Hygge in the Summer

Although winter is considered the hygge high season as everyone cozies up indoors to escape the cold, hygge can also be found in the summertime and all seasons of the year. Think of your favorite warm weather moments – picnics, bike rides, outdoor concerts, farmers markets, and warm nights on the porch with a glass of wine. Hygge is the feeling you get when you are comfortable, happy and completely content in the moment. As warm weather lovers, we experience hygge moments all summer long!

Here are some tips on how to bring more hygge into your life in the summertime…

Dine Outside
Koen and I love to have dinner with our friends, especially in the summer when we can meet in the park for a picnic or set a dining table in the backyard. We lay out our favorite picnic blanket, bring some bottles of nice chilled wine and enjoy time outside with our friends.

We like to bring a variety of wooden boards and bowls to display the food and rather than bringing plastic cups and plates, we bring a set of wooden dinnerware and mini glass coupes for wine. It takes a bit more effort but we feel that it’s worth it. Drinking out of a glass and eating off a natural wooden plate, rather than plastic, makes the moment even sweeter and even triggers a state of calm contentment. This extra effort helps people to slow down and just be in the moment rather than thinking of all the other things that need to happen.

It’s also fun to bring a bunch of summer flowers to set on the blanket or on the grass nearby. If we know that we will be wining and dining later into the evening, we bring some simple clear glass candleholders with tea-lights that glow beautifully and light up all of the homemade food.

Spend Time in Nature
We try to get outside as much as possible in the summer. Since we live in the mountains, the summers are pretty short but the temperatures are perfect, so we make sure to get plenty of hikes, bikes and outdoor activities in. Koen plays soccer with a team every week and he loves these active, let-loose moments with friends – his evenings on the soccer field are some of his most hyggelig moments of the summer. Nature has the ability to immediately make us feel content and calm. Go on a hike, leave your phone at home and just be in nature. Maybe call a friend to join you and have some quality time together outdoors. Some of our hygge-most moments happen when we’re outside alone, together or with others. There is something about being outside in nature, away from the hustle and bustle of the city or home that gives us room to breathe and feel content.

Make a Summer Home
In the summer, we put away our thick blankets and bring out the summer weight cotton blankets. It’s still nice to have soft textures and sheepskins (which are naturally temperature regulating) around the home but we bring in lighter, airier textiles and more pops of color.

hygge summer living room hygge summer plant

hygge summer blanket

Embrace Color
Don’t be afraid to embrace color. Pops of bright, summery colors are a great way to bring summer hygge into your home. Bring in the colors that give you the most joy – blues, pinks, or yellows. We love the pops of color from these natural plant-dyed pillows by Edie Ure. The pink hues are made from avocado pit!

summer hygge pillows

Fruit Bowls & Flowers
Take advantage of the fruit and flower season. Bring in all of the natural beauty that nature provides in the warmer months. We always have a big bowl of summer fruits in the kitchen – not only does it look beautiful on the kitchen counter but ripe summertime fruit is such an indulgent treat. Similarly, we try to always have a bouquet of summer blooms on our kitchen table and dispersed around the house. It was a bit easier and more affordable in Amsterdam where we could pick up a bunch of local blooms from a bountiful section for $5 at the local farmers market. In Colorado, flowers are definitely more of an expense but we look for local heartier options that still bring us joy, such as sunflowers, fresh greens and wildflowers.

flowers summer

As you can see, summer is a season filled with hygge moments. Take advantage of these warmer months to dine outside, spend time in nature, add color & fresh flowers to your home, drink rosé and eat lots of yummy fruit. Happy hygge summer!