Sundaze 259: Back to reality, vintage shopping and new glasses

Happy Sundaze, my loves!

It was a ‘back to reality’ sort of week for me, this week, after returning home from Athens. Life comes at you extra fast after the slowness of a holiday and that was certainly the case with laundry loads, the weekend big clean, checking on my fruit and vegetable babies in the garden, and just trying to get my brain back into business mode. I mean, Monday’s obligatory email session took me over two hours to get through!!

A break away was just what I needed though, and I feel recalibrated and ready to take on the second half of 2023. (By the way, how on earth is it July??) I wrote a little about my goals in a mid-year check-in and felt pleasantly surprised by how I’ve taken on the year so far.

Home from Athens

My boyfriend and I visited gorgeous Athens last week! I booked the trip several months ago as his birthday surprise, and we had such an incredible time. Both of us enjoy city breaks with plenty of history and culture to soak up (hence my boyfriend surprising me with Rome for my own birthday!), so Athens was a bit of a no-brainer.

I’ve already shared our adventures on Instagram, but there’s a classic Daisybutter travel guide coming to the blog next week that is far more detailed and personal. As ever, it features our exploring highlights, vegan eats and other little recommendations!

A day with my girls

I had a delightful day with my girls last weekend and it totally cemented my ‘mid-year mood-lift’.

Life has been so busy and expensive lately, but a mildly raucous catch-up over lunch and a potter ‘round our favourite vintage shops and bookshops was a real soul tonic. Already looking forward to our next girls’ day – we’re thinking champagne and crafts!

Books, books, books

It’s been another bookish week here. In fact, let’s just always assume I’m living very bookish days. I’m trying to get around to all of the TV shows and films that my friends recommend me, but I’m just far happier with my nose in a book and with a bowl of snacks beside me. I reviewed my June reads just last week, but notable titles include Days at the Morisaki Bookshop, The Strange Adventures of H, andWild Swans.

There’s not much I enjoy more than finishing work and heading to the garden (or another equally cosy spot!) with a book, tea and blanket in tow.

New glasses day!

And, at last, it was new glasses day for me on Thursday! I broke my last pair a few months ago and have since been haphazardly Superglue-ing them back together, but the recent heatwave seemed to have melted that down. As such, I’ve been wearing glasses circa 2018 with a very old prescription. Very glad to be in fresh frames and with no headaches!

Links I’ve Loved

Snagged these & Other Stories tailored shorts on Vinted!
I’m rarely at a loss of what to read next but, if you struggle, this article from The Good Trade features 99 books for when you don’t know what to pick up.
6 Key Takeaways From The 2023 Global Fashion Summit To Inspire Action via British Vogue
Some fun things to do with your friends this summer.
Michelle shared some podcast recommendations – I’m forever listening to pods at the gym, so always soak up any recs!
And Megan shared the books that are currently on her reading list.
I just love Anh’s magical writing style. They shared their June book reviews on Medium recently, and I’m immediately drawn to adding all of the titles to my TBR.
See also: Anh’s gorgeously evocative prose about the immigrant experience.
Very tempted to add this dress to my wardrobe, now that I’ve decluttered even more pieces.