Beach Shorts

There seems to be an over abundance of ill fitting board shorts on the beach .  Now, practicality wise, these type of shorts are great for sun protection but they are about the worst item of clothing to wear when you add salt water and sand in the mix.  My youngest son who swims competitively in lycra, now really does not like board shorts in the slightest and would much prefer to be swimming in a pair of jammers (cycle short type swimwear).  

Given my aversion to brightly coloured, ill fitting boardies, I still have a large gap in my wardrobe where a pair of shorts suitable for parental life guard duties would normally fit.  Any trip to the surf with my boys always involves me getting wet whether I intend to or not, so my much loved cotton shorts simply will not do the job.  I had in my stash a piece of dark navy coloured, mystery synthetic cotton blend picked up at the op shop.  It actually feels more like a synthetic but the burn test did reveal some burning along with melting with this fabric.

I briefly considered using Sewaholic Thurlow for the pattern for these shorts but really love the fit of these cotton duck shorts that were made as a wearable muslin using New Look 6873.  I like he pleats in the front and the pocket liners that attach to the fly giving a flat front.   Because it is such a long time since I made these shorts, and I neglected to write about it, naughty me, I had forgotten the cutting details.  I initially cut my new ones out of a pair of unworn but too big pair of track pants of my husbands.  Once I had them to try on stage though, they didn't fit.  I am not sure whether it was because of the size I cut or the fact that they had zero give.  Anyway these were tossed in the bin and I recut my new mystery fabric with larger side seams some 1.5cm wider to be sure!

Unlike the last pair I made, this time because they were intended to be worn wet or at least damp, I opted to leave off the cuffs, as much as I love them.    I just hemmed them to my desired length.     The finished shorts are a little snug around the waist, but if they do easy slightly while wearing them, they will be the perfect fit!

I have titled this post beach shorts because that was the intention with these shorts when I wrote this post pre Christmas.  These shorts however, have been worth their weight in gold during my camping trip.  Why? Well, they are not 100% cotton for a start so drying them was a breeze which is essential when camping and swimming.  Also, unlike cotton they roll up to nothing so take up very little space when packing also essential when trying to squeeze in maximum clothing to minimum space.  They have been used for hiking, day wear as well as over swim wear on the beach.  Helping Courteney pack for India was quite enlightening and has made me rethink everything I usually take camping with me.