My magazine list used to be long and almost ridiculous. I subscribed to every foodie magazine out there: Cooking Light (now defunct), Taste of Home, Cook’s Illustrated, the Food Network one, Cuisine, Cook’s Country, Food & Wine, Bon Appetit, and, of course, Gourmet (also gone). Now I’m down to just a few: Food & Wine, Bon Appetit, Southern Living, and BH&G. Where am I going with this story? I save all my magazines (sometimes months at a time) and take them to the lake to read on the boat while I spend some quiet time without too many device distraction.
In one of these magazines (probably Southern Living) I saw a blurb about Beach Life by Lauren Liess. I thought it sounded intriguing so I checked it out of the library.
If I had a beach house, I would totally read all my magazines there.
About the book:
Lauren Liess, the bestselling author of Habitat, Down to Earth, and Feels Like Home, explores the allure and magic of coastal living.
Thoughtful, nostalgic, inspiring, and laid-back, Beach Life delves into life by the sea and why we are drawn to it. From the homes to the food to the relaxed mindset and the therapeutic benefits of being near the ocean, life is different at the beach.
Complete with interior design inspiration and advice, explorations into mindfulness and wellness, radiant photography, memorable stories, and easy seasonal recipes, Beach Life takes readers on an escape into sunshine, surf, and sandy coastlines. From large oceanfront vacation homes to charming beach cottages down sandy streets, with a chapter dedicated to ocean-inspired rooms, Beach Life is the perfect guide for capturing the spirit of the sea and bringing it home with you.
What I thought…
I’m including Beach Life here in my Best of 2024 reviews because it does have a few recipes and because it is a beautiful book. It’s a very mindful book (and possibly demure.) 🙂
Liess opens the book with a story about her young daughter, returning to the beach and stating, “I can feel my summer spirit” (11). Liess is in love with the beach, the vibes, and the spirit of beach towns. She spent her formative summers at the beach (specifically Corolla in the Outer Banks) and meets her future husband there. She married this guy and is raising her five children to love the beach life as much as she does.
The photographs in the book are amazing. (She even shares pictures from her youth) and beachy aphorisms abound.
Some might find this book a little hippy-dippy as Liess goes into discussion at length of the ion effect and how seawater, salt air, the sound of waves, sunshine and experiencing awe resets one’s soul. It makes sense though.
Chapter 2, “Summer Spirit,” is the design chapter. She gives tips on the coastal palette, obtaining an easy, breezy vibe and displaying collections from the sea (and art from the locals). Again, the photos are stellar and would be very helpful when decorating your own beachy home.
Just know that the rest of the book contains more tips on rediscovering and healing at the beach. I really enjoyed the family’s quest to find their own beach property. (We’re trying to find a lake property as well.) Their “Surf Shack” should have been a tear down, but they turned it into “The Lost Cottage.” Liess and her husband had to have vision to see the 800 square foot house as an option for their family of seven. Luckily, she includes a mantra for minimalism in living small and being intentional.
Besides the Surf Shack/Lost Cottage, there’s also photos of Hill Cottage (a larger property they refurbished with partners to rent), the Beach Cabin, a much older island property, and Dune House (a five bedroom ocean front home). The interior of each of these four properties are vastly different but they all retain the charm, serenity, and calm of a good beach house.
The final part of the book is “beach eats.” Liess maintains that dinner at the beach can be a premade salad or a charcuterie/veggie board. No fuss-no muss meal prep. I whole-heartedly concur. But, she does include recipes for avocado-cucumber bites, seafood boil, raw basil oysters, shaved fennel salad, clam linguine, clam chowder, and salmon w/dill sauce. The dill sauce is simplicity at its best: mayo, a “whole bunch of fresh dill,” black pepper, garlic, and lemon.
Besides adapting the beach life to lake life, I had a few other reasons for previewing and reviewing this book. My best friend loves the beach so I thought this would be a great Christmas gift for her. My SiL and BiL just bought a beach house in North Carolina and I knew this would be a great coffee table book for their guests to read while they unwound.
I did order the book for the sister-in-law. I’m still a bit undecided about the best friend gift. Like I said earlier, Beach Life can be a bit hippy-dippy at times and I’m not sure she would appreciate that kind of wisdom. But again, the book in its entirety was all about listening to nature, getting in touch with self, and enjoying life. If that’s hippy-dippy then we all need to listen
I’m ordering it for her too.
It sounds like a good book and I think being a little hippy-dippy is a good thing. Lots of people take life too seriously and miss out on the wonderful things in life. Hopefully your comments has been fixed.