Cruise Season!

As you were prowling what’s left of department stores’ after-holiday sales, you must have noticed that bikinis and board shorts were starting to appear on the racks nestled between the gloves and acrylic sweaters. Why are they there, you ask – surely this is not the beginning of summer! And you would be correct, in the coming weeks stores such as Barney’s, Bendel’s, Bloomingdale’s, Nordstrom and (gasp!) Macy’s will rollout all that’s adorable for spring, but in the gap between Holiday and Spring seasons is an intermittent one: Cruise Season. And let me tell you, it’s easily my favorite. Cruise Season is the five weeks after New Year’s when it’s fashionable to jet off to a resort. If it’s 5 degrees in NYC, then what’s better than a week in the Maldives? Or the Seychelles! Frégate Island, anyone? [Don’t spread that secret around, or it’ll get ruined.]

I find it rather fantastic that a certain class of designers makes a miniature collection of clothing specifically for this mini-season. An entire line of clothes just for vacation! What’s most fascinating is that clothes designed for Cruise Season simply do not work for summer. How is that even possible, they’re hot weather clothes??? The way these collections are designed is specific to the feel of being away during the winter! The colors, the patterns, but most of all it’s about the magic of being away after the holidays have already passed. That, my friends, is honest luxury. Some people go skiing at this time of year; some have a hankering for the beach, others need both. Guess which group I belong to?

For most, this is seemingly a glimpse into a completely different way of living. But that is exactly what makes Cruise Season so great - this is something full-grown adults can aspire to. Even if you’re just regarding advertisements in magazines depicting glossy and fabulous versions of life, that is far more important than mere daydreams. These aspirations, thoughts and desires have the ability to change something in you. Thoughts can spark more creative ways of thinking that can help you achieve goals you previously thought unattainable. That’s what thought can do - it doesn’t have to be a silly waste of time. And let’s be honest, in these troubled economic times, how else are we supposed to pull ourselves up from our bootstraps without more creativity? So go to Frégate Island, even if it’s only in your dreams! [Seriously, don’t tell everybody about our place – can’t we keep it special?] Just pay attention to the way these thoughts make you feel, who knows where that may take you...

Happy New Year. Get yours!

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