GRAPHICALLY Speaking

You know those Mondays when you wake up feeling refreshed and ready to tackle anything that may come your way? Well, it's one of those Monday's for me! 

What a terrific weekend! For the first time in months, I felt I was able to rest and truly have a weekend. Granted, I did work for a few hours but I was able to spend time with my family, do some inspiring retail therapy (see below for more), lie in for an extra hour, and sip my coffee slowly while watching the morning transpire.

Going to a mall and shopping for me is stressful in general. My anxiety heightens and I feel it's a robotic process which we have all fallen into. It's so false and pretentious. We no longer have connections with shop owners or have access to beautifully made pieces which were constructed with love and care. I therefore savor my little cash bank and when the time is right, I make my way to select stores, in non-peak hour times and hope to have a pleasant experience. So it was with great delight when my mum and I came to encounter wonderful shop owners who took their time to speak with us and give us their undivided attention. And with every store, I gravitated toward bold, graphical pieces which were screaming to me and exhilarated my creative senses. From greeting cards (Typo never let's me down) to fabrics (I was very adventurous with my purchases), I could not wait to start my work day and pull from the weekend's inspiration.

My FAVORITE find of all was a gorgeous little store called The Space. It's a "breath of art" and offers a unique arena for local South African designers. The pieces were so fresh and I found 2 blouses which I am in love with. The shop assistant | owner (a designer himself) was one of the nicest people I have met and we shared stories about his Mauritian decent and the suburb we discovered we all reside in. It was his unhurried presence and time he spent with us which made the experience so much better.

So today, take time for others and yourself. Look around and be inspired by the world and your local community. You will be pleasantly surprised by what you find.