We find ourselves in November with leafless trees and grayer days just moments (it seems) after the longest fall I’ve ever experienced. And by that I mean, sunny days, gloriously warm temperatures, and perfect fall foliage. But November has its own beauty, inside and out.

I’ve been buying Cut Loose for myself for decades because I’ve always appreciated natural fibers and simple styles that fit well. I’m so excited to be able to now share it with you in our shop! This brand, sewn and dyed in San Francisco, is a cult favorite that started as a stall in a farmer’s market that sold one size tshirts. Since then, it has evolved into a line of clothing that you can feel good in and about. As the name suggests, the vibe is flowy, the styles are simple yet contain unique details and the colors are simply amazing.

I don’t know what it is about fitting rooms in a store, but they can cause the angsty-est feelings to come ashore. (Did I just do a poem? About dressing rooms?)

It’s been a slow and easy January for me. We didn’t get any snow until after Christmas and when we got it we really got it! Here’s my happy place all decked out with a zillion snowflakes.

Somehow, over the winter, I found myself caught up in the social media world of dressing dos and don’ts. Have you been down this rabbit hole? To tuck or not to tuck. Different ways to tuck, depending on your body type. Colors to wear and not to wear. Doesn’t matter if you like that color, if it’s not “yours'“, you shouldn’t wear it. Long over short, short over long, wide over skinny, skinny over wide…do this, not that. At first, I was captivated.

I first signed my LLC into reality on April 19, 2000, so we’re celebrating our 23rd year this year! Or is it 24 - things like that are very confusing to me. No matter what - it’s a lot of years and I’m happy to be returning to Suttons Bay again. It’s such a sweet little town, with, in my humble opinion, the best shopping in the area. Every shop there seems to have its own unique identity and I often hear people talking about this in my shop. “So many cute shops!!” Yes, I agree. And, thanks to you all, we’ll be back in the swing of things on April 8th!

As soon as the store closed at the end of 2022, we started to clean and paint. I always like to get everything cleared out and really go to town with the cleaning. It’s not my favorite thing, but ewwww….things get dirty over the course of a season.

Obviously a fizzy fragrant delight of a bomb, dissolved in a pleasantly delicious warm bath, can create an hour’s worth (ok, that’s just me) of peace. But can it change your life? No. But maybe yes?

While the season is underway, there isn’t much time to think, let alone blog, but that’s when all the fun stuff is happening, so I’ll leave a few pictures here in case you weren’t able to experience the summer in northern Michigan. Our windows tell the story of what is going on inside the store, so I’m including all of our store windows from June through October. The summer was perfect, by the way. I didn’t hear any complaints about the weather - and I usually do!

We did a lot of work this winter on the, shall we say, shell of the store. I had some ideas and, then I asked Nancy to look at my ideas, and then we changed my ideas…for the better. There was a little bit of painting, a whole lot of moving stuff around, some floor covering purchases, and some annual deep cleaning. And then we went to Florida and then Sue and I priced until we dropped and then Kerry and I opened the store on Saturday, April 9th. A stellar day, by the way, including cookies made by my sweet sister-in-law Ann.

After two years, we’ve decided to continue our annual departure from Michigan to sunnier areas (we hope!) We are taking my mom and dad with us and spending two weeks in AMI, FL, also known as the Michigan of the South.

Is April really the cruelest month Mr. T. S. Eliot? I’m casting my vote for February: it’s cold, it’s kind of snow dirty, it’s gray, it’s got no game. The only thing it has going for it? It’s short! Ok, Ok, if I’m being honest, it’s always pretty in Leelanau County, even when the snow is dirty. But still!!

Every January - March, I take a break. Part of it’s the weather (BAD!), part of it is the need to recharge and rest, and a big part of it is something else.

Here at The Happy Woman, we are partial to all things Galentine’s Day, celebrated on February 13th, not 14th. It’s a time to show some love to your gal pals, the ones who share a glass of wine with you at the end of a crappy day, the ones who show up for you at 3 am, those that lift your spirits and celebrate your joys and share your grief. We’ve got some ideas for you!