your tiny guide to romanticising july
pls don't wait until next summer
july has a habit of pretending it will wait for you. it arrives with so much confidence, as though there's endless time for evening swims, slow days outside reading, homemade lemonade and dinners that somehow drift on until the fairy lights come on. we tell ourselves we’ll invite everyone over once we’ve tidied the garden or finally make the drive to that beach we've been talking about for years. every july seems completely convinced it'll all get done somehow. every july has us believing we'll catch the next one instead and every excuse sounds perfectly reasonable, right up until the evenings start getting darker again.
every july arrives convinced you'll remember it. none of us mean to postpone the lovely things forever, just until next summer. then somehow one summer becomes five and suddenly you’re in a new decade of life, wondering why you still never became the sort of person who swims in lakes, grows tomatoes, or keeps a deck of cards in her bag because that’s just what summer afternoons are for. not because you ran out of time, but because you kept assuming there would always be another july waiting patiently behind this one.
maybe that's why july always feels like standing in a doorway. it arrives right in the middle of the year, halfway between the person who made promises to themselves in january and the person they’re still becoming. no pressure, july. by now, half the year already belongs to memory. the other half hasn’t happened yet. it’s a funny little place to stand. but i have a feeling july isn't asking for very much, just to stop assuming the little joys can always wait until next year.
so here's a tiny field guide to help you squeeze every last drop out of july while it's still here.
01. hold your annual midsummer meeting
halfway through the year feels like the right time to pull up another chair for yourself; make yourself a coffee, find somewhere the sun reaches for an hour or so, sit down with your notebook, and ask yourself how you're really doing. six months is long enough to have changed in ways you probably haven’t noticed yet. what's been better than you expected? what have you grown into? what's still waiting for your attention? if you'd like a few questions to get you started, i made a month's worth of gentle prompts that you can wander through at your own pace.
02. adopt a body of water
everybody deserves a body of water they keep finding their way back to. maybe it’s the sea if you’re lucky enough to live nearby, a lake after work, a bath on sunday mornings, the paddling pool you’ve secretly started looking forward to, or an extra shower during a day that’s been too hot to think. water has a lovely way of reminding your body that it doesn’t have to carry everything by itself all the time. let it carry you for a moment.
03. let your home know it’s july
homes notice the seasons more than we give them credit for. one bowl of peaches on the counter can somehow change the whole kitchen, a bunch of sweet peas on your bedside table makes an ordinary weekday evening feel like midsummer. one day you'll walk through the front door and realise your house smells like july. i don't know exactly when it happens, it just does.
04. become someone who always keeps herbs on the windowsill
there's something about herbs that makes a kitchen feel optimistic. they ask for very little, smell incredible if you brush past them, and somehow make even buttered toast feel like lunch in the south of france. basil, mint, rosemary, whichever one you choose, let it become part of your july. you'll wonder why you didn't start sooner.
05. have a standing date with your tbr list
treat your tbr list like someone you've been meaning to catch up with. pick at least one hour each week, put it in your calendar, and don't cancel on it. take yourself somewhere you'd happily sit for longer than planned, order something nice, and read until you forget to check the time. i have a feeling your future favourite book is probably already waiting on your shelf.
06. pack a handbag picnic
i'm convinced the best picnics are the accidental ones. the blanket never makes it, someone sits on a jumper instead, and nobody minds. keep a couple little treats in your bag this month, just in case the afternoon decides to surprise you. crackers, packet of olives, a tiny bottle of lemonade. all it takes is a patch of grass, a bit of sunshine, and someone saying, shall we stay here for a while?
07. become the friend who always brings dessert
turning up empty-handed is perfectly acceptable. turning up with a punnet of strawberries, still warm from the farm shop, somehow makes the whole afternoon feel like summer. it doesn't need to be homemade or expensive. but people will always remember how you made an ordinary afternoon feel worth gathering for.
08. claim one summer recipe
choose one recipe and make it your whole personality for the month. maybe it's pasta alla nerano, the lemon tart you've been meaning to bake, or the roasted tomato galette that somehow disappears before everyone's sat down. maybe you'll never cook it again once september arrives, but that's part of the charm.
09. appoint a summer correspondent
pick one person and spend july sending each other the sort of things that never make it onto instagram. the café with the wonky little table outside, the first sunflower you spot, a bakery worth driving back to, a sky that looks painted. no explanation needed other than a photo, a voice note, or a simple: thought you'd like this. everyone deserves one person who understands why you'd interrupt their day with a photo of very good tomatoes.
10. put your phone on summer mode
give your phone a summer holiday. let it spend a few evenings on the kitchen counter while you disappear into the garden, walk to buy ice cream, or sit on the front step after dinner. your phone doesn’t need to come everywhere with you this month, the internet will still be there when you get back. july won’t.
11. have one evening with no roof over your head
pick one evening this month and spend as much of it outside as you possibly can. eat dinner in the garden, watch a film from a blanket, watch the stars, walk until the sky turns that deep shade of indigo that only seems to appear in july. don't go back inside until you absolutely have to. i have a feeling you'll remember that evening far longer than the reason you almost stayed in.
12. find this year’s ice cream
every summer should have an ice cream attached to it. the sort you end up recommending to everyone you know, insisting they have to try it before autumn arrives. skip your usual order for once and let this be the year you become unexpectedly obsessed with black cherry, pistachio, lemon sorbet, or whatever catches your eye through the freezer glass.
13. write one postcard you’ll never post
find a postcard, or make one from a scrap of paper if that’s all you’ve got. start by writing to the version of you who was living through last july. tell them everything that turned out okay, thank them for getting you here, remind them of all the things they couldn’t possibly have known were waiting for them. then turn it over and write a few lines to next summer’s you. what do you hope they’ve found by then? what do you hope they’ve stopped worrying about? fold it away somewhere safe. i have a feeling both versions of you will be glad you wrote it.
🎬 films & tv to curl up with this july
girls' night in 🍿 wimbledon (2004)
every july i remember this film exists, and it always feels like the right time for a little rewatch. an underdog story wrapped up in a rom-com and one of those films that's just so easy to settle into. save it for a weeknight, slather on your facemask, order your fave takeout, or make yourself a bowl of garlic prawn linguine, finish with strawberries and cream (obvs), and let yourself have one evening that asks absolutely nothing of you.
book the tickets 🎬 the odyssey - july 17
everyone i know seems to be talking about this one. i know embarrassingly little about the odyssey, but christopher nolan making an epic adventure set across the mediterranean already has me sold. and this feels like the sort of film that requires popcorn, pepsi, nachos and the biggest screen possible.
press play 📼 the durrells (2016, four seasons)
a chaotic family moves to the greek island of corfu in the 1930s, and what follows is funny, heartwarming and impossibly sunny. it's the tv equivalent of eating peaches in the garden on a warm afternoon. even better, it's based on a true story, which somehow feels completely impossible once you start watching.
new this month 📺 the five-star weekend - july 16, sky/now tv
jennifer garner, nantucket, beach houses, old friendships and one very complicated weekend. honestly, i didn't need to know much more than that. this feels like exactly the sort of show i'll put on with the windows open after dinner with a glass of cordino (the best non-alcoholic version of aperol spritz imo)with way too much ice and accidentally end up watching three episodes in a row.
old(ish) 📖 slanting towards the sea by lidija hilje (2025)
this came out last summer, and if it somehow passed you by, let this be your sign. set on the croatian coast, it follows ivona as she leaves london behind and returns to the island where she grew up, hoping a slower summer might help her piece life back together. it's sun-drenched, thoughtful and makes you want to slow down without even realising. the kind of book that belongs in a beach bag all july.
new 📖 the great wherever by shannon sanders (july 2)
i've got a feeling this is going to be one of those books people keep pressing into their friends' hands by the end of summer. there's a breakup, an unexpected inheritance, a tennessee farm with ghosts, and a woman trying to work out what comes next. exactly the sort of story i want to disappear into on a warm summer afternoon.
wildcard 📖 once upon a river by diane setterfield (2018)
if you love stories that feel as though someone is telling them beside a fire, start here. when a little girl is pulled from the river after she's believed to have drowned, multiple families become convinced she belongs to them. there's folklore, mystery and a river that seems to have a life of its own. completely absorbing from beginning to end.
july's little occasions (a few dates worth circling this month)
🌍 1st, 4th & 14th july • a month of celebrations
july feels like the month countries celebrate themselves. canada day arrives on the 1st, independence day on the 4th, and bastille day on the 14th. whether you’re celebrating one of them yourself or simply borrowing the excuse for a bbq, picnic or something sparkling in the sunshine, i’m fully in favour.
🍫 7th july • world chocolate day
if there was ever a day to buy the fancy chocolate, or as much chocolate as you want, this is it. i don’t make the rules.
🎾 13th july • wimbledon final
one of my favourite background sounds of summer. put it on while you're making lunch, reading in the garden or pottering around the house. even if you couldn't tell me the score, july somehow feels incomplete without the applause from centre court.
⚽ 19th july • fifa men’s world cup final
there are only a handful of moments when millions of people end up doing the same thing at the same time. this is one of them. whether you're hosting friends, heading to the pub or just getting swept up in the excitement, there's something lovely about knowing half the world is watching alongside you.
🌕 29th july • the buck moon
july’s full moon is known as the buck moon, named after the time of year when deer begin growing their new antlers. if the skies are clear, this feels like a lovely excuse for a late evening walk or simply standing outside for five minutes before bed.
🌦️ 15th july • st swithun’s day
according to british folklore, whatever the weather does on st swithun’s day is said to continue for the next forty days. whether you believe it or not, i think it makes checking the forecast a lot more entertaining.
and heyy i’m hannah (◕‿◕)
i started midnight crumbs as a tiny personal project during a difficult chapter of life, writing late at night in the hope of following the crumbs back to myself. here’s what lives inside the paid tier each month:
crumb theory: a playful little syllabus for the messy middle of adulthood
monthly journaling guides: for reconnecting with the parts of yourself you’ve misplaced
anti-scroll side quests: tiny missions for participating in your own life again
practical essays: for the parts of modern life nobody gives you a manual for
seasonal digital zines: designed to make ordinary life feel more interesting again
plus the entire archive
and if you decide to join us, thank you, genuinely. there are now 400+ paid readers gathered around this little corner of the internet, and i’m so grateful for every single reader who’s helped make it feel like a real place <3
notes from july 2026
i know july won’t look the same for all of us. for some people it’ll be holidays and beach towels. for others it’ll be hospital appointments, late shifts, healing, heartbreak, waiting for answers, or simply trying to make it through another week. life doesn’t pause just because it’s summer.
but i hope this little guide reminds you that july doesn’t have to be expensive or elaborate to become memorable. sometimes it’s just a bowl of strawberries, a paperback in your bag, a phone left at home for an evening, or deciding that this is the summer you finally become the friend who always brings dessert.
whatever this month looks like for you, don’t save all the lovely things for “next summer”, okay? this one is here now, and i have a feeling it’s got a few little surprises waiting for you.
i'll meet you back here in august.
—hannah x
ps. what's one tiny thing you're officially not postponing until next summer?
keep reading crumbs:
if crumbs helps you untangle your mind, quiet growth is where you start building something from it, with your own voice, lens, ideas, rhythm, and into something that quietly becomes yours. it’s there whenever you’re ready to explore your creativity further <3
~ all images sourced from pinterest
“your phone doesn’t need to come everywhere with you this month, the internet will still be there when you get back” — I’m not sure if a truer statement has ever been made!
It's easy to miss how fast time flies. Thank you for this guide, it's so fun, and there are so many great ways to make this summer feel magical 💗