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Get ready — Thanksgiving is over and Hanukkah, Christmas and Kwanzaa are only weeks away.

Get set — put on your shopping shoes and load your friends in the car.

Go — daylight is burning. All those great day-after-Thanksgiving bargains are going, going, almost gone.

But wait just one minute — think "color" as you join the throng of holiday shoppers. And we're not talking solely about red and green.

Who says dusty lavender, juniper, golden apricot, tiger lily and blue sapphire aren't holiday colors?

We sure don't. Who doesn't need a zing of color in their life? Come on, spice it up.

The person you're shopping for — even if that person is you — will likely appreciate something bright, beautiful and colorful.

Days are shorter and colder. The world outside is bleak and blah.

You can rebel — but you don't necessarily have to be all James Dean about it. Even small splashes of color can help brighten a mood.

A pretty red vase, a bright blue sweater or a necklace with colors that pop can help counteract the winter doldrums.

What do you have to lose? Hang up your brown or black winter coat and try on one that's tangerine or turquoise.

Here are a few colorful things we found:

Multi-color Murano glass necklace from The Look (521 E. 5th St, Dayton) by Venetian artist Maria Papalova,

$145.

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Various colored flannel kids sleep bottoms ($12.50) from Old Navy, 2700 Miamisburg-Centerville Road, Miamisburg and 2720 Towne Drive, Beavercreek.

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Mila Brown glassware from Galan's Fine Gifts (6125 Far Hills Avenue, Centerville ) — red centerpiece, $59; tall red vase, $87; 10-inch hurricane-shaped vase, $28; and 16-inch hurricane-shaped vase, $79.

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Hasbro red i-Dog from Target (various Miami Valley locations ), $27.99.

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Young Essence coat, $159;

KC Malhan purse, $29;

Elizabeth Brady bracelet, $49; Karin's Garden headband, $49 and My Destiny glass beaded key chain, $25, from pieces of Style (67A S. Main St., Centerville).

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Hybrid beallara orchid plant from Oberer's Flowers (1448 Troy St., Dayton), $29.95.

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Sleep Mask Gift Set by Mary Green ($48) and available at figleaves.com.