Our Favorite Summer Items for Tween Girls

We are sharing our favorite summer items for tween girls. Whether you have a sleep away camper, a day camper, or no camper at all, these items are still great summer essentials for your tween girl. Most summer camps provide a list of necessary items, but knowing which brands to buy can still be daunting. My girls have been going to summer camp for years now. Ella goes to day camp and for the past 2 years Juliet has slept there during the week. It’s a great option for our family, but we do have to re-pack each weekend. We’ve become pros at packing. Here’s a look at how that goes each weekend. Watch here. (Click the photo to play.)

Labels

First things first and that’s labels! Everything has to be labeled when you go to summer camp. Every. Thing. We have partnered with Name Bubbles for the past 2 years and have been very happy with the quality. The labels have washed well and have stayed put on the clothes. They have cute designs too and come in a variety of sizes. Name Bubbles is always running promos, so be sure to sign up for their emails, or follow them on social media to take advantage of their sales. They have preschool packs, camp packs, etc. These labels are useful year-round too!

Tip: If you have kids who share clothes, towels or will wind up with hand-me-downs, order labels with just your last name. I’ve done that in the past and it’s worked out well.

 Towels

Beach towels are a staple each summer. We have to pack so many beach towels each week because my girls swim twice a day at camp. My favorite beach towels by far are from PB Teen. They typically run about $29 each, but I never pay full price for them. I always wait for them to go on sale and can usually get them for under $20 plus free shipping. They are plush, soft and thick. These beach towels wash well and hold up for multiple summers. They come in the cutest designs and bright fun summer colors your tween girl will love!

 Toiletries

Sunscreen is a MUST. Our favorite brand has to be Sun Bum Spray for their body and sticks for their face. It’s easy to apply, has safe ingredients, and smells great. Oh, and the spray is clear! They love that!  Now that they’re tweens, they’re not tolerating the white sunblock lotion anymore. Plus, they are applying it themselves, and this is quick and easy. We’ve personally had great success with this brand, and I would say both my girls have sensitive skin. We live in South Florida where the sun is super strong and thank goodness neither one has ever been sun burned!

Since the girls are in chlorine pools every day, we love using Fairy Tales Lifeguard Clarifying Shampoo and the Lemon-Aid Conditioner during the summer months. It gets out that strong chlorine smell and protects their hair with safe ingredients and no harsh chemicals.

Another one of our favorite summer items for tween girls is the  Wet Brush hair brush. We have always used this brand for both wet and dry hair. My girls have very different types of hair. One has straight hair and the other has thick wavy hair. They both prefer these brushes over any other kind. These brushes seem to get through knots really well too.

Tip: Remember to stick a label on them! You don’t want your kids sharing hair brushes with their friends (lice risk).

Shower Shoes

While at sleep away camp, shower shoes are a MUST! Our favorites are the ones from Showaflops. These shower shoes have drainage holes, antimicrobial layers and slip resistant soles to protect your feet. Showaflops come in tons of cute designs your tween girl will love. Whether or not you have a camper showering at camp, these are also really great for those slippery pool decks! Oh, and they come in women’s sizes too!

Robe

Another one of our favorite summer items for tween girls is a soft cozy robe. This is a must-have for sleep away camp, or for those cool summer evenings after a long day at the beach or pool.  Candy Pink has fleece robes, shorts and blankets that come in trendy designs.  We knew about this brand from shopping at Denny’s and when we were recently selected as Brand Reps for them, we were so excited! Candy Pink generously sent each girl a pair of shorts (as seen in cover photo), a top and a cosmetic pouch (as seen below). You can purchase these items here.

Accessories and Fun

Another one of our favorite summer items for tween girls is a sling bag from Top Trenz. Whether she’s carrying things across camp or to the pool or beach, these sling backs are lightweight and super cute. They come in a ton of trendy prints like this emojicon one. Top Trenz is one of my girls favorite brands. They carry the latest items in fashion and accessories for both girls and boys. We buy their products typically at Learning Express or Denny’s. You also buy them online.

If your daughter goes to summer camp, then during rest hour, or down time, they will need quiet activities to do in their bunk. Since there is no technology allowed at camp, they need books to read or creative things to do.  Fashion Angels makes the cutest activity books for tween girls. They have so many different fun themes and activity book options. They make really great gifts too! The books shown below are the compact pocket size ones.  Fashion Angels is another brand that my girls adore.

Tip: Great for car rides or restaurant wait times too!

Swimsuits

Our favorite swimsuits for tween girls are from Justice. Swimsuits are a staple for any summer and like I mentioned, my girls swim twice a day, so I have to pack a lot of swimsuits. We love the fit, style and designs. Juliet’s favorites and really the only ones she wears are the “flounce” bikinis. The tops come to a “V” and cover part of her mid-drift section. The swimsuits have UPF 50+, they are lined, and have adjustable straps. Again, I try never to pay full price, so I wait for them to go on sale. Many of them I bought when they were half off or BOGO. By the beginning of June, I was done swimsuit shopping.

Justice has a loyalty program called Club Justice where you can earn reward money when you make purchases. It’s free to join and you do not need to have a Justice credit card. I previously wrote a blog post about it that you can read here.

Tip: Start buying swimsuits in the Spring. Sign up for the Justice emails so you can get notified when they are having sales. 

As a Justice Girl with Heart Ambassador, Juliet was asked to share how she packs for sleep away camp. Justice is just about a one stop shop for summer! We bought a majority of their camp clothes from Justice too. You can see some of our summer looks in the video. Juliet shared some of her packing tips on the Justice YouTube channel here.

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Most of the products in the image below are clickable for your shopping convenience!

This post contains affiliate links and some items were gifted. Opinions are all 100% my own. You can read more about our Disclosure policy here.