September Must-Haves List

Hello, Friends! Welcome to the second installment of my new series, where I round-up of all my favorite finds, be they recipes, travel destinations, fashion, beauty, and more. Despite the monthly nature of these posts, they’re really quite evergreen. So if you missed the last one, please enjoy it here. 

Life Lately

If you’re new to the blog, let me introduce myself. I’m Raeha Bashyam, the designer of Sun & Sanctuary. I dream up all of our designs and illustrate our prints. This is our first season and I’m (a little stressed) but mostly having a lot of fun on this fashion journey. 

Life lately has consisted of balancing Sun & Sanctuary with planning my wedding. I didn’t realize how intense planning a wedding would be, but even with my very helpful fiance and friends, it’s like having a second job.

This month’s round-up won’t have many wedding related things. I’ll save that for the next one. The wedding has to actually happen before I can give any properly tested recos, haha. If you’re a bride as well, I don’t feel qualified to give you any advice at this point, but I stand with you in solidarity! 

Other than that, this month’s list was inspired by my trip to Ojai, self-care endeavors in preparation for the wedding, and doing Sun & Sanctuary pop-ups for the first time at stylish little markets. Hope you find something here that you love! 

September Must-Haves

1. Read: The Soul of an Octopus

This book was recommended to me by the owned of Magic Hour Tea (which is featured later in this list) and I absolutely loved it. A naturalist takes us on a journey into the world of the mysterious, intelligent octopus. It's an interesting look at a creature who's sees the world in a different way from us. 

If you're looking for a non-fiction summer read, this one's great. 

2. Eat: Good Good Jelly

So many jellies have all this added junk in them, they’re hardly jelly anymore. Good Good jelly is real, natural fruit. I love it on toast and have also been making a sweet and sour sauce by mixing their apricot jam with soy sauce and ginger and putting it over meatballs.

3. Travel: Sunshine Maker's Market in Culver City

This stylish handmade market is in the Helms Design District, which is a cool, historic spot in Culver City. The Helms Bakery was built to supply bread to the people of the 1932 Olympics in Los Angeles. Today it houses a number of home decor and design stores, some delicious restaurants . The new Helms Bakery has reopened that has fantastic drinks and baked goods as well as a market. 1000% recommend. 

The next Sunshine Market is on September 20th, which I will be at. It has fantastic vibes. The other makers there are so nice and have wonderful offerings. For a great weekend afternoon, I recommend lunch at Father's Office, pick up a coffee and dessert at the Helm's Bakery, then shop the Market and enjoy the live music and sunshine. 

Some pics from last month's event:

4. Summer Fashion: Retro Trainers 

A fashion trend I’m really into for summer. Retro style trainers are very in right now and a fun twist on the popular Sambas. I’ve had my eye on these green Larroude ones, because nothing says confidence and style like a fun colored shoe. Here’s a little outfit inspo:

5. Gifting: Magic Hour Tea

My friend introduced me to this tea shop in Ojai, CA. It is truly a magical place! They have a beautiful, witchy store full of amazing teas. They also have a tea cafe there. The vibes are impeccable. I left with their Goddess of Earl Grey Tea. Delicious!

6. Travel: Ojai 

This was my first real trip to Ojai. It’s so beautiful, I definitely recommend it. There are lots be boutique hotels, great restaurants, and wine tasting. The vibes are creative and almost spiritual. It’s surrounded by orchards of orange trees. I go into detail in this blog post, The Best Day Trips from Los Angeles

7. Drink: Sayso Spicy Margarita Mocktail Mix

I’ve been trying to cut down my alcohol consumption, for physical health and soul health reasons. But I love a fun, tasty drink! My dietician recommended this margarita mix. It’s basically a teabag that you soak in water. And it is SO yummy! Definitely hits the spot for sweet, salty, sour cravings. You can add tequila too, if you wish.

8. Health: Withings Scale

If you’re into data and fitness, this scale is hardcore. It’s pricy, but has a lot of cool features. It has handles that you hold onto, to scan your entire body and get not only weight data, but BMI, muscle mass distribution different parts of your body, electrocardiogram readings, and more. I think weight alone does not tell you everything about your health, not even close. This gives more info, which I love, and saves it all into an app so you can track your progress and set health goals. 

9. Beautify: La Roche Posay Double Repair Face Moisturizer 

Recommended by my dermatologist. La roche is a reasonable price and just as good, if not better, than more expensive, “luxury” moisturizers. I’ve been using this cream, and it’s helped a lot with my dry skin.

10. Style: Boho Goddess Makeup

I’m usually a more “natural” makeup girly, but the beautiful sunny weather and intense sunsets have me feeling whimsical. I’ve been incorporating more sparkle into my eye makeup and wanted to share the inspo pics I’ve rounded up. Check out this blog post for all the ideas.

11. Boho Fashion: Poolside Purses

I’m really into fun purses lately and wanted to channel some mermaid vibes. This shell purse from Poolside is my obsession. I love all their purses for boho, tropical looks.

12. Pucker Up: Chantecaille Lip Chic Lipstick in Sari Rose

My wedding makeup artist, Holly, has all the good recs. She turned me on to this lipstick and it’s my new favorite. A lot of lipstick dries out my lips, but this one is so rich and moisturizing. It has a shine and is sort of sheer. I like putting it over a more saturated lip liner.

Sun & Sanctuary Best Sellers

And that’s the list for September! Hope you enjoy these finds. Stay tuned for next month’s list by joining our newsletter for updates. 

If you want more now, be sure to check out last month’s round-up for more fashion and lifestyle inspo. 

This post contains some affiliate links. If you click them and make a purchase, I may receive a commission, which helps fund this blog. I only recommend products I’ve actually tried and truly love.

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