Wind-swept, sand-tousled hair. Deep golden tans. Baseball caps and colorful sunglasses. Sandals all year-round. There’s a lot to love about the iconic laid-back surfer style.

1. Board shorts

You really can’t properly emulate the surfer style without a pair (or three or four) of board shorts. Originally designed strictly as surfboard-friendly swimsuits, board shorts have gained incredible popularity as wear-all-day shorts.

Although the terms “swim trunks” and “board shorts” are often used interchangeably and many people may not even realize there’s a difference, there are, in fact, some key things that set them apart.

Being that board shorts were designed specifically for surfing, they are typically much longer than swim trunks, falling at or below the knee. Board shorts are most often made from soft cotton blends, while their similar-looking counterparts are generally crisper and made out of polyester.

Swim trunks also almost always have inner mesh lining and elastic waistbands, while board shorts don’t have any lining and (usually) a velcro and drawstring waist.

Finally, board shorts are actually designed for casual wear in addition to just surfing and swimming, so it’s easier to find a pair with more subtle design elements and functional details, like pockets.

Board shorts are the foundation of any surfer-style outfit, so it’s important to make sure they’re A) comfortable and B) can be worn with many different shirts and shoes. For these reasons, we highly recommend these classic board shorts from O’Neill.

If you prefer a pair with a bit more color but that’s still easy to match up with other clothing pieces, check out the wildly-popular O’Neill Hyperfreak Sandbar shorts.

2. Sandals

You’ve got your board shorts, so next up is sandals. In surf culture, there are plenty of times when you may be shirt-less, but shorts and sandals are a constant. Sandals doesn’t necessarily have to mean flip-flops; there are other styles, such as slides.