Sandhya Garg × Bike Pretty
Coastal Cool: Dressing for Wind, Movement and Salt Air
Hems · Straps · Fabric Weight · 12 New Arrivals · XS–3XL
Quick Answer
Coastal style looks like a mood board and behaves like a physics problem. Near water there is always wind, and wind decides what works: a fuller skirt with weight in the hem moves and settles, while a thin, light one lifts. A fastened neckline stays put where a strapless one doesn't. Natural fibres handle salt air and damp where synthetics cling. Get those three right and everything else — the blues, the whites, the sun-washed prints — is just pleasure.
When summer hits, coastal chic becomes more than a style — it's a whole state of mind. Whether you're biking through the breezy streets of San Francisco or sipping sunset cocktails in Cabo, it's about looking effortless while staying genuinely comfortable.
I'm Sandhya Garg, Project Runway designer. Joining me is Melissa of Bike Pretty, who makes straw hat bike helmets and who actually rides through San Francisco in a dress — which makes her the right person to test any theory I have about how clothes behave outdoors. Together we do Yummy Mummies, our weekly style chat.
Adjustable straps, a halter photographed mid-movement, and the blue that started the whole palette.
Coastal Style Is Really a Wind Problem
Every coastal fashion piece describes the same mood board — flowing linen, nautical blue, breezy white, sun-washed print. None of them mention the thing that actually decides whether the outfit works, which is that near water there is always moving air. Here's what a designer plans for.
| What wind does | What to choose instead |
|---|---|
| Lifts a light hem | A fuller skirt with a little weight — cotton poplin, viscose linen satin, anything with body. Volume plus weight moves beautifully and settles again. Volume without weight just flies. |
| Pulls at a strapless neckline | A halter, a fastened shoulder or a wrap. Anything that's held. You can see the constant adjusting in photographs, and it's the difference between looking relaxed and looking managed. |
| Carries salt and damp | Cotton, linen and viscose. Synthetics cling and hold warmth against you in exactly the wrong way. Linen is superb in dry coastal air and creases in humidity; cotton poplin is the safer all-rounder. |
| Turns cold after sunset | Sleeves built into the dress, or a layer that ties round the waist rather than being carried. Coastal evenings drop fast, and San Francisco drops faster than anywhere. |
Which fibre suits which climate is in dressing by climate. What each neckline does is in the silhouette guide.
Volume plus weight moves beautifully and settles again. Volume without weight just flies. That one sentence is most of coastal dressing.
Melissa's Test: Can You Ride a Bike in It?
Melissa rides through San Francisco in Victorian blouses, wide-leg jeans and vintage details — and she has strong opinions about which dresses survive a bicycle. It turns out to be the same list as the wind list, only stricter, which is why it's a useful test for any coastal outfit even if you never get on a bike.
Full, not narrow
A narrow skirt stops your knees. An A-line or a kaftan lets you pedal and drapes over the saddle rather than riding up.
Midi over maxi
A full-length hem finds the chain. Midi clears the wheel and still looks like a dress rather than sportswear.
Straps that stay
Adjustable or tied straps hold through movement. Thin, fixed ones slide, and you can't fix them with both hands on the bars.
Three Looks · Twelve New Arrivals · XS to 3XL
Three Coastal Looks
Look One
Vacation in a dress
One piece that takes you from resort brunch to beach dinner, with straps you can adjust and enough flow to move in the wind. Melissa's pick alongside: a navy straw hat helmet with a Victorian blouse and sailor jeans — proof you can ride safely and still look like yourself.
Look Two
Blue, white and bold
Nautical without the anchors. Blue and white is coastal shorthand because it's what the water and the light actually are — but a flat navy-and-white block is dull, so let a print carry both. Melissa's tip: layer light fabrics to stay warm rather than adding one heavy thing. Two thin layers beat one thick one on a cold bay evening.
Look Three
The cover-up that isn't only a cover-up
Every coastal wardrobe needs one piece that goes over swimwear at noon and reads as a dress at eight. Melissa's version: a crisp white cotton eyelet set with a printed scarf — polished and a little whimsical. And her best note of the whole conversation: mix shades of white and cream rather than matching them. Coastal neutrals get their depth from texture and tone, not from everything being the same white.
Most styles XS · S · M · L · XL · XXL · XXXL · Size chart · Made to measure
Three Things We Both Swear By
Steam your sleeves before you leave — never while wearing them. It's the fastest way to make a packed dress look unpacked.
Two thin layers beat one thick one. Melissa's rule for a cold bay evening: light fabrics trap air between them, so you stay warm without bulk.
Mix your whites rather than matching them. Cream against chalk against ivory gives coastal neutrals depth. One flat white reads as a uniform. More on finding your shades.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is coastal chic style?
Laid-back luxury built on light natural fabrics, sea blues, layered whites and sun-washed prints. Practically, it's dressing for moving air and changing temperature — which is why fabric weight and secure necklines matter more than any particular colour.
What dress can you actually ride a bike in?
A full A-line or kaftan shape in a midi length, with adjustable or tied straps. A narrow skirt stops your knees, a maxi hem finds the chain, and thin fixed straps slide when you can't spare a hand. Cotton and linen also beat synthetics on a warm ride.
How do you stop a dress blowing up in the wind?
Choose weight rather than only volume. A fuller skirt in cotton poplin or viscose linen satin moves and settles; the same shape in a very light fabric lifts. A wrap or belt at the waist also anchors the skirt.
What should I wear on a cold coastal evening?
Sleeves built into the dress, or a kimono that ties round your waist when you don't need it. Two light layers beat one heavy one. Coastal evenings drop quickly, and San Francisco drops faster than most.
Which fabrics are best near the sea?
Cotton, linen and viscose. Synthetics cling in damp salt air. Linen is superb in dry coastal heat but creases in humidity, so cotton poplin is the safer all-rounder — more in dressing by climate.
Does coastal style have to be blue and white?
No. Blue and white is shorthand, but sunset orange, coral and marigold all belong on a coast and photograph beautifully in that light. Whether your coast is Pacific blue or desert gold, the rules about wind and fabric don't change.
Keep Reading
The Basics
What Is Resort Wear?
And what resort casual means.
Fabric
Dressing by Climate
Linen, poplin and where each belongs.
Packing
Ten Pieces, One Palette
A capsule that travels.
Sizing
Chic Plus Size Fashion
Everything here runs XS–3XL.
About the Writers
Sandhya Garg is a Project Runway Season 13 designer who won two challenges on the show and presented her collection at Mercedes-Benz New York Fashion Week. She studied womenswear at London College of Fashion and worked at Alexander McQueen, Gucci, Liberty London, and Alice Temperley — featured in Marie Claire, Elle, Cosmopolitan and Vogue online, in sizes XS–3XL with made to measure available.
Melissa is the founder of Bike Pretty, maker of straw hat bike helmets, and rides through San Francisco most days. Together they host Yummy Mummies, a weekly conversation about style, humour and real life.
Project Runway · Vogue · Marie Claire · XS–3XL
Dress for the wind, not the mood board.
Sandhya Garg is a Los Angeles boutique creating limited-edition artisanal dresses in original hand-drawn prints, hand embroidery and heritage textiles. Sizes XS–3XL, shipped from Scottsdale within 1–3 days.
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