Embracing a Slow and Slightly Whimsical Summer

Hello! Welcome to my very first blog post, I have been wanting to start this for a while and I am really excited to share my thoughts and ideas on here. I didn't want to put too much pressure on myself on the type of content I wanted to share or the style of writing so I guess I have decided to go along with it as the weeks go by and see how it goes.

So hi, I'm Eleanor and I am the founder of A Story To Light: a small stationary business that sells stories through letters, candles, blind dates with a book and other stationary bits. I aim to upload a new blog post every Monday evening so today's blog is about slowing down during the summer months!

For me, I notice that Autumn and Winter are the seasons that I slow down the most and look around more. Which leaves Spring and Summer to be the months where I naturally start bouncing off the walls with ideas and projects, which can then lead to worries and doubts. I'm not sure if that is the same with everyone, I had just noticed this to be a pattern I tend to serve every year. And it's time to change that and embrace a slower summer.

A slow and whimsical summer isn't about doing less for the sake of it. It's about making room to be more mindful, curious about the world and to also be restful. It's choosing experiences that nourish you rather than simply keeping you busy. So I'd like to share some gentle and small things that I have been introducing recently to truly embrace the summer season.

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Live By Nature's Rhythm

Each season has its own qualities and rhythms, there is something different in each season to enjoy, a new routine, a new rhythm to cling onto and fly with. Recently, before going to bed, I leave my curtain slightly open so that I can wake up to the morning light seeping into my bedroom. If I have time, I will open my curtains fully and just watch out my window for a minute or two. I have noticed that my head feels more clear, I am able to control where my thoughts wonder and align myself to the morning sun. My phone will stay untouched for that first hour of the morning.

Other mornings, if the weather is right, I will go outside and have my breakfast and watch the steam from my coffee drift into the morning dew. I have also made a point to walk more barefoot, mainly on grass, because there is something incredibly grounding about it. It's one of those simple things that reminds me that we spend so much of our lives rushing from one place to another that we forget we're part of nature too.

Summer has a gentler rhythm if we're willing to notice it. The birds seem louder in the early mornings, the evenings stretch on just a little longer, flowers bloom without asking for permission, and the sunsets seem to linger just for us. Instead of trying to squeeze as much as possible into the day, I've been trying to let the day unfold naturally. I've realised that not every spare hour has to be productive; sometimes it's enough to simply sit outside with a cup of coffee and watch the world wake up.

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Romanticise the Ordinary

I love this one. The everyday routines can get repetitive and sometimes, you just a need a little romanticising. Maybe bring out a romance book to give you some inspiration, maybe go watch a RomCom from the 2000s to see how the OGs do it. FEEL SILLY about it, I don't care, I'm telling you, friend to friend, it changes your life.

For majority of this year so far, I have fallen in love with journalling. Now I've always journalled since I was a teenager but I have recently come to see it in a new light. At the beginning of every month, I will create a two page collage of what I want to do in that month and it could be something big or small. For example, for the month of July, I wanted to go travelling because I have never properly travelled before. Another thing that was on there was to stop feeding into society and start feeding into your soul. It is really up to you what you put in there, but to keep a record of a monthly bucket list will make you realise how far you have actually come in the year.

I will also journal about my day too which sounds quite silly because who are you speaking to? But that's not the point. Thoughts, worries, can pull you into your head and make it seem bigger than it actually is. Whereas if I journal down what I did that day and how I felt about something, for me, it makes me realise that I am just a small human on a planet amongst billions of other planets and my worry isn't so big after all.

Another thing I have been loving to do is to collect wildflowers and put them into a miniature vase in my bedroom. They don't last very long but they add a little extra magic into my bedroom.

At the end of the day, after I've come back home from work and I have made tea, cleaned the kitchen, took a shower and washed away the day, I will go outside at dusk and just be for a couple of minutes. Just embrace the world around me and essentially force myself to slow down after a hectic day.

One thing that I have been DYING to do is to bake with seasonal berries. I did it last year with apples and blackberries and it was SO good. I'm waiting for our apple tree to grow some more before I start picking but why not romanticise it? Put your linen dress on and go outside and pick some blackberries. Maybe you might get a little stain on your dress from the blackberries but you'll come back, wash them and make the best blackberry crumble so it would all be worth it.

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Make Space for Wonder

A whimsical summer leaves room for curiousity, creativity and adventure. It's time to rekindle that inner child and create memories that will last forever.

Some ideas could be starting a new project, maybe it's crocheting a jumper, maybe you are making a short film, maybe you are working on a short story or building a garden of your dreams. Sometimes it is about the journey, not the destination.

Reading is one of my favourite hobbies, it is like inviting these memories from lives you have not lived and yet feel so familiar about. I have recently finished Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid whilst sunbathing on the beach and I sobbed and then I went and sobbed some more in the ocean. What I am saying is, a good book in summer is something utterly unmatched. Hey, I first read the ACOTAR series on July 31st 2024, the fact that I kept record on the date I started it should state enough. But, that series quite literally changed my brain chemistry, I could write a whole blog post alone about it but I'll just say this: the series ignited a certain level of inspiration for me that defied all worries and confidence for me to pursue the ideas and creativity I wanted.

And lastly, go and do something you wouldn't normally do. For me, this week I'm going to visit somewhere I've never been before, even if it's only a little village half an hour away. We don't always need a passport to have an adventure. Sometimes all it takes is saying yes to something different. We spend so much of our lives waiting for the "big" moments that we forget life is mostly made up of small ones. If you can collect enough of those little moments throughout the summer, you'll realise they were the magic you were looking for all along.

I hope you enjoyed this week's blog. Writing this has reminded me that slowing down isn't something we suddenly become good at; it's a choice we make over and over again, usually in the smallest of moments. I think I'll end each blog with a little prompt to carry with you into the week ahead.

As you step into the week ahead, ask yourself: What small piece of magic can I make time for today? It doesn't have to be big, perhaps it's watching the sunset, picking wildflowers, writing a letter, or lingering over your morning tea. Sometimes the most magical days begin with the smallest moments of intention.

If you've enjoyed spending a little time here with me, you might also enjoy my snail mail stories on my Etsy shop. Every month I send out beautifully crafted letters filled with cosy storytelling, seasonal magic and little moments of whimsy, delivered straight to your door. It's my favourite way to help bring a little escape into everyday life.

You can also find all of my stories, candles, blind dates with a book, and other cosy stationery over on my Etsy shop, A Story To Light. Thank you so much for reading my very first blog post. It truly means the world to me, and I hope you'll join me here again next Monday for another little dose of seasonal living and storytelling.

Until then, take things slowly, notice the little things, and don't forget to leave a little room for wonder.

Eleanor x