It’s never to early to start planning your summer holiday wardrobe

So the clocks have gone forward, yet gloves and hats are still the order of the day as the temperatures continue to offer little sign of spring. With winter hanging on in there, you may have to wait a bit longer to wear that summer wardrobe, but there’s no reason you can’t look ahead and start buying up those vital warmer-weather pieces.

Beachwear is one of those things that is often overlooked – many people don’t even think about it until they book their holiday – but if you want to avoid buying in a rush, or even having to decide against last-minute day-trips to the beach because you don’t have the right clothes, then you should look into your T-shirt and beach shorts combinations now.

T-shirts:

Of course you could just wear any old T-shirt to the beach, but you’ll really stand out if you embrace spring with a bold and bright tee or two. Stripes are a great way to add colour in a stylish way and they can also help your physique; if you feel your frame is a little thinner than you would like, horizontal stripes will make your torso seem wider. A nautical style with navy and blue stripes is a classic choice, but don’t be afraid to experiment.

Beach shorts:

A good pair of beach shorts is essential. Regular shorts are not designed for getting wet and will either be extremely uncomfortable when drenched, or unflatteringly clingy. Good beach shorts will work just as well lounging outside a beachside bar or diving through the surf, and to get an idea of the type of material and construction you need, look in surf shops at brands like Quicksilver and O’Neill, which are specialists in this area. For better value you should look at the offerings from cheaper stores such as Debenhams before you make any purchases, but it’s always worth seeing how the experts do it.

Many beach shorts will come with jazzy Hawaiian-style prints, with plenty of colour. If this is the style statement you want to make then go for it, but just remember that the novelty of loud prints can soon wear off, and they can limit your options when it comes to the T-shirts you can pair them with.

Combining the two:

The thing to remember when pairing beach shorts and T-shirts is that you can go bright and bold with one of them, but doing so with both is a bit too far. Hawaiian-style beach shorts with a striped tee in navy and white is fine, for example, but matching those shorts with yellow and green stripes is too overpowering. And unless you want to look like a Victorian, matching T-shirt and shorts combinations are best avoided.