A Summer of Living Well
Feeling the vitamin D
Naked, hot, laying on the beach, or at least chasing that energy. The kind that makes you want to stay out longer than you should, rewear your favourite outfit just because it feels good, or do something spontaneous at 10pm because there’s still light in the sky.
This list is for that version of you. It doesn’t always need to make sense to feel good.
The only plan? To make the most of it. The sun, the late nights, the energy spike that only comes from warmth hitting skin. This is for the weeks that feel like they’re flying, for weekends that should feel like you want to repeat next weekend, swimsuits under clothes, new routines, perfectly chilled rose, and a running list of ideas that could make a season feel full.
Book a court. Play tennis.
In honour of Wimbledon, this summer calls for tennis whites, a good sweat, chilled water bottles, and post-game gossip on a shady bench. You don’t need a perfect serve, just show up in something that makes you feel like you walked off Centre Court. Grab a friend and rally, or play a very unserious match. Even just hitting balls back and forth counts. You’ll feel sporty, social, and like you're on the set of Challengers, minus the drama and love triangle.
Romanticise the art of the late dinner.
Make the sun your dinner bell. There’s something luxurious about letting the evening unfold slowly, the way it does in cities where no one eats before 8pm. Skip the rushed weekday stir-fry and let dinner be the main event. Set the table. Open a bottle. Cook something that smells good and takes time. Or assemble a cold plate and pretend it’s intentional. Let yourself sink into the hours that usually fly by. One candle lit is enough to make it feel like a scene. Maybe dinner doesn’t start until 9pm and maybe that’s the whole point.
Learn to grill one thing really well.
Be that person who always has a summer BBQ trick. Corn with chilli oil, haloumi skewers, grilled peaches drizzled in honey. Just find your signature and make it known. Be the person who brings something hot off the grill without needing a recipe. It’s casual mastery. You don’t need a backyard or a Weber. Even a stovetop grill pan counts. Cook it until it smells like summer and you feel proud handing it to someone else or plating it just for you.
Make a summer photo dump album.
Think of it like a digital scrapbook, no captions, no editing, no worrying about which five slides fit best. Just the photos that feel good to look back on. It’s easy to forget how many little things made you smile until your camera roll surprises you months later, mid-scroll or in a memory pop-up. You don’t need to post it. Or maybe you will, casually and out of order, sometime next year. For now, it’s just an archive of what summer 25’ looked like in your life, exactly as it happened.
Keep a gratitude list, but make it hot.
This isn’t about having a journaling practice or sticking to a morning routine. It’s more about noticing things in real time and writing them down before the moment slips away. The kinds of notes that won’t make sense to anyone else, “perfect peaches,” “my bikini is so cute”, yes, all valid. Gratitude doesn’t need to sound profound. Sometimes the most grounding thing is a list that reads like a group chat message to yourself: sweet, pointless, oddly comforting. Store it in your Notes app or on the back of a receipt, it doesn’t matter. What matters is that you caught the good stuff while it was happening.
Party tricks.
Learn to do something slightly unnecessary and deeply satisfying, turning the ordinary into a party trick. Maybe learning how to shuck an oyster or freezing lemon slices into oversized ice cubes. Both are more about the performance than perfection. The towel, the twist of the wrist, the clink of a shell giving way. Or pulling out a tray of oddly shaped cubes and dropping them into a glass like you’re hosting something. Little moments that make regular days feel hosted, like you're the main character of a summer dinner scene.
Try an open-air workout.
Courtyard pilates in your favourite set. Dance cardio on a patch of grass with your headphones in. A sunset run or jog. It’s not about being ‘fit for summer’, it’s about moving in ways that feel fun and low-stakes. Even a stretch on your rooftop, movement feels different when the air’s warm and the light is still hanging around at 7pm. The kind of afternoon that makes you feel like you live in a movie, or at the very least, your dream version of an ad for mineral sunscreen.
Watch a summer sports final like it’s the Oscars.
Even if you haven’t been keeping track, pick a day and tune in for the final of something big; Wimbledon, the Euros, even a F1 race. It’s like inserting a mini event, something to mark time, build around, and maybe even plan a meal or outfit for. This is peak season for turning passive watching into a full-day affair. So clear your afternoon, stream the match with snacks lined up like it’s a major event (because it is), and let it be the thing you rally your weekend around.
Find your ‘lake swim’ equivalent.
Not everyone lives near a lake, but everyone deserves something that mimics the feeling of one: a full-body exhale, a step outside the loop of your usual day. Maybe it’s actually swimming, or maybe it’s buying a drink from the same place every Saturday and taking the long way home. It could be taking your shoes off at the park and sitting in the sun for an hour, or doing your hair before a solo grocery run. This is a repeatable kind of joy, your own personal version of jumping into cool water.
Watch a movie outdoors.
Doesn’t need to be an official screening or even a projector moment with a crowd. It can be your laptop on a balcony, a backyard setup with a blanket and speakers, or just your phone propped up in a patch of grass with good data. Pick a movie that suits the mood, something you’ve seen before and love, or something new. Cold fruit, popcorn in a real bowl, a glass of something chilled. Add a blanket if it’s late or just wear something you’d lounge in all day. Watching a film in open air turns something ordinary into an almost holiday-like moment.
Join a book club with people you don’t know (yet).
Not every plan needs to revolve around drinks or dinner. A book club is a great way to meet new people in Summer and talk about something that doesn’t require small talk. Find one through a local bookstore, a library, or even online, where you can lurk until you’re ready to contribute. You might not finish the book, but you’ll leave with new recs, a bit of structure, and someone’s oddly specific take on the ending. Kind of exciting inserting a new kind of conversation into your life with new friends.
Spend a slow morning in bed with an excellent book, iced coffee, and the fan blowing.
No scrolling, no pressure. Just full permission to stay horizontal. The kind of morning that recalibrates you even though nothing really happens. You’ll look back on it like a highlight. The trick is remembering to make space for it in the first place.
Solo long lunch.
Summer is made for long lunches, those unhurried, lingering meals that stretch lazily from midday well into the golden glow of late afternoon. It’s a meal that feels less like a task and more like an experience, where time becomes optional and the only plan is to enjoy each bite, each laugh, and the slow unfolding of the day. Summer lunches are a chance to reconnect with friends or spend time in your own company with good food, and with the kind of easy, unforced joy that only a warm afternoon can bring.
Throw a garden-ish party (even if you don’t have a garden).
You don’t need a lawn, just sunlight and somewhere to sit. A table on the balcony, a picnic blanket in the park, the best company. Strawberries on a plate. Ham-and-cheese sandwiches cut into triangles like it’s your fifth birthday. Fairy bread if you're feeling nostalgic. Store-bought cake and a bag of party mix. The best low-key plan enjoyed once again outside in warm weather.
Go perfume shopping.
Find your “scent of the season”. Try only the ones that smell like bare skin after a swim, crushed citrus, sea salt, or how you imagine your summer alter ego would smell. Ask for tester cards. Walk around holding them like receipts from the best version of your day. Spritz your wrist and check in every hour like it’s a little science experiment. Maybe you’ll go back for the bottle next week.
Rent something.
Pick something that doesn’t belong to your usual life. Whether it’s renting a convertible for the day, borrowing a Vespa, or trying a paddleboard or even a kayak. Your activity of the day planned. This might require a bit of coordination or commitment but will give you a memory you’ll bring up all year. Even if it’s just an afternoon. Drive with the roof down, paddle until your arms ache, that shift in perspective, the slow settling of your mind, the simple joy of moving in a way that’s different. The best parts of summer are the ones that feel slightly out of character.
Do a proper pantry clear-out and refill with summer snacks.
Edit your pantry like it’s getting its seasonal wardrobe change. Swap out the heavy, wintry jars and tired condiments for the things you’d actually want to eat in hot weather, standing in front of the fridge at 3pm. Think: crispbread, salty tinned fish, pickles, kombucha, canned peaches, fizzy drinks, popcorn, gummy lollies. Refill it like you’re prepping for a houseguest you want to impress. When you open the pantry, it should feel like peeking into a really well-stocked Airbnb kitchen, the kind that makes you feel like you’re on holiday, even if you’re still at home.
Try every frozen novelty at your local dairy.
Start with the classics: Paddle Pop, Cyclone, Trumpets, drumsticks, fudgsicle. Move on to the more niche options, Asian jelly sticks, gelato bars, anything that looks a little too fluorescent to be real. Make it a personal challenge or a tier list with a friend. Treat each one like fine dining. Make even your snack choices feel like a series.
Host a “hot girl groceries” potluck.
Invite your friends to bring one item from their current grocery obsession. Maybe someone brings olives, someone else has baby cucumbers and whipped feta, another shows up with smoked trout in beautiful packaging. Add matcha jellies, fancy lemonade, glossy heirloom tomatoes, fresh sourdough, pickled things, fizzy things. A mood board you can eat.
Go to a live music night.
Could be jazz in the park, a cover band at the pub, or a friend-of-a-friend’s set in someone’s backyard. Music playing somewhere that isn’t your headphones or your kitchen speaker. Go with a friend or walk by yourself. Sit for a bit, order a drink if you feel like it, and let it be something to fill the evening. No ticket, no real plan, just the kind of evening that reminds you this season doesn’t need much. There shouldn’t be pressure to stay long or know the setlist, just a reason to be outside, hearing something you didn’t plan on. Sometimes that’s all it takes to make the day feel different.
Summer’s really just about those simple moments that stick with you, easy and good. No need to overthink it. Just try a few things from the list, or your own version, and see what feels right. It’s the best season for making space for the days that remind you why summer hits different.
And if you're reading this from the Southern Hemisphere, I feel you. Just mentally flip Winter to Summer, that’s what I’m doing 🥲, escaping the cold mentally. Pretend this list works globally… (And maybe a winter one’s coming too?)
Chat soon!
Nancy Xx
I mean I love the vibes here
Now that's what I call dinner