Summertime, to me, means three things.
The suspense of gorgeous new music to be released throughout the steamy summer airwaves, taking over each ray-filled second you spend pounding the pavement or swaying in festival crowds.
New summer threads. Possibly running a close second to my love for fall fashion, summer fashion is delicate and carefree where midriffs peek-a-boo, shorts fray and flowing skirts graze the grass.
Time to relax, under the sun, with a really, really good book. Whether you are basking in the sunshine on a beach or curled up in a muskoka chair, or even sitting on the balcony of your high rise building squeezing in the last few beams of natural light, nothing beats a good book on a scorching summer day ( provided delicious cocktails are also on hand to quench any mild or moderate thirst.)
So now, smack in the middle of summertime, I bring you a few of the things that -call it obsession or not- I simply cannot get enough of.
Postiljonen
This chill wave Swedish sound found me not long ago, and I cannot think of any better melodic rhythms to pair with the steamy summer days we are experiencing in Ottawa as of late. Tracks from their latest album, Skyer, such as On the Run, Supreme and Atlantis are just a few of the group’s truly beautiful summer songs. When you’re tossing and turning in bed, with no a/c ( god bless your soul), turn this Stockholm trio on to pass those hours when sleep won’t come but you’d rather be doing nothing else.
Converse & Crystals
My favourite movie, “FOR.EV.ER”, has been ( and always will be) The Sandlot: a summertime flick about a bunch of boys who play baseball and get up to regular mischief- what’s not to love right? But in this movie, aside from the hilarity and hi-jinx that occurs, I fell in love with a particular shoe that Benny “The Jet” Rodriguez sports. My eight-year old, tom-boy self thought that PF Flyers were the coolest kicks around. Without further ado, I can say that I have fully embraced the Converse comeback (did you know that Converse actually bought PF Flyers in 1972), with an influenced affinity for the high top (yes, that’s the style Benny wore, sue me). When flip flops aren’t cutting it and your cutest pair of sandals are on their last legs from festival fun (and filth), a pair of converse are the perfect summer shoe to give those toes a rest from the sun and are guaranteed to, “make a kid run faster and jump higher”…or so the legend goes.
And now, I curse my eight-year-old self for being so incredibly reckless (wait, nothing has really changed), with my collection of costume jewelry. I once owned a beautiful, tiger’s eye crystal, in the very shape that has become so popular this summer and, of course, it has been lost to the dreamy haze of childhood. Alas, this is another trend that I am obsessed with, leaning towards the crystals that look less manufactured, still somewhat in their natural shape and form. (See my 24 year-old self’s crystal pendant, bottom right)
Fringe on Fringe on Fringe
Fringe is, without a doubt, a sassy addition to any clothing item…Which is why I think it is particularly pretty when pouring over the top of a bathing suit. I’m not sure there are two things that scream summertime more than swimming garb and fringe galore.
Reading Lolita in Tehran
A #1 New York Times Best Seller, Azar Nafisi’s novel “Reading Lolita in Tehran” is one of the most colourful and poignant books I have picked up in a very long time. Each sentence dangles a literary gem that disallows you to look away. In fact, one of the reasons I love this book so much is for the multitude of deeply affecting sentences and paragraphs sewn throughout the novel. As far as an “easy summer read” goes, this may not be quite the ticket, but Nafisi will definitely not disappoint and provide hours of entertainment at a remote cottage or on a cloudy day.
Leave us a comment and tell us about your greatest summer loves so far.
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