10 Little Ways to Romanticize Your Everyday Life
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Loading... - Henry Taylor
- 07 Feb 2023
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Over the past few years, there’s been so much messaging from social media to “romanticize your life” and to “be the main character.” After all, isn’t everything more fun when you feel exceptional rather than as though you’re a bystander in your own life? But the idea sometimes gets lost, perhaps somewhere in between soothing instrumentals in the background of those TikToks and overexposed film photo dumps on Instagram, about what romanticizing your life really means.
For me, it’s quite simple. It’s about finding bits of joy in the mundanity. Whether that means reading a book in a coffee shop instead of on my couch at home or calling my very standard coffee order (an oat milk cappuccino) my signature drink, romanticizing my life makes everyday happenings far more enjoyable.
1. Make a day of it
Any day can be a romantic one if you set out to make it so (although some of the most main character-feeling days, of course, are serendipitous). Planning an afternoon around a necessary errand helps me enjoy everyday tasks more. If I’m headed to a neighborhood I don’t frequent for, say, a doctor’s appointment and have the time to linger, I’ll always look for a park in the area to explore. If it’s warm enough, I’ll sit and read my book or at the very least I’ll take a walk around. I’ll let myself daydream and usually end up wondering what it would be like to live in that neighborhood: where I would go out to eat, what my commute would look like, or the bars I’d become a regular at. (This will inevitably turn into browsing Zillow for real estate, even though I have no intention of moving anytime soon.) If there’s a library or coffee shop in the area, I’ll also include those in my itinerary, since those are two places that I know bring me joy.
2. Write an old-school letter to a friend
Sending a text or picking up the phone are perfectly acceptable ways to reach out, although if you’d like to get a little more sentimental, writing a postcard or letter goes such a long way these days. I find the practice to be so intimate; seeing someone’s handwriting is a peek into who they are, as are their stationery and stamps of choice.
3. Put a normal event on your calendar
One of my friends always makes a shared calendar event when we make plans — for dinner reservations, concerts, or even a casual afternoon coffee. Even though I don’t need my calendar to remind me that I have plans with a friend on a given day, having something written down to look forward to makes the not-so-fun tasks of everyday life more bearable. To go a step further, I also love making Partiful invites for any event, from birthday parties to book clubs. The website is helpful for organizational purposes, sure, but the beautiful themes and photos available to customize the invitation make even casual gatherings at home worthy of my most stylish tablecloth and personalized place cards. Read More…
