Slowtide Towels: Which Ones Are Worth It?

I did not expect to have opinions about towels, but Slowtide changed that for me. Dario Phillips, Kyle Spencer and Wylie Von Tempsky started it in 2015, somewhere between California and Hawaiʻi, after noticing that the towel they carried to the water was useful but dull. They wanted better design and better quality, which is a modest ambition that turned out to be a big idea.

The label is still independently owned and based in Costa Mesa, and its own story is all about the towel as a canvas for artists, photographers and designers. Color and pattern do as much work here as the weave. Over time the idea has spread from beach towels into bath textiles, blankets and a few other everyday objects.

What I like most is the bridge between a picture and a use. A towel can spend the morning at the shoreline, come home, and still look like somebody chose it on purpose.

The Koko Packable Picnic Blanket is where I would begin, because it gives a beach day a softer landing. The Yaya Beach Towel and Sweet Okole Beach Towel carry the printed, sandy, sun-warmed version of the brand. For a little more texture, the Sunburn Premium Woven Towel is the one I would throw over a chair or bring to a long lunch by the water. I went deeper on a related idea in Dress Brands: The Wrap, the Print and the Ones Worth Knowing.

Then the brand walks indoors with you. The Sunny Sculpted Bath Mat and Gigi Bath Towel bring the same pattern sense into a bathroom, and the Hele Micro Kitchen Towel and Cabana Kitchen Towel make a drying-up cloth feel less anonymous. Picture her folding the Koko Turkish Towel into a tote before a swim, then using the Hele Towel to dry off afterwards.

My rule is a big print for the beach and a quieter texture for the rooms you share.

This is the part of the edit where I stop thinking about sand. The White Ginger Quick-Dry Poncho and Florence Quick-Dry Poncho turn the changing layer into part of the plan, and the Ke Nui 2 Performance Quick-Dry Towel, Calathea Performance Quick-Dry Towel and Island Pride Performance Quick-Dry Travel Towel are the ones I would roll up for a trip. The Tahiti Beach Towel and Slater Woven Towel stay closer to the classic, while the Cheyenne DriftWeave Turkish Towel and Olinda DriftWeave Beach Blanket bring larger, slower textures.

At home I would pair the Ciao Zen Bath Towel or Guild Waffle Bath Towel with the Koko Bath Robe, and keep the White Ginger Plush Knit Blanket near a reading chair. The Lahaina Sailor Woven Towel, Terry Tote and Terry Pouch make a little coordinated trio, and the Mate Terry Tote is the simpler carry when I want a quieter accent.

What I would skip: packing two towels for one outing just because the prints are different. Give each design a job and leave room in the bag.

Slowtide works for me because the art stays close to ordinary life. The towel is the way in, and the mood follows you to a picnic, a bath or the kitchen. I would start with one print that makes you smile, then see whether it earns a spot in your week. Although I suspect one will turn into three.