Summer is in FULL swing, am I right?! It’s times like these when you want to just live in shorts & a tank top to at least be “comfortable”, right? I’m totally with you. So what happens when you want to look cute for a party, a lunch, a trip to the grocery store, or whatever the occasion may be? Let me share with you my tips on how to dress cute on hot summer days without compromising on the comfort level.
Let’s go back to that original, hot day outfit of shorts & a tank top. Seriously the best & most comfortable thing to wear in the heat besides a bikini. To boost the cute factor but maintain the comfort, let’s re-imagine this look just a bit.
Shorts
Instead of a pair of athletic shorts or denim shorts, why not try a pair of high waisted, loose fitting shorts in another color or print. Adding some detail, or something out of the ordinary really elevates the entire look. These white shorts I’m wearing are a total Zimmermann dupe & are under $20! Not only are they cute & affordable, but the material is light & super breathable making them super comfortable to wear on even the hottest of days.
Tank Top
If you’re wearing a great high waisted pair of shorts, I recommend pairing it with a cropped tank top. Don’t shy away from cropped tops too quickly because just because they are cropped, doesn’t mean you have to show any skin. Cropped just means it’s shorter than the usual tops, but if you’re wearing high-waisted shorts, the cropped top can meet the shorts perfectly at the waist.
To take it up a notch on the cute scale, find a tank top with interesting design details. This gingham top (similar here) has a classic square neck with ruffled straps & a lovely tie in the back. Tie back tops are so cute & fun to wear this time of year. Whether you go with a tie back top or not, finding a top with details such as ruffles, buttons, bows, etc. will totally up your fashion game.
Don’t Forget The Accessories!
On hot summer days, the last thing I want to wear is a cross body bag. Maybe it’s just me, but I start to feel trapped under there, plus the added sweat. Pass. I tend to gravitate towards top handle or satchel bags for that very reason. This bamboo bag has gotten so much love over the past couple of years & I still just love the way it goes with outfits & is a great conversation piece. The structure & lines of this bag bring so much texture & depth to a look.
Don’t be afraid to have a bit of fun with your sunglasses. Try a fun new color or shape & just rock them.
Lastly, wear a hat. Most likely, if it’s hot & you’re outside, that means the sun is out. Look cute & protect your face with a nice straw hat. If it’s too hot to wear your hair down, wear it in a low pony with the hat like I did here.
We are throwing it back to our honeymoon in Italy with these photos. We spent 2 full days on the beach eating pizza, swimming, & most of all, people watching. While lounging in total bliss, there are a few items in my beach bag that I found particularly useful. These things were easy to pack & made transitions before & after the beach a breeze.
For sunscreen, I like to use at least SPF 50 on my body, but on my face, I use my Coola Makeup Setting Spray with SPF 30. I’ve used this for years! It’s perfect to use & reapply whether you have makeup on or not. Also, on long days out in the sun, it’s so important to make sure you’re drinking plenty of water, so have a large bottle on hand.
This bikini bag was given to me as a wedding gift, & man was it so useful! It was the perfect size to store our wet bathing suits without getting the rest of our things wet.
Before visiting Charleston, I thought it would be a beautiful city based on the photos I had seen from other Charleston based bloggers. Let me just say, it’s even more beautiful than I had imagined it to be. It’s so clear that the owners of each home take pride in the care & look of their property & gardens. Just visiting this city has inspired me to step up my game, put in the work, & take pride in my home. In this post I want to share with you all the spaces that gave me major home & garden inspiration in Charleston which I plan on bringing to my home.
Home Inspiration
Each home in this charming city had its own unique color palette. The houses were painted most commonly in dreamy pastels with doors & shutters painted in colors to perfectly compliment it. There were interesting windows, impressive porches or piazzas – what native Charleston people like to call them, & gardens instead of yards. Each home told a story & had a personality of its own.
This got me thinking. What story does my home tell? Does it give a good & lasting impression? Is it warm & inviting? This year, I want to write a story for my home by putting in work to then let the house do the talking. The colors, the textures, the right amount of whimsy & structure, the sweet city of Charleston has totally inspired me to incorporate these lovely traits into my home right here in RVA.
I could talk about the gardens in Charleston for days! What a dream! You can tell how much thought & care goes into each home’s personal garden. First of all, the window boxes were to die for. They were bursting with the most stunning blooms, in colors that complimented the vibe of the house. I also fell in love with the way they used vines to line steps, grow in a pattern to decorate the side of a house, or to add the perfect amount of texture to a home, making it feel alive. Another garden detail I loved was their use of pots. We saw this when we were on our honeymoon in Italy (see here: 1/2/3), but the way they group pots together & use them to fill & decorate every space is just beautiful. I already know this will be an obsession of mine this season!
Dream Big
Being the dreamer that I am, I’ve recently dreamed some big dreams for our home garden (thanks to Monty Don!). I would love to have an arch of climbing roses to dress our front door & flowers in bloom during each season around the property. Another goal I have for our garden is to create a cozy space for us to sit outside & enjoy the nice weather. How lovely would it be to have a couch outside for Ben & I to cuddle up on or to entertain guest with? I also have a dream to build a back porch (or piazza) under a pergola someday.
One final garden dream I have is to have a garden full of blooms, kind of like a small scale farm. I would not only fill my home with the blooms, but give them to friends & put together flower arrangements either for a side gig or just for fun. Flowers just make me so happy.
After our wonderful stay in Napoli, & day trip to Capri, we made our way down the coast to the enchanting city of Positano. We took a cab through the narrow, winding cliff-side roads, which took only a couple of hours. During our drive, we both said how thankful we were that we did not try to make this drive our own. The roads were really only wide enough for one car, yet cars were driving on them in both directions! Cars, motorcycles, & even buses drove at fairly great speeds around blind mountain-side turns with the edge of a cliff just feet away. It was kind of terrifying. In the end, we were happy we made it to our little Airbnb safely.
Instead of staying right in Positano where the prices were exorbitant, we chose to stay a little bit up the mountain is a quaint little town called Montepertuso. We absolutely loved staying there. It was so nice to go into the city during the day & have a bit of calm & fresh air at our place in the evenings. We woke up to the rooster’s crow in the morning & were enchanted by church bells in the evenings. It was lovely. Not to mention it was so much cheaper! You can find our picturesque little Airbnb here. The only thing I will say about this place is that you have to be prepared to go up & down SO many stairs! We went down about 6-7 flights of stairs to our place from the main road everyday. But we took it as getting some good exercise to work off all of the pizza & pasta we were eating! Other than that, we absolutely loved staying there.
We arrived in Montepertuso around 5 PM, & were so excited to get out & explore, that we decided to go down to the city. There were two ways we travelled down to Positano: the bus, which was very easy & cheap & took about 15 minutes, or the stairs. We took the stairs twice, about 2,000 of them, & our first night was one of them. Taking the stairs took about 40 minutes, after which Ben & I were both shaking. But we had to admit, the views were incredible! I highly recommend doing this at least once. Seeing the iconic, Positano from this vantage was breath-taking. I could hardly contain my excitement.
N i g h t B y T h e B e a c h
That night, we walked down by the beach & ordered our first of many pizzas from Buca Di Bacco. We just loved this place because we could order things & take them anywhere to eat. It was perfect for finding a good spot for people watching or taking our tasty meal to our chairs on the beach.
After eating & people watching for a long while, we decide to head back up to our place for the night. We took the bus for the first time which was super easy. It dropped us off right at our stairs for the trek down to our place. We slept very well that night.
O u t f i t D e t a i l s
White Swimsuit (under $15 & does not become see through when wet!), Sarong, Hat (similar here & here), Sunglasses (similar here)
F i r s t F u l l D a y
The next morning, we got up bright & early to head down to the beach. We decided to walk down again, & ended up taking a different path with even more incredible views! Finally, we arrived on the beach at 8 AM & literally no one was there. It was so crazy! We couldn’t believe how empty it was. Then at 8:30 we were able to reserve our chairs for the day. It was 5 euros extra to get front row chairs, but it was so worth it. We got 2 chairs & an umbrella in the front row for the whole day for 50 euros. Totally worth it.
I also definitely recommend going early. Even if you’re not trying to get photos like we were, getting there before the rush of tourists was just amazing. So calm & relaxing. Also, the water is very smooth at this time because no boats are out making waves, so it’s perfect for an early morning salty swim.
S e a s i d e
Ben spent most of the day collecting rocks & pieces of interesting tile, while I just happily laid there soaking in the sun. We made friends with a British couple sitting next to us, & Ben borrowed their goggles to check out the cool fish in the sea. I didn’t swim that much that day because, if I’m honest, I was kind of afraid. Swimming is something I always knew I could do, I mean, I grew up with a pool in my backyard, but swimming in a pool with the security of the edge to hold onto just a couple of feet away is much different than swimming out in the sea with nothing to hold on to. Have any of you experienced this same feeling before?
Anyways, we spent about 6 hours at the beach then took the bus back up the mountain for an early night in. Ben made gnocchi with the pasta sauce that we learned how to make in our cooking class in Naples. We ate our dinner out on our terrace then got in bed with a glass of wine & watched a few episodes of New Girl before heading to bed.
The next day, we took the bus down to the city to do some morning shopping. We found some lovely pieces to take home as sweet memories of this dreamy honeymoon vacation, as well as some gifts for friends & family back home.
For lunch, we had reservations at the famous Le Sirenuse hotel’s restaurant, La Sponda. We made our reservations for this day 4 months prior to ensure we would get in! Let me just say, eating here is a must if you are in Positano, & you have to make a reservation in advance, so plan ahead.
L a S p o n d a
Every detail in this magical place has clearly been thought out so beautifully. The views, the tiles, the flowers, the lemon trees, the decor, everything was just perfect & so inspiring.
We are both convinced that this was the best dining experience that we have ever had. Our table was dressed to a T, with the most dreamy view of the city & the Sea. The waiter pulled out our chairs for us & scooted us in before gracefully placing our napkins in our laps. We were served a glass of Prosecco as an aperitif along with a bread basket with some olive oil for dipping. A lovely plate of sliced lemons was placed on the table for our waters. I’m quite positive that the lemons were grown right there on the many lemon trees dressing the space. We then ordered two simple plates to share which were delicious.
After they took away our plates, they came by with a small plate of bite size desserts & limoncello for each of us. I figured we couldn’t bare to leave just yet, so we ordered some pistachio & hazelnut gelato to top it all off. It was pretty expensive, but we are both so glad we went. I mean, what an incredible experience! A true celebration of our marriage. I’ll never forget it.
B a c k U p T h e M o u n t a i n
After our incredible lunch, we finished up our shopping & walking around then took the bus back up the mountain. Since we didn’t have pizza for lunch, we couldn’t help but make some homemade pizzas for dinner at our place that evening. We enjoyed another wonderful evening of dinner on the terrace, then wine & New Girl in bed before sleep.
On our last full day of our honeymoon, we arrived to the beach early again, but this time for our go-to caffeine fix of this trip: cappuccinos. We had them everyday on our honeymoon, & I’ve still been drinking them since I’ve come home! So tasty & just the right size.
We spent another 6 hour day on the beach & it was so much fun. On this day, I was determined to conquer my fear of swimming in the ocean/sea. It was strange because swimming out was fine, but once I turned around & could see how far out I was, that’s when I would start to panic. Ben & I then started to just float in the water, & I realized I actually could float, which I was never very good at before. After that, We swam out pretty far then just spent some time treading water & talking & looking back at the incredible view of Positano. Once I was out there for a few minutes, I realized that I was strong & if I just stayed calm, swimming out in the sea would be a piece of cake.
For the rest of the day, I swam out on my own many times. I totally conquered my fear & it felt so good. What a boost of confidence & strength to an already amazing time in my life.
My ruffled one piece was oh-so gorgeous, & just perfect to shoot there in Positano, but I decided for the sake of tan lines, my little yellow bikini would be the better option. And I’m on my honeymoon for goodness sake!
Again, we opted for pizza by the beach for lunch, & it was delicious yet again. We ate & talked to a lovely couple next to us from Australia for most of the afternoon. Then the sound of the waves & the warmth from the sun were so pleasant, that we both fell asleep for a little bit. It was just dreamy.
For our last night our honeymoon, we decided to go out to dinner in our little town of Montepertuso. We walked to a restaurant right down the road from our place called, Il Ritrovo. The food was delicious, & we also witnessed an incredible view of the sunset over the water. The perfect, romantic way to end our honeymoon.
We had the most amazing honeymoon. Thanks for following along!
Hope you guys enjoyed this post! Let me know if you have any questions on the exact places we visited or things we did. I’m happy to answer anything!
D o n ’ t f o r g e t t o c h e c k o u t m y S H O P p a g e !
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