Self-Care Tips for the Summer

There’s a reason that there are so many songs written about the summertime - for many, it’s the best time of year! With hot weather, outdoor activities, and adventures abound, there is so much to enjoy in this magical season. This makes it the perfect time to start prioritizing self-care.

With clear skies and long weekends ahead in the coming months, you have the opportunity to make the most of your self-love journey. By investing in yourself now, you can create happiness that lasts throughout the year Here are our top summer self-care tips for 2021.

Take Some Time Off

For many of us, the pandemic is still limiting where and how much we can travel. It can be tempting to keep working through the summer and save our vacation time for post-pandemic tropical getaways. However, taking a break is one of the most rejuvenating things that we can do for ourselves. Working for too long without a break can lead to burnout, which forces us to take longer recovery periods.

Plan some vacation time this summer to rest and reconnect with yourself. Whether you end up taking a staycation and enjoying your hometown, or planning a local getaway to explore hidden gems, time off will give you the mental space you need to prioritize self care the rest of the time.

Make Daily Rituals

Life shouldn’t be a grind; there should always be something to look forward to. In creating daily rituals, you are ensuring that no matter what is going on in the world around you, you create space for joy each day. 

Daily self-care routines can make the difference between a good and a bad day. Some of our favorite rituals include:

• Watching the sun rise with a cup of tea or an iced coffee;
• Taking your yoga practice outside; 
• If you live close to a lake or ocean, cooling off with a swim; and
• Enjoying a nature walk with a friend.

Spend Time Outside

When the weather is warm, some of the best self-care can be getting in touch with nature. We’ve been spending a lot of time indoors over the past year and getting outside is a safe way to recharge beyond your home.

Getting outdoors can be as easy as taking a walk around your neighborhood each day. Many cities have local parks that are full of public art and gorgeous botanical gardens. Make it a mission to visit a new park each week.

Hiking is another way of getting outside. While doing things climbing up mountains and exploring waterfalls is an incredible experience, it can also be intimidating. However, you don’t need to be the perfect outdoors person to start hiking; you just need to start. We recommend following local influencer, Eman Salem (@ironself18 on Instagram) for tips and inspiration for learning to hike; Eman is currently creating a documentary about her journey into hiking and what she has learned about herself along the way.

When you’re spending time outside, it’s always important to take care of your skin. While sunlight has so many positive effects, it can create damage to the skin. Make sure that you’re always wearing sunscreen and reapplying it frequently. The sun can also dry out your skin, so make sure that you’re moisturizing after spending time outdoors. We recommend checking out local skin care clinic, Optaderm, for facials, laser treatments, and rejuvenating products for the whole body.

Put Your Phone Away

We’ve all been there; you pick up your phone to respond to one text message… and then you check your group chats… and then you pop onto Instagram… watch a few TikToks... and before you know it, an hour has passed. While our phones, and social media, give us so many opportunities to connect with one another, they also make it easy to waste a lot of time. 

Start intentionally putting your phone away for one hour per day. Use this time to focus on the self care activities that you always crave when you’re busy. Maybe this time can be used for a face mask in the bath, organizing your home or reading a book on the balcony. This is another way of ensuring that you bring self-care into every single part of your day.

Throw Yourself Into a Hobby

While the term ‘self-care’ typically invokes images of rest and relaxation, self-care can also involve doing things that excite you. The summer is the perfect time to restart those hobbies that you’ve been missing, or to try something completely different. We spend a lot of our lives doing things for other people. In doing something you love, which can even be something that challenges you, you refocus on the person who matters most - yourself.

Some of our favorite summertime hobbies include:

• Gardening. Putting your hands into fresh earth, watching your flowers turning from bulbs to blooms, and carefully removing any weeds each day. It is so fulfilling to bring life into a garden. Even if you don’t have a yard, you can grow a small veggie patch on your patio or even on your windowsill. For inspiration, follow Genieve Burley’s gardening journey on Instagram @drgenieveburley.
• Cooking. There are so many delicious, fresh foods that are synonymous with summer; you might even be growing them in your garden! Why not try some seasonal cooking? Use sweet berries to make pies or scones, learn how to grill delicious meats, or even try cooling down with inventive summer cocktails. Your taste buds will thank you.
• Photography. There is so much beauty in the world during summertime. Why not learn to capture that beauty on camera? Try an online course to spruce up your phone photos, or invest in a camera for a more professional look. For inspiration, follow Vancity Wild for nature shots or Always Smiling Photography for stunning portraits.

The Comfort of Silk

While treating yourself this summer, you want to make sure that you’re at your most relaxed; that’s difficult to do when you’re feeling uncomfortable and restrained by what you’re wearing. Our silks were made for doing what you love and feeling your best while doing them.