Mar
The Basic Setup for a Mesh Beach Cover
So last summer, like July 2024, I made this mesh top thing because I needed something to throw over my bathing suit and honestly I was tired of spending money on cover-ups that fell apart after two beach trips. I used Lion Brand 24/7 Cotton in this teal color—couldn’t tell you the exact shade name but it was like ocean-ish. The thing about mesh tops is you don’t need to be precious about gauge or whatever because the whole point is that it’s loose and drapey.
Start with a chain that goes around your bust measurement plus like 4 inches for ease. You want it loose. I chained probably 120 stitches but I’m gonna be real with you, I didn’t count carefully because my cat kept jumping on my lap and I lost track twice. Just try it around yourself as you go—it should wrap around comfortably without being tight.
The Mesh Stitch Pattern I Actually Used
This is where it gets easy. You’re basically doing:
- Row 1: Double crochet in 4th chain from hook, then chain 1, skip 1 stitch, double crochet in next stitch—repeat that chain 1, skip 1 pattern all the way across
- Row 2: Chain 3 (counts as first dc), turn, then double crochet in each chain-1 space from previous row with chain 1 between each dc
- Just keep repeating Row 2 until it’s long enough
The annoying part and I’m just gonna say it—counting those chain spaces when you’re working in bright sunlight outside is actually impossible. I was sitting on my porch trying to get this done before a beach trip and the glare made everything look the same. Ended up moving inside which defeated the whole vibe I was going for.
Sizing This Thing Without a Real Pattern
You need to measure from your underarm down to wherever you want it to hit. Mine goes to just below my hips, so that was like 18 inches? Work your mesh rows until you hit that length. The cotton stretches a bit when you wear it so don’t stress if it seems short on the flat surface.
For the width, that initial chain determines everything. If you want it to wrap around and tie in front, make your chain longer—maybe add another 20-30 chains. If you want it to just cover front and back with side ties, the bust measurement plus 4 inches works fine.
Seaming the Sides or Not
Here’s where you decide what kind of top you’re making. I did side seams on mine because I wanted actual armholes, but you could totally just:
- Leave the sides open and add ties
- Seam partway up and leave the top open
- Seam completely and make it like a tube top situation
I seamed mine by folding the rectangle in half and slip stitching up about 10 inches on each side, leaving armholes at the top and open space at the bottom for movement. Used a yarn needle for this part because it’s cleaner than trying to crochet the seam, even though that works too if you don’t care about bumpy seams.
The Straps Situation
This is where I kind of made it up as I went. You need straps unless you’re doing a tube top thing. I attached them at the front and back of the armholes—just eyeballed where they should go by holding it up to myself in the mirror.
For each strap I did:
- Attached yarn at the front armhole edge
- Chained like 40 stitches or until it looked long enough to go over my shoulder
- Slip stitched back down the chain to make it sturdier
- Attached to the back armhole edge
Made two of those. They’re not adjustable which is fine for me but you could do ties instead if you want flexibility. The ties would just be longer chains that you knot at whatever length works.
What I’d Do Different With the Straps
Honestly the slip stitch back thing makes them a little stiff. If I made another one—and I might because this one’s getting kinda ratty after a whole summer of salt water—I’d maybe do a simple single crochet row along the chain instead. Or just leave them as single chains because the cotton is strong enough and it’d be more… I don’t know, it’d lay flatter probably.
Yarn Choice Matters More Than You Think
So that Lion Brand 24/7 Cotton worked great because it’s actual cotton and it dries fast. I tried making one before this—spring 2023 maybe?—with Red Heart Super Saver because it was cheap and I had a bunch, but acrylic at the beach is disgusting. It doesn’t breathe, it holds onto that sunscreen smell, just don’t do it.
Cotton yarn that works good for this:
- Lion Brand 24/7 Cotton (comes in tons of colors, not too expensive)
- Lily Sugar’n Cream if you want that really beachy thick texture
- Knit Picks Dishie which is technically dishcloth yarn but whatever, it works
- I Can’t Believe It’s Not Wool or whatever it’s called—saw someone use that once and it looked fine
Avoid anything fuzzy or with a halo. You’ll end up with fuzz all over your bathing suit and it looks messy in the mesh holes.
Hook Size and Tension
I used a 5.5mm hook because that’s what the yarn label suggested, but you could go up to 6mm or even 6.5mm if you want bigger holes in your mesh. Bigger holes = more beachy and see-through, smaller holes = more coverage. Your choice.
Don’t crochet tight. This needs to be drapey and flowy not stiff like armor. If your hands tend to crochet tight naturally, size up your hook. I learned this the hard way on a different project and it applies here too.
Adding a Bottom Edging or Not
The bottom edge of mine was just the last row of mesh and I left it like that. It curls a tiny bit but not enough to bother me. If you hate that, you can add a row of single crochet all along the bottom edge to stabilize it. Maybe throw in some shell stitches if you’re feeling decorative but honestly I wasn’t.
I was watching Love Island while finishing the edging part and kept getting distracted so there’s definitely some uneven stitches down there. Nobody’s ever noticed when I’m wearing it so I’m not gonna worry about it.
Neckline Options
The way I described it so far, you basically have a rectangular piece with armholes and straps. The neckline is just gonna be that straight edge from your rectangle. If you want something fancier:
- Decrease a few stitches on each end of the rows as you get toward the top to create a curved neckline
- Add a border of single crochet or picot edging around the whole neck opening
- Make it a V-neck by working two separate front panels instead of one continuous piece
I didn’t do any of that because again, it’s a beach cover-up and I’m just throwing it over a bathing suit. The straight edge sits fine across my chest and the straps keep it in place.
How Long This Actually Takes
If you sit down and focus, maybe 4-5 hours total? I did mine over like three days because I kept putting it down to do other stuff. The mesh pattern works up faster than solid double crochet because you’re skipping stitches. That’s the whole benefit of mesh—it looks like you did more work than you actually did.
The most time-consuming part is honestly just doing enough rows to get the length you need. It’s repetitive which is either relaxing or boring depending on your mood. I found it pretty mindless which was good because I made this right after… well, doesn’t matter, but I needed something to keep my hands busy that didn’t require thinking.
Washing and Care
Cotton is gonna shrink a little the first time you wash it. Not a ton, but like an inch or so in length. Make yours slightly longer than you think you need to account for this. I throw mine in the washing machine on delicate with my other beach stuff and hang it to dry. It comes out fine, maybe a little wrinkled but it smooths out when you wear it.
The salt water and chlorine will eventually fade the color and make the yarn a bit rougher. That’s just what happens with beach stuff. You could hand wash only and rinse it carefully after each wear if you want it to last longer, but I’m not that dedicated to a cover-up I made from $8 worth of yarn.
Variations I’ve Seen or Thought About
You could make this same basic idea but change it up:
- Make it longer to knee-length for a dress version
- Use thicker yarn and bigger hook for a chunkier look
- Add fringe or tassels to the bottom (very 70s, might be cute)
- Do color stripes with different colored cotton
- Make the mesh pattern different—like use treble crochets instead of double for even bigger holes
- Add sleeves which seems complicated but it’s just making the armholes smaller and continuing the mesh pattern down
Someone on Instagram did one with those mesh puff stitches and it looked really textured and interesting. I might try that next time but the basic chain-1 skip-1 mesh is so easy and looks good enough that I haven’t been motivated to get fancy.
The Fit Thing Nobody Talks About
This is gonna fit differently depending on your body and that’s fine. On me it’s loose and comfortable and hangs straight down. If you have a bigger bust it might pull or gap weird at the armholes—you can fix that by making the armholes smaller or adding some short rows at the bust for shaping but then you’re getting into actual pattern territory and this is supposed to be casual.
If it’s too big, make your starting chain shorter. Too small, add more chains. The nice thing about making it yourself is you can try it on as you go and adjust. I probably tried mine on like six times while making it to check the length and width.
What to Do If You Mess Up
The mesh pattern is really forgiving because it’s supposed to have holes. If you accidentally skip an extra stitch or add one, it probably won’t show. I definitely have some rows where I did the pattern wrong and I genuinely cannot find them now when I look at the finished thing.
If you really mess up a whole section, just rip it out back to where it was right and redo it. Cotton yarn can handle being frogged a few times without looking terrible. Don’t rip out and redo like 10 times though because it’ll start to look fuzzy and split.
When I Actually Wear This Thing
Beach obviously, but also:
- Over a tank top and shorts as like a regular summer shirt
- To the pool
- That one time I wore it to a backyard barbecue and someone asked where I bought it
- Around the house when it’s hot because it’s cooler than a regular shirt
It’s more versatile than I expected when I started making it. The mesh means air flow which is clutch in humid summer weather. And because it’s cotton it doesn’t feel like you’re wearing plastic like some store-bought cover-ups do.
Troubleshooting Stuff That Went Wrong for Me
The armholes were too big at first and kept sliding down. Fixed this by seaming them up higher—just added another inch or two of seaming at the top. You can also add a row of single crochet around the armhole edge to make it smaller and sturdier.
My straps stretched out after wearing it a few times. Cotton does that. I ended up cutting them off and redoing them shorter. Now I know to make straps a bit shorter than you think because they’ll relax with wear. Or use a tighter stitch like half double crochet for the straps instead of chains.
The bottom edge kept rolling up when I first made it. I added one row of single crochet along the bottom and that weighted it down enough to stop the rolling. You could also add a row of shells or picots which would be heavier and decorative.
Why This Pattern Works When You Don’t Really Follow Patterns
I’m not a pattern person. I learned crochet from watching my aunt do it and then just kinda figured stuff out on my own. This mesh top thing works perfectly for that approach because:
- You’re just repeating the same row over and over
- You can customize the size by adding or subtracting chains at the start
- There’s no complicated shaping or counting required
- If it doesn’t fit right you can easily adjust
- The mesh hides mistakes really well
