sale for 20 bucks? I mean, what looks happier?
Can I just look like art, please? Well you can certainly lay on it. Tapestry-looking designs are the easiest way to spot your towel when walking back from the water. And really, why didn’t we think of wrapping up in our wall art sooner? Just like a tapestry in ambianence, but a thicker knitted cotton in lighter sun-repelling colors. I’m loving the full Aztec and vibrant color theme in Urban Outfitters’ assortment. Anything with a fringe or beaded rim is having a moment...even towels!
Newer to the scene, Sand Cloud is the definition of the artsy towel. (The above is luxe enough to be a runner in your hallway.) Not only do they donate 10% of proceeds to marine life preservation, but their towels are like fold-able clouds that actually fit in your bag.
Can you take a joke? Remember those oversized t-shirts with the inked on bikinis and lais? The ones the tan scaly grandmas would wear with their visors and now your college-aged brother has one cause he thinks it's funny? Well these towels are an update on that kind of wearable humor. Insert your entire body, by simply lying down to sun bath into a magazine cover of your choosing. Women’s Health and Sports Illustrated are popular choices because their subtitles are more complimentary than your own mama.
Am I fancy? Loud logos and punchy typefaces have been mainstream for the past two or so years. Towels are just catching up, and they’re surprisingly affordable. Gucci incorporates their logo on towels in summery kelly green and white or the famous black and white paint drip. The need for a longer length towel when sunbathing was first put into motion by the chic queen herself Coco Chanel. So naturally a Chanel emblem belongs on a beach towel just as much today as in the 1920s. Opt for a white ground with a black logo because the reverse is just asking to burn.
Are you ready for it? In a socially distant summer, towels are a must to lay out to protect yourself from public picnic tables and lounge chairs. Like with masks, I hope retailers take the opportunity to repurpose unsold spring merchandise by restitching clothing fabric into patchworked towels, something the public will use right now. When it comes to wrapping up in the sunshine, stripes and solids are not your only options.
Who would think a towel can make us happy or define a personality, you keep on creating fun things for us to think about using, even around a friend's pool! Your ideas help us out of the box
I like the dish towel the best haha and you’re right I wouldn’t dry off on a Yankees or Patriots towel! Hard pass