Five favorite examples of decorating for summer (that never go out of style)

As the seasons change and the outdoors get their refresh, we’re left yearning for an interior space that feels as renewed as the one beyond our windows. Summer isn’t a holiday so the steps to making a few well earned changes to mark the longer days, extra sunshine and summer breezes can feel less momentous. But I found there are a few markers and ideas for decor that can bring you that much needed transition without forcing you to acquire anything too kitschy or trendy. Let’s start with the obvious.

Signs of plant life

Green is the universal color of spring. And while you may have plants in your house all year round, they’ve probably fallen out of center stage in favor of other seasonal decor. Summer is a great time to find those little sprigs of greenery and incorporate them into all sorts of surfaces in your home. Now some plant lovers will turn their nose up at a plastic substitute but it is worth noting that if you travel a lot in the summer or if you have cats that absolutely destroy real plants, I think that faux has it’s place. They are great in small containers and can accomplish the look on shelves and places where real plants wouldn’t be able to thrive.

White linens

A beautiful white duvet will never go out of style. While your bed might need some wool and plaid for the cozy months, it is always a welcome change to strip it back down to gauzy and delicate linens that feel as fresh as big fluffy clouds across a summer sky.

Embrace the woodland

I know that some plant images have had their moment of trendiness. I recall when wheat motifs were once a thing, daisies, sunflowers (in the 90’s and now again) but there is something about ferns that I don’t find particularly trendy. Perhaps it is my own bias but I feel like ferns conjure images of summer specific activities the same way a pumpkin is a universal symbol of fall and a pine tree represents Christmas. From a couple ferns growing at the sun dappled edge of your campsite, to a patch beside the mossy stump of the woodland bog you hiked to- they feel like they exist in a destination rooted deep in summer fantasy.

Get beach-y

As spring transitions to summer we all seem to crave more blue skies and water. If green is the official color of spring then blue is the official color of summer. This is an incredibly subtle example, which is why it makes this list as an example of decorating that never goes out of style. A few navy blue accessories and a single seashell is all you need to give that little nod. A ship in a bottle or a nautical lantern would also do the trick on this sideboard without causing too much disruption to your existing decor. Most color schemes can handle a touch of waterside blues.

Black and white photography

Your media could be traditionally framed, wrapped canvas or a scene printed on a fabric, whatever the format, there is no denying the rich imagery of a good black and white photo. I will always love bringing out the shot of my grandma and her sister in a canoe for the summer months. And while it might feel like a contradiction to the ferns and greenery of my previously praised decor, it is the stark contrast of the color range that makes it so appropriate. It is the nostalgia of summer that makes these things timeless for me. It is an easy way to decorate a tray in the guest bathroom or a side table in a bedroom that is deeply personal and unique. And touches this personal rarely feel like they go out of style.

I always hope that summer will evoke that sense of magic in me from my youth. That standing in the moonlight, listening to the frogs and counting the first fireflies of the season will take me home in my heart. It will always be a season to treasure the fragility of time. That balance of being so grateful and yet a bit melancholy at knowing that what has begun will once again have to end. It feels short and precious and yet so so worth it.

So take a moment, if you will, to ready yourself for the coming months. And if you do none of these decor ideas but you get out in the sun, you smell the lilacs heavy in the air of an incoming storm, you watch the migration of clouds in a bright blue sky- then you have done enough.

In Case you Missed It!

How to invite a nostalgic feel into your house for the Summer!