13 Ways To Romanticize The Late Summer Season
Late summer feels like the golden hour of the year when the days are still warm, the light is softer and golden, and the humming of crickets and cicadas once again return. It’s a shift in the season that invites you to slow down and soak up every last drop of sunshine. Find 13 ways to romanticize late summer during the warm and golden days.
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Late summer is fleeting and that’s why taking time to slow down and romanticize the little summer moments can make you feel better about the upcoming shift in seasons.
Everyday ordinary moments can seem unimportant, but it’s what makes our time in-between big life events just as special. When you shift your perspective to be in the present moment, giving it the same appreciation as you would something big or special, that’s when the ordinary can feel more fulfilling.
The late summer is like the golden hour, we can feel a shift in the air. The light looks softer, the sounds of nature are different, and the back to school/preparation for fall starts to ramp up. It can be overwhelming, but we can still savor the rest of summer.
Golden Hour: Known by photographers as the time before sunset, or when the sun is closer to the horizon creating more indirect light. The sunlight is warmer and illuminates everything in a golden hue.
This post is all about ways to romanticize the late summer season.
13 Ways To Romanticize The Late Summer Season
1) Take A Walk During Golden Hour
Warm summer evenings are perfect for talking a walk. The sun is setting which means some relief from a hot day. If you take a walk during the golden hour (the time before sunset) you’ll see how your neighborhood looks when highlighted in a golden light. Try leaving the phone in your pocket and notice the things happening around you. Or try walking without any music and just listen to the sounds of late summer.
2) bAKE A LATE SUMMER DESSERT
Here in the Midwest, the peaches taste amazing during the late summer. I was inspired to create my peach crumble bars recipe after buying the sweetest and juiciest peaches from the farmers market. They really taste like summer in a bite. Warm them and add a scoop of vanilla ice cream and it’s perfection.
Recipe idea: Bake these and bring them on a picnic.
3) Slow sUMMER Morning
Find a morning to enjoy a slower pace. Wake up with the sun, make or buy your favorite morning drink, journal, and spend some time outside. Or maybe a slow morning looks like taking time to make a healthy and filling breakfast. Or maybe just even sleeping in more than life usually allows. Let this slower paced morning feel like an exhale.
Journal Prompt: “What do I want to hold onto as the seasons change and what do I want to let go of?”
4) Soften Your Wardrobe
The heat can be intense which means it’s a great time to wear airy linens, cotton dresses, and styles that flow around you. Flowy pants and big straw hats can protect your skin from the sun while still keeping cool. Maybe find colors that speak to you like soft creams, cornflower blues, and pale pinks.
Big straw hats look fashionable and keep the sun off you! It’s perfect for being out and about and when gardening or at the beach.
5) SHOP AT A FARMERS MARKET
Late summer is a peak time for fresh produce, cut flowers, and sweets. Lookout for tomatoes, zucchini, peaches, blackberries, black raspberries, plums, corn, and so much more! Farmers market produce is top tier in flavor and color and I love supporting the local farms!
6) MAKE YOUR MORNING LATTE WITH CARE
Slow down and take your time to enjoy the coffee or tea making process. When you mindfully make your morning drink, you’ll notice this everyday task can turn into a calming ritual that helps you start the day. I love making matcha using this vibrant green matcha powder.
Aesthetics: Pour your drink into a cute glass that makes you happy. This ribbed glass is my favorite for iced drinks.
7) LOOK FOR SHOOTING STARS
August skies are a great time to go stargazing if you can look up on a clear night. If you’re in the Midwest, look up and you might catch the Perseids meteor shower! This annual event occurs because the Earth passes through the debris trail from the Swift-Tuttle comet (Source).
8) pRESS Flowers
It’s hard to see the abundance of summer slowing slow down. To capture this fleeting moment, try saving your favorite flowers using a flower press (this is similar to the old one I have). You can also use a heavy book! Press the flowers between parchment paper and allow them enough time to dry. There’s so many ways to use dried flowers from creating laminated bookmarks, making your own stationary, framing them behind glass, or keeping them in a journal.
9) PLAN A DINNER OUTSIDE
If you have a backyard, set the table with cute plates (purposely mismatched plates can look cute), cloth napkins, and candles or string lights. Serve something light like a summer salad, or go all out and have pasta, bruschetta, and wine! The best thing about this vibe is that the conversation’s can stretch long into a warm summer evening.
10) hang string lights
Warm colored string lights add such a comfortable vibe (all year round to be honest). Hang string lights up high, or drape them around a mason jar. Turn off overhead lights and turn on string lights during summer evenings after a long day of work. Unwinding with warm lighting is a relief for the nervous system and creates a comforting mood.
11) Journal outside
Bring your favorite journal and pen with you next time you go to sit outside. This can be in your backyard, at a park, the beach, or anywhere that you’re able to have a quiet moment. Write anything that comes to mind with judgement.
Idea: bring an iced coffee or tea and a comfy blanket or cushion.
12) Visit a sunflower field
A sunflower field is beautiful and golden and highlights the meaning of late summer. Try wandering through the field, taking photos, and if allowed – pay for cut flowers and bring home a beautiful sunny bouquet.
13) Collect Nature Treasures
If you like little trinkets to keep as reminders of days past, start a small collection of objects. Interesting rocks, feathers, flowers to dry, or seashells in a little glass bottle with sand. Display these in a bowl, on a tray, or keep them in a memory box! It’s like a summer altar.
Final Thoughts
Romanticizing our summers is not about having the perfect aesthetic or always feeling happy. It’s about finding beauty in the everyday moments that usually pass us by because we’re on autopilot. Late summer, in all its warm golden glory, reminds us what it means to linger. Summer can feel fleeting especially if it’s your favorite time of year.
Let this be a gentle reminder: you don’t need grand plans to make the most out of summer days. The wonder is right here.
