It was beautiful on Friday so my friend and I headed down to 1st Avenue in Seattle to do what I call a shopping walk. In my line of work I have to know where to shop for what and that makes this a work effort but also, for me, a lot of fun. So, as often as I can I pick a neighborhood, put on my walking shoes and head out to see what is new. I love the casual part of it because it also lends itself to the discovery of which shops are friendly to "looky loos" and which shops are only paying attention if you are dressed to the nines. I prefer the ones who are friendly no matter how I'm dressed and Friday was no exception.

We parked the car in Belltown and crossing back and forth tried to hit most stores on 1st that were relevant to clothing or fashion. It was the usual spring stuff everywhere we went until we hit upon Sandylew (1408 1st Avenue). The first thing I noticed when we entered was that the line right below her store name said, "having fun getting dressed." For me, that's what it's all about and so I was intrigued.

The showroom (and yes, it feels like a showroom, not a store) is full of beautiful pieces that can be worn together or separately. You can truly embrace any style in this store and make it your own. With pieces from ART, Elm Design, Noblu and Shirobu to name just a few, you can find your sense of style with little effort and yes, a lot of fun. I'm a jeans and t shirt kind of gal much of the time but I loved the gorgeous coats, dusters and layering pieces that could be worn year round in our climate that were different than anything I have seen recently. If you like mixing things up, this could be a new treasure for you.

The owner, Sandy was in and along with her staff, Colleen, spent time talking to us about the lines and her view on dressing women's bodies. It's unusual to find a boutique that can cater to women of all sizes but here we were! Sandy's idea is that she really wants people to come in and try on things to see the difference. I found that refreshingly different from some boutiques where you feel pressure to buy what you try on. There was no hard sale, no haughty attitude but there was fun... getting dressed.

I cannot wait to head back downtown to try on some looks I saw that I thought would be great for travel next year. My friend is going back to purchase the leggings she tried on that were the perfect length.

Every now and then an unusual store comes along and when you step in you feel like you landed in another country or at the very least someplace with a different view. This is that store and I invite you to take a look.