We love summer, as a brand that lives by the ocean in Rhode Island, if we could do away with winter and just live in the sand and the sun we would. We hold onto this season with the tightest grip. As a New Englander, I know that winter is inevitable, but summer in Rhode Island is something special, so this blog post is a love letter to our 2026 summer in Rhode Island so that when it's bitter cold with snow on the ground in winter, we can look back and fell all the summer vibes.
The Beach
There are so many beaches to love in Rhode Island. My favorite is when I wake up early enough to go on a morning walk with the sunrise. It's the most peaceful way to experience Rhode Island's coastline in the summer. Less people, fewer cars, and sometimes, if you're really lucky, you're the only one there.
The beach during the day is a whole other vibe. Still a wonderful sight to see, but it's more of your typical summer on the coast experience. The sunscreen smell that gets into everything for the rest of the day. The gritty feeling of sand that never fully leaves the car. The walk back up from the water when your skin is tight with salt and sun, and the only thing that feels right afterward is something cool and slippery on your arms and legs which is, not coincidentally, exactly why we make what we make.
The Mornings Before Anyone Else Is Awake
There's a particular kind of Rhode Island morning that only exists in summer — cool enough that you still want coffee, warm enough that you don't need a sweater to drink it outside. We've had more than a few of those this year, sitting on the porch before the day gets going, watching the fog burn off over the water in the distance.
These mornings move slowly on purpose. No agenda beyond the coffee and whatever the tide is doing. It's the closest thing to stillness we get all year, and it makes the rest of the day — however busy it turns out to be — feel like it started from somewhere calm.
Roadside Stands and Whatever's in Season
Rhode Island summer has a flavor, and it's not just oysters. Some of the best farms and produce in New England some from the Rhode Island coast. I absolutely love how so many Rhode Island residents have little honor system farm stands. I've made a habit this year of stopping at every farm stand we pass, even the ones we don't need anything from, because I love supporting the local economy and anything that comes from nature.
On the flip side, Rhode Island also has some of the best seafood in the world. Clam cakes, oysters, and chowder are the best way to start a meal. I've recently been on a hunt for the best stuffies and I'm still trying may restaurants on my list. Fish markets run by families, generations of history, and of course lobster, are just some of the reasons why I love eating by the sea.
Evenings That Don't Want to End
Rhode Island summer evenings have their own particular light and the sky is the most beautiful watercolor you've ever seen. Things slow down at night, wether that's because we are all tired from playing in the waves all day, or shopping in Newport, nighttime is a slow moment in the day.
These are the evenings where nobody's in a hurry to go inside. Where dinner happens outside because it can, and stays outside long after the plates are cleared, because the air finally feels good enough to just sit in. There's a version of self-care that has nothing to do with products or routines and everything to do with simply not rushing a good evening along, and Rhode Island summer evenings are where we practice that most.
Salt Air, Sunburned Shoulders, and the Rituals That Come With Both
Every summer here leaves its marks, in the best way. Salt-stiff hair. A little more sun on the shoulders than we probably should have gotten. Feet that have gone soft from bare pavement and sand instead of shoes. And every summer, the evening ritual that goes with it: rinsing off the day, and then the part that actually matters — slowing down enough to take care of skin that's spent all day in sun and salt water and wind.
This is the season Solette formulas were built for, honestly. Something rich enough to undo a day of sun and salt, but light enough that you're not sitting there waiting for it to sink in. The best after beach combo is our body scrub used in the shower (an outdoor shower if you have access will change your life) followed by our luxurious body butter.
White Sands + Seaspray Luxury Body Butter
$30.00
Luxury Shea Body Butter Your skin will be so happy once it meets our thick and creamy body butter. Our non-greasy formula is one of the thickest you'll find and keeps your skin hydrated throughout the day. Natural glycerin draws… read more
Holding On, On Purpose
We know how this ends. Every New Englander does. There's a day sometime in September where the air changes just slightly, and you know, even if nothing else has changed yet, that the season is turning. We don't try to pretend that's not coming. We just try to notice, on purpose, every single thing about this stretch of the year while we still have it — the sand that won't fully vacuum out of the car, the tomatoes that taste like nothing from a grocery store ever will, the light at seven o'clock that makes the whole coastline look like it's made of gold.
So this is our 2026 summer in Rhode Island, written down so we don't lose it. When the snow comes — and it will — we're going to open this post back up, and for just a minute, it'll smell like salt air and sunscreen again.
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