As someone who quite literally won’t shut up about my love for The Beach Bum, my sartorial season is here. Aruba, Jamaica, oh I want to take you…straight to Tommy Bahama. The Hawaiian shirt has had a recent style evolution over the last few seasons from something that was at the core of ScumBro to a refined shirt tying together the outfits of Gigi Hadid and Beyoncé.
Less Ace Ventura and more Miley Cyrus-at-the-Versace-Mansion, this drunk-uncle staple has been gloriously updated for the summer ahead. It can be a tropically sensual yet tongue-in-cheek coverup for beach trips, an irreverent shirt to pair with shorts and the new hot-pink Steve Madden platforms, or a polished cabana set a la Beyoncé. There are also a number of elevated Hawaiian shirt labels popping up like Double Rainbouu, an Australian beach brand that’s a Justin Bieber favorite, and unisex brand Tombolo.
Over the last year, the dad shirt staple was on a treacherous journey to becoming a symbol for famous boys Going Through Something, like Justin Bieber wearing a Hawaiian shirt with Post Malone, who was double-fisting Bud Lights. But thanks to stylist Karla Welch, who styles Bieber, the shirt is returning to its breezy persona. She styled Hailey Baldwin in a pink tropical shirt, knotted at the waist, for the new Levi’s 501 campaign. But the beauty of the shirt is its emotional versatility. It can be formal, or it can be part of a Hunter S. Thompson-esque hedonistic spree—your choice. Either way, you’ll be wearing some extremely breathable cotton flair.
Hawaiian shirt as cover-up
Hawaiian shirt as matching cabana-inspired set
The Classic Hawaiian shirt, worn with cut-offs, neon shoes, and a general down sensibility
