There are many ways to get excited about summer and to ‘summerize’ your life even if you do not have a vacation planned/booked for the summer. Let’s dive in how to incorporate more summer in your life so you enjoy this season even if it promises to be busy with work!

1. Add colour to your life – this can be applied to your clothing, accessories (phone cases, purses, jewellery, manicure, dishes and glasses, pillows, table runner, napkins, etc.). Bonus points for neon or bright colours! As someone whose ‘go to’ outfit for work is everything black, this one requires some rethinking when it comes to wardrobe. I am seriously excited about this collection that adds some real colour and beautiful prints
2. Experiment with flavours
   • I have recently got a set of scents that you can add to food or drinks from http://www.hedessent.ca that included botanical flavours like rose, lavender, bergamot and fruity flavours like peach, watermelon and passion fruit. So far I’ve tried adding them to mocktails and deserts, they definitely enhanced my experience!
3. Write a list of things you would like to see or do this summer
   • Ideas for things to see: concerts (for example, this summer Beyonce, Taylor Swift, Pink, Enrique Iglesias and others are coming to Toronto), festivals, museums, farms, waterfalls, theme parks, winery, food and street markets. It all depends where you are
   • Ideas for things to do: hit up a patio or set up one at your own balcony/backyard, try new hobbies that can include creating new things (deserts, jewellery, scrap-booking, gardening, writing, pottery, drawing, etc.)
4. Try new cocktails or mocktails
   • I dare you to try ordering or making a drink you’ve never tried before
5. Add greenery or flowers to where you live and/or work
6. Add summer scents
   • Think about what scent reminds you of summer or vacation and seek ways of incorporating it. For example, I really like the smell of coconut, it reminds me of a beach. I also like the scent of firewood and lavender. I’ve got a shower gel that smells like coconut, got some candles with all 3 scents and also got dry lavender bag to put under pillow.
   • You can also switch to a different perfume – something fresh or floral
7. Take time to do nothing (but enjoy it!).
   • Italians have a famous saying, “Dolce far Niente”, which means “the sweetness of doing nothing.”. It is really hard (but not impossible!) to put your phone down and just enjoy the present – focus on what surrounds you, identify colours, scents, sounds. It works best if you are outside but not near construction zone 🙂
8. Spend time with animals and/or in nature
9. Find a body of water (ocean, lake, river, waterfall, waterfront) and plan some time near it (pack a picnic, hit up a patio, grab ice-cream or play sports)
10. Take pictures
11. Reflect, dream and plan
12. Summerize your sweets
    • Incorporate berries or fruits into your deserts, switch from chocolate to ice-cream/frozen yogurt), have sweets you associated with summer when you grew up such as cotton candy or fry marshmallows in a fire/candle
13. Develop (and go through) a summer book list. When I used to be in middle school in Ukraine, since grade 5 we would always get a list of about 20 books to read, mostly classical literature like Jules Verne, Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, etc. I am not recommending here to ruin your summer with dusty reads to consider doing the following instead: have a list of up to 5 books to read that would include a relaxing beach read, a book that will be more of a serious literature/novel, a non-fiction that will teach you something new, a book on self-development.
14. Engage in outdoor activity or sport(s), such as: tennis, badminton, basketball, soccer, or go for a swim
15. Spend more time outside: challenge yourself for a daily evening walks or see if you can move any of the regular activities outside
16. Movies to watch this summer:
    • There are so many movies coming out this summer! Here are some I am looking forward to:
      • Fast X
      • Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny
      • No hard feelings
      • Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part One
      • Barbie
17. Refresh a list of accounts you follow on Instagram. Here are some that I find fun/inspiring/just make me happy to follow:
    • Laura Blair – London-based influencer with amazing outifts (and online shop)
    • Aria Di Bari – a French girl living between Paris and French Riviera. I follow her to enjoy Provence’s lifestyle in Paris. She also makes and sells dresses.
    • Mel Robbins – American author and motivational speaker who inspires to live ‘no bullshit’ life leading by example
    • Preppy kitchen – exciting recipes to follow
    • Altego music – fun mixes of different songs/tunes that will make you dance!
    • The everygirl – Chicago-based blog for everything from lifestyle to wellness and financial tips. They also have monthly tech backgrounds that I love to use 🙂
    • Jordan Page – this mom of 8 has real productivity and financial management tips!
18. Additional ways to switch to summer mood
    • Update your home and lock screen on your phone or screen saver on computer to pictures that you associate with a summer. It can be photos of beach, fruits, nature, flowers or just something colourful
    • Add colourful paintings, decor or print and frame summer landscapes (and hang them at your place)
19. Add fresh fruits and vegetables to your diet
    • Fruits + berries in season:
      • Apricots (May-July)
      • Blackberries (peak from June-July)
      • Blueberries (April-September)
      • Cherries (May-August)
      • Strawberries (April-June)
      • Watermelon (June-August)
    • Vegetables in season:
      • Cucumbers (June – August)
      • Butter lettuce (June-August)
      • Corn (May-September)
      • Grape tomatoes (June-August)
      • Zucchini (June-August)
    • Herbs in season:
      • Basil (June-August)
      • Other herbs: mint, coriander, parsley, oregano, dill