Deep summer is when laziness finds respectability. ~Sam Keen
Ride: A perfect summer must include taking leisurely bike rides with the family. I love my little Dutch bike that my husband gave me for my birthday. It’s perfect for a stroll around the neighborhood with the children. I like to fill my basket with a mini picnic for the park. This bike makes me wish I lived near a bakery just so I could place a loaf of French bread in my basket.
Read: Read this dreamy book, Dreaming in French by Alice Kaplan and float away to Paris in the summer. Three American women: Jacqueline Bouvier, Susan Sontag and Angela Davis spent a year in Paris in their 20’s. Kaplan writes about these women, “If you reduce them to identity labels, you have a Catholic debutante, a Jewish intellectual, an African-American revolutionary.”
Sip: Chai tea is a staple in our house in every season but in the summertime, it must be iced. Try this delicious chai tea recipe and sip into Indian summer.
See: Ukrainian pastel painter, Katya Gridneva. She reminds me of Degas the way she works with pastels and likes to draw ballerinas and equestrian subjects. Many of her ballet models are from Russia’s famous Kirov. Pastels are like a summer white wine…soft and light.
Taste: Have you ever tried “Quince Paste?” I was intrigued because my son’s name is Quincy and he likes fig jam. Quince is similar to fig jam. It’s popular in Spain. Try it with cheese and as an accompaniment with dessert. Buy it or make your own.
Use: Two of my favorite summer products conjure up French Polynesia in a bottle. I imagine the women that Paul Gauguin painted in Tahiti used something like Nars Body Glow. The smell of tiare flower and coconut oil screams summer and makes your body glow like shimmering chocolate. Another favorite is the Fresh’s Sugar Face Polish. The combination of brown sugar and wild strawberries is heavenly. This is my favorite face mask because it smells so delicious and it exfoliates gently.
