I mentioned how pleased I was with the color of the year, Radiant Orchid. The thought of plummy pinks and purples being all over the stores just fills me up with excitement and anticipation; I love purple – wearing it, being around it, soaking up the purpley vibe. This week has been busy with working on some new upcoming patterns, and I needed a morning off – so, why wait to seek out some purple inspiration? I do consider shopping to be recreational, and by “shopping,” I certainly do not necessarily mean “buying.” For me, it’s all about going to look around, touch things, and find a little eye candy. If I actually need something specific, I’m more than likely to buy online – and that’s not quite “shopping” but more like “acquiring things I need.”  The really real shopping is all about going out of my everyday environment and seeing what sort of fabulous thing I might discover. One of my favorite subsets of shopping is thrifting, because there’s no better way to find . . .