Etsom·ni·a (/etˈsämnēə/), noun, 1. a sleep disorder caused by obsessive Etsy browsing. 2. The surprising arrival of weird handmade merchandise ordered when one is only half conscious. (True story.) 3. An excuse for me to be an obnoxious, snarky New Yorker once per week.

Pair of Pantone prints above by LapinMarket.

This year, Pantone has once again decided it’s a tie! The colors of the year are Pantone Illuminating and Ultimate Gray. Taken together, the two colors look to me like the contrasts that make up our human experience: play and work, joy and struggle, sunshine and rain, liberal and conservative. Pantone says the combination is meant to give us hope. Better days are coming. After yesterday, I’m relieved to hear that. I certainly hope they are right.

I am not generally a big fan of yellow, but when set off by such a stylish gray, I can’t help but admire it. My Etsy search for items incorporating both of these colors really surprised me. Even the goofier items were kind of cute. Since I didn’t find anything terrible this week, we’re starting the new year with a whole lot of wonderful, at least on Etsomnia™!

For more Etsy fun, check out all my weekly Etsomnia™ posts!