Sundaze 287: London hangs, cosy January and new boundaries
Happy Sundaze, my loves!
I completely meant to publish this last weekend, but fell asleep and then my week got incredibly busy with work commitments, furniture shopping and the rest of my everyday minutiae. So, I thought I’d add to it and share a bumper, fortnightly Sundaze instead.
First of all, how are you? I recently remembered the power of ‘how are you?’, especially since taking yet-another-break from Instagram. Since the dawn of being able to share every moment of your days, I feel like many of us have collectively lost the art of sharing a good story. One of the things I’ve loved the most throughout January is getting to enjoy long, detailed catch-ups with friends and loved ones in the absence of having seen each others’ Instagram Stories. Long may this continue.



Establishing new boundaries
On that note… My latest break from Instagram has been eye-opening and I’ve decided to make some changes and set some new boundaries.
I’ve put my life online since I was around 16: first on MySpace and a Freewebs website, later on here – my beloved blog, and then on Twitter and Instagram and whatever else came next. I’m now in my thirties and I’m a remarkably different person than I was then, even if we’ve grown up together here and it doesn’t feel like it. As my life and priorities have changed, I think I want to step back from posting a bit of absolutely everything and just re-establish a boundary for my online self. For starters, I’ve had my @winyeemichelle Instagram since 2012. It’s seen me go from undergraduate and endless blog event-goer to graduate, from moving abroad to coming home amidst waves of grief, from my teenage years to my thirties. Now that I’m a little older, a little more reserved and sure of myself, I want to focus on sharing my life through books (on @sundazebookcafe), essays (here on Daisybutter, and on Substack), and maybe on Threads here and there. To be honest, I’d like to work on other offline stuff and enjoy the quietude that comes when online/external validation plays no part, and I wanted to say it properly rather than seemingly abandoning ship!
You’re welcome to join me on these mentioned places, as well as to continue following me on @winyeemichelle as I privatise the account and drastically reduce my use of it.
A pair of days in London
Moving onto lighter pastures, I spent a whole weekend in London last week! On Saturday, I hung out with my brother and his fiancée and we worked on wedding crafts, which was so much fun. We mostly gossiped and watched Single’s Inferno! Then on Sunday I headed back into town to spend the day with Kristabel and Winnie. We had a hot pot lunch at Teo Hotpot in Bloomsbury, before popping to the gorgeous Waterstones on Gower Street for a book-shopping session. And, after picking up coffee and matcha, we hopped on the Tube for a mooch around the King’s Road, ending with an exhibition peruse at the Saatchi Gallery. Just dreamy, and a very inspirational way to enjoy January.




The cosiest start to the year
There’s plenty of negative discourse around New Year and the general concept of January, yet it’s one of my favourite times of the year and has been for a while. Since reframing this mid-winter month and choosing not to hit the ground running at the turn of the Gregorian calendar, I enjoy it more and more. For 2025, I’ve tinkered away at house décor since taking down the Christmas bounty, and leaned into rest and relaxation. After all, if nature is downing tools, why shouldn’t we? So far, I’ve devoured eight books while I wait for payday a.k.a. the ability to enjoy a few activities with friends, and I’m hoping it sets the mood for this year’s reading overall! There’s been some really good books!
Us Chai’s are mostly prepping for Chinese New Year on Wednesday, where we’ll enjoy a big family meal. And, hopefully, I’ll be able to celebrate Tết with my boyfriend’s family. However you celebrate the Lunar New Year, I hope you’ll have a wonderful one!




Links I’ve Loved
- I downloaded Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp Complete after resisting for more than a month! My Google Play balance finally allowed me to purchase it with the pennies I’d saved from completing Google Opinion Rewards, so it was technically free. Yay!
- Our Lunar New Year candle collection is selling well, and I’m so glad that this is a drop everybody waits for!
- Franky’s new Substack is devoted to creative play: read Larking About now.
- I’m besotted with these Damson Madder jeans on Anthropologie.
Posts This Week
- Review: Water Moon by Samantha Sotto Yambao
- Invisible Woman
- The Daisybutter Travel Guide to Reykjavík, Iceland
- Open-hearted joys 開開心心 № 13