Table of Contents: Heat Waves

What’s the happiest way to confront the heat of August? Join us for a week of beach umbrellas, coastal cottage living, swimming pools, and secrets from gardeners in Greece.

Above: Visit this idyllic stretch of South Africa’s coastline in Oystercatchers’ Haven: A Whitewashed Hideaway. Photograph by Marie Viljoen.

Monday

• Jump in, the water’s fine. And the architecture is even finer. Meredith visits a California coast classic swimming pool in this week’s Architect Visit.

Tuesday

• Feel that breeze? It’s so much cooler at the shore when there’s a little shade; we’ve rounded up our favorite beach umbrellas in this week’s 10 Easy Pieces.
• Nobody knows how to handle heat better than a gardener in Greece, and we’ll be passing along top tips in this week’s Garden Ideas to Steal post.

Wednesday

• We did not work up even the slightest bit of a sweat making this week’s DIY Project, an instant summer hammock.

Thursday

• Boardwalk? Sculpture? Climbing frame? Garden feature? It’s Super Bench, and Christine has the story. Meanwhile, see more of our favorite outdoor seating in 10 Easy Pieces: Outdoor Benches.

Friday

• A beachfront cottage where you can put your feet in the sand indoors or out is our Outbuilding of the Week.