Soir de Fête

2009-09-08T12:06:00.000-07:00

started over:

http://trois-douze.blogspot.com/

(check it out some time, if you like)

The end has no end

2009-05-09T07:12:00.000-07:00

From this day on, there will be no more updates on Soir de Fete.

A very sincere merci beacoup for all your wonderful comments over the past year ♥ Receiving so much kindness and support has been a true joy!

In case you're interested, you can still find me at http://rememo.tumblr.com/

Flickr Favourites

2009-03-11T07:19:00.000-07:00

sources can be found here

Tomorrow!

2009-02-20T11:28:00.000-08:00

2009-02-04T09:07:00.000-08:00

I'm going to take a break from blogspot for a little while.

In the meantime you can find me at:

http://rememo.tumblr.com/

xxx

I'm just waiting 'til the shine wears off...

2009-01-26T02:05:00.000-08:00

Ok, so it has taken me forever to write a new post, but here it is:

First of all, Paris was great. The hotel was amazing as it's location was utterly convenient, and it's interior made me feel like I was sleeping in a giant Versaillesque dollhouse. I already showed you some of the photographs I took in the previous post (and thanks everyone for leaving such nice comments about them!) and here are a couple more: http://www.flickr.com/photos/carbon_monoxide/

When I returned from Paris, having bought nothing more than some underwear and a striped cardigan, I convinced myself that it was ok to indulge in some (online) shopping to acquire those much needed essentials. Like a pair of creme coloured converse sneakers for spring (haven't owned a pair of those in years), a couple of lightweight v necks, and a loose silk cardigan. Yet I still feel like I'm nowhere near wardrobe completion. Sometimes I think that I'm never going to reach the point of having that perfect wardrobe I'm so "desperately" aiming for...

I've also been once again thinking about which direction I want my 'style' to take this year (typing that out makes it sound so silly) and to be honest, I don't think it's going to change much from where it's been going during the past year. I think I have a pretty solid idea of what I like these days, and therefor I've decided that I can afford a bit of experimenting. So now I'm kind of contemplating on how I should do that. The idea is to add some sort of 'bold' piece of clothing or accessory to my wardrobe.

One potential candidate is this skirt from APC's spring collection. I love it's colour and the shape of those pockets is pretty magnificent, but it's 100% woolen and I think paying 130 euros for a woolen skirt that's meant to be worn during spring and summer isn't exactly the most sensible thing to do.

On a totally different note, has anyone checked out the Vanessa Bruno website lately? If you haven't, you really should, because it's a little piece of heaven. The new campaign featuring Lou Doillon is so stunning! And I simply love the new Athe collection! The colours, the designs, it's wonderful ♥

4 days in Paris

2009-01-20T03:45:00.001-08:00

1. Reaumur Sebastopol, 2. Blanche, 3. Champs de Mars, 4. Anvers deux, 5. Rambuteau, 6. Hotel de Ville, 7. Anvers, 8. Pigalle, 9. Louvre Rivoli, 10. Tuilleries, 11. Arts et Metiers, 12. Reaumur Sebastopol trois, 13. Palais Royal - Musee du Louvre, 14. Sevres Babylone, 15. Reaumur Sebastopol deux, 16. Hotel de Roubaix

more at http://www.flickr.com/photos/carbon_monoxide

Je depart a Paris

2009-01-15T00:10:00.000-08:00

If I were a religious person I'd probably be shouting something along the lines of 'praise the lord' right now, because the trip to Paris is definitely taking place. So I'll be leaving tomorrow and we'll be sleeping in the cutest little hotel ever! It even has floral wallpapers and tiny little balcony's.

I did, however, spend a significant part of my savings for this trip on a pair of boots last week. Yes shame on me, but they're beautiful and very similar to the boots from the Kooples I wanted so badly, so in a way there's no real harm done.

***

Today Mango will release Sandrina Fasoli's exclusive collection in selected stores on the European continent (that includes Paris). I think this collection is quite wonderful and I would love to get my hands on one of these pretty blouses. Or trousers for that matter.

I realise my posts have been very unfrequent lately and I promiss I'll write an 'enormous' entry about the trip (and I will also catch up with/respond to everyone's lovely comments) as soon as I get back!

Au revoir!

From the rooftops I remember, there was snow..

2009-01-06T01:52:00.000-08:00

Last week, just when I thought my bad travel karma was a thing of the past, I received an email from the travel agency saying that the Paris trip was cancelled due to a lack of demand. I could, however, reschedule the trip, which would mean we'd have to go a day later. I reluctantly did so, as the only other option was to not go to Paris at all. Unfortunately they couldn't give me a guarantee for this trip to actually take place either, or at least not until a week before the departure date.
Well that's just fantastic, isn't it? Now I'm anxiously checking my mail every hour, worrying that this trip get's cancelled as well. So much for looking forward to Paris.

With all this 'drama' going on, I felt like I had no other choice than to comfort myself with buying the Athé Vanessa Bruno dress I mentioned earlier. I received it a couple of days ago and it really is as perfect as I'd imagined it to be. I know I'll be wearing it a lot during spring and summer and it's really versatile as it can be worn as both a dress and a top.

As long as we're on the topic of what to wear, I feel like every year, at the beginning of the year, I have this huge crisis when it comes to getting dressed in the morning. I all of a sudden feel the need to reinvent myself, and revive my wardrobe, even when there's actually nothing wrong with it (as would be the case right now) It's probably because of the holidays, I'm telling you, those black sequins and glitter tights are the devil's spawn. After being surrounded by them for a week or so, I am tempted to dress up like some sparkly party decoration EVERY DAY, even and especially when there's no reason for celebration. I'm sure that come February this severe case of discofever will have died down, but until then, I shall have to try very hard to refrain myself from clicking the 'add to basket' button whenever I come across something glittery on the web.

Since yesterdaymorning the streets have been covered in at least 15cm's of snow, don't think that has happened in the the last five years. And it's cold, freezing cold. I'm glad there are such things as moonboots because without them I probably would have already lost a toe or two to frostbite. Especially since my bloodcirculation is so messed up. Anyway, I'll be glad when spring starts and brings along some warmer weather.

Before I forget, you might have noticed that I replaced the header, I'm not sure yet if I should keep this one or switch back to the old one, what do you think?

January picks

2009-01-01T07:08:00.000-08:00

People & Things I like/love/adore/admire:

Hanna Müller's drawings

Apc's ss '09 boots

Sofia Coppola

red lipstick

the beginning of a new year

santogold - L.E.S. artistes

this photograph

planning future travels

collecting books

nina ricci dresses

happy new year everyone!

2008-12-25T01:13:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas everyone!

Ragged Wood

2008-12-18T01:52:00.000-08:00

Before I start this post I would like to say thanks for all your lovely comments ♥♥♥
Due to personal circumstances I haven't exactly had a lot of time to blog but reading all your wonderful responses really cheers me up!

December picks:

Cozy warm winterwear

Fleet Foxes:
discovered them only days ago but I already love love love their music!

making wishlists for Paris:

(repetto, the kooples, vanessa bruno athe)

Receiving awards:

"This blog invests and believes in the PROXIMITY-nearness in space, time and relationships. These blogs are exceeding charming.
These kind bloggers aim to find and be friends.
They are not interested in prizes or self-aggrandizement!
Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut,
even more friendships are propagated.
Please give more attention to these writers!
Deliver this award to eight bloggers who must choose eight more
and include this clever-written text into the body of their award."

anna karenina, jane and mirthe gave me this wonderful award! I'm terribly flattered and honoured! You really are too kind ♥

I want to pass it on to mettch, the-search-for-chic, margot, heart-in-a-cage and Robine!

In addition I got tagged by Ariella, thanks for that! Will answer that tag in a later post ;)

And a special thanks to Mila for this pretty award <3

winterwonderland:

December's here

2008-12-07T01:36:00.000-08:00

Bonjour everyone!

Last thursday I bought the most wonderful wallet at Zara. I had been eyeing this particular wallet for quite some time and I'm glad I actually took the bold step of purchasing it!

A couple of weeks ago I discovered this blog http://abbytrysagain.typepad.com/abbytryagain/ and it's been a favorite ever since. This girl's photographs are just so stunning and pretty!

The good thing about having a mother with a mild form of amnesia is the fact that you could end up receiving birthday gifts days after your actual birthday. At least that's what happened to me. Saturday my mother came into my room with a huge package, apologising for the fact that she had completely forgotten about this particalur gift and just came across it while she was arranging her closet. It turned out to be the giant cupcake shaped teapot I'd been lusting over for weeks!

Yesterday a friend of mine told me about this awesome Keri Smith project aka the Portable tree. If you don't mind getting glue all over your hands and you kinda like the idea of having a cute little christmas tree, I'd suggest you just give it a go! I made one yesterday and it was a lot of fun. I think I might make another one (or five) You can find the tree at: http://www.kerismith.com/funstuff/portable_tree.pdf

Have a great day!

Ulysses

2008-11-29T00:27:00.000-08:00

I assumed I would have some more time to write this post, but I've been working on a time consuming history essay all morning, I still need to bake a pie, and I have to make sure I'm ready for my birthday party tonight! So unfortunately this post won't be as elaborate as I promised yesterday. To get back to your comments, the concert was indeed fantastic, they played for more than an hour, although I wouldn't have minded if they played all night. And I got to see Alex Kapranos up close, eventhough at first we didn't even realise it was him, which was quite confusing and funny at the same time. Anyway, they did this great drum routine (something pretty similar to this) at the end of their song Outsiders which was unbelievably cool.

On a completely different note, last weekend we had our first days of snow here in the Netherlands. I just loved it! I've always enjoyed snow, it reminds me of Christmas, which is my absolute favourite holiday of the year. Talking about Christmas, I've already started listening to christmas songs on my ipod. George and Mariah are my new best friends for the next few weeks.

Wednesday I'll be turning 21, the magical number. As an early gift to myself I bought a new camera! It's a Sony Alpha 200 DSLR and it's perfect.

her are some new flickr favourites:

1. Frozen Sunset, 2. happy birthday, katie!, 3. Such a perfect day, 4. polaroad, 5. Untitled, 6. Untitled, 7. Sofia Coppola, 8. Untitled, 9. Untitled

that's all for now! will try to respond to everyone's comments asap and I hope everyone has a fantastic weekend!

Take me Out

2008-11-28T03:46:00.000-08:00

(source)

Last night I went to see Franz Ferdinand perform and they were mindblowingly brilliant!

check back tomorrow for a more elaborate post ;)

November 20th

2008-11-20T00:00:00.000-08:00

I just realised that I still need to catch up with two tags I received a while ago. I was tagged by two lovely girls, Amy from the-shades-of-black and M from cross my heart and kiss my elbow. Thank you so much for that!

For these tags I need to list 6 unimportant things that make me happy. (I've answered this one before, but you can never think of too many happy things can you?)

So here we go again:

* watching Will & Grace
I can watch every single episode over and over again without ever getting sick of their jokes!

* eating yoghurtgums
the best kind of candy there is

* listening to Ray LaMontagne's music
I've only recently discovered his music but I'm already deeply in love with his voice and lyrics. If you're not familiar with his music yet I would really recommend it!

1. its fall in the leaves, 2. incomplete metamorphosis, 3. Untitled, 4. Sleepwalking VI., 5. Smoking Kills, 6. red, 7. Untitled, 8. Untitled, 9. silhouette
* coming across beautiful photographs on flickr

* rearranging my closet
there's something weirdly relaxing and therapeutic about rearranging things

* making lists
lists of movies I've seen, places I want to visit, purchases, wishlists, things to do, things I like, in my book there's a list for everything

Now that's done, I reckoned it was a good idea to dedicate the rest of this post to a bunch of random things:

Like the fact that I really like these outfits:

And that I should watch these movies again, soon!

How I want this bag from Topshop, despite the fact that I think it's a bit overpriced. It looks so roomy and beautiful, and the colour is just perfect!

Also, my birthday is coming up in less than 3 weeks but, as always, I haven't got a clue about what gifts I should ask for. So any recommendations would be deeply appreciated!

Last but not least, a very sincere thank you for all your wonderful comments ♥

Miss Brightside

2008-11-13T01:58:00.000-08:00

Do you know the feeling of how sometimes everything in life seems to be going your way? Having a general feeling of being ok taking over? When little things start making you happy again? Well, whether you do or don't -and I hope everyone does-, it's a great feeling. It really is.

And some of those little things that do the trick are Gia Coppola's photographs, a last name that seems to be synonymous to endless visual talent.

To my utter joy, our trip to Paris is finally booked! So I made this collage of my favourite flickr photographs of Paris, just to get in the Parisian mood:

1. Paris, 2. moulinrouge, 3. Paris!, 4. Sacre Coeur, 5. itookthisinparis, 6. les enfants de paris 02, 7. Moulin Rouge, 8. Untitled, 9. Untitled

***

And look what I got in the mail! Isn't it pretty? ;) I must sound like a silly fangirl by now, but seriously, this is going to be the best concert I've ever been to, I can just feel it!

Flickr Favourites

2008-11-09T04:44:00.000-08:00

1. Untitled, 2. Above Austria, 3. in the woods, 4. andrew cheyenne, 5. Untitled, 6. process, 7. Untitled, 8. Untitled, 9. 1

A bit of joy

2008-11-05T07:37:00.001-08:00

http://www.flickr.com/photos/smarsham/2361691506/

Today has been a marvelous day filled with fantastic happenings. First waking up and hearing about Obama's well deserved victory -I'm beyond excited! I was so nervous last night, I even had butterflies in my stomach- and then finding out that KOL will finally be giving a concert in the Netherlands!

Sometimes life is simply wonderful ♥

Now it's November

2008-11-02T01:53:00.000-07:00

First of all, thanks again for your wonderful comments and suggestions! Reading them always brings a smile to my face! To answer the most asked question: the trousers are from H&M, hence the pretty pricetag.
Also, someone asked me about the fur jacket. Well, I can assure you that it's a faux one. I am disgusted by real fur and would never wear it.

Obviously, I felt like writing a post today, but I didn't really have a clue of what it should be about. So I figured I'd just start by sharing some new purchases with you (however boring that might be).
Thursday I went to a thriftstore and there I found these pretty camera's. Eventhough I already own a polaroid sx 70 camera, this one came with an external flash, so I couldn't possibly pass it up!
As I was so happy with my subscription to Vogue Paris, I decided to subscribe to Jalouse as well. There's just something about French magazines that appeals to me (you know, the certain je ne sais qoui factor ;)). And they're amazingly cheap, even when you take in the pretty high shipping rates. I already mentioned my new dvdbox in my last post and then there's Bulgakov's the Master and Margarita. It's such an amazing book, but unfortunately, I never got the chance, or took the time, to finish it. I'm sure that now it's waiting in my bookcase, that will happen soon though.

No explanation needed:

1. #13, 2. Real Big Swing, 3. aoi_yu_dandelion_008.jpg, 4. Untitled, 5. LastLeti, 6. nice hat, 7. Cold City - Paranoia, 8. untitled, 9. Untitled

A while ago some of you asked me about my paper cranes, well here they are:

Last but not least, I was wondering, is there something else you want to see on this blog? Or perhaps something you'd like to see more of? Is there a topic you would like me to dedicate a post to? I'd love to hear some of your thoughts as inspiration seems to be running a bit low these days.

Hope you have a happy sunday!!

Wednesday

2008-10-29T05:51:00.000-07:00

As the unexpectedly wise Forrest Gump once said, life is like a box of chocolates. Those words seem particularly true today. After ~~wasting~~ spending an hour at the local optician I decided that I deserved something tasty and bought a golden box filled with delicious Belgian chocolates. Then when I came home I found a little package on the kitchen table, in it was a dvd box, containing the whole first season of Jericho, aka one of my all time favourite series! So my afternoon turned out to be quite pleasant. Ok that must have sounded completely random, but so be it.

Apart from the above, there's actually some more good news, although I have to say, nothing's certain yet. It seems that I'll be visiting my chere Paris pretty soon! Together with my mother I am planning a trip and if all goes well (fingers crossed) we will be going there somewhere by the end of january/beginning of february. As a late birthday trip pour moi. So I reckon there will be a lot of shopping involved! I'm already saving up some money.

Here are some more beautiful photographs from flickr I felt like sharing with you:

1. Untitled, 2. sx70229s, 3. no, 4. Untitled, 5. Where's Erick 3, 6. 開拔, 7. T o u c h i n g ., 8. Casting Spells., 9. Untitled

Last friday I went to Antwerpen and there I bought this rather interesting pair of trousers. They were on sale and for only 20 euros I figured I could just as well give them a try. But now I'm experiencing some creative difficulties when it comes to how to wear them. So your ideas are more than welcome!

October Road

2008-10-28T04:55:00.000-07:00

Bonjour everyone!

Let's start with the tag that was given to me by the oh so cute and very kind tea drinking english rose. Thank you!

the rules are: mention the person who nominated you. list 6 unimportant things that make you happy. tag 5 blogs. state the rules. notify them with a teeny comment on their blog that they have been nominated.

1. cuddling with my bunny
2. pink skies
3. watch a polaroid photograph develop
4. driving on the highway while listening to my favourite music
5. being able to stuff myself with what seems to be an endless amount of chinese food
6. planning future travels

And I'll nominate heart in a cage, mila, margot, cleolikesyou and jess!

October picks
this month's favourites:

- origami cranes
I've been folding a huge amount of cranes these past few weeks in order to make an origami mobile. I'm not done yet but I'm sure it will turn out magnificently!

- watching globe trekker
my latest addiction. 4 times a day is not nearly often enough to keep my constant hunger for new countries satisfied. If there would be something like a globe trekker channel, I'd be sitting behind the tv 24/7.

- peel apart polaroids
these brilliant photographs have something so enormously charming about them, but unfortunately the price is a bit less agreeable. Luckily there's flickr.

- aquaria
I love the underwater world. Dolphins, coloured fish, squids, they're all so lovely and intriguing to look at.

- fall leaves
the weather may be cold and wet, but at least the trees are dressed in the most magnificent colours. And how much fun is it to go for a walk in the woods and come home with a whole bunch of colourful and beautifully shaped leaves?

- cropped (faux) fur jackets
I. Like. Them. Got one myself this week. Hate the real ones though.

- birds
There's something about birds I find so beautiful. I just love looking at them. Or at pictures of them. Or drawings. Or whatever other shape or form they come in.

- wall decoration
Posters, postcards, drawings, as long as you can put it on a wall, I like it.

- this fantastic editorial

photos from flickr (click on image for the link), theselby.com, thefashionspot and moi meme

And thank you for all your kind comments! I will respond to them ASAP!

This place is a Zoo part 2.

2008-10-22T00:28:00.000-07:00

Just a short post today. I've been pretty busy lately, hence the lack of blog activity. I'll try to make up for that soon though!

The weather was so lovely this weekend, I simply couldn't stay in. So I decided to go to the zoo. Took a bunch of photographs there. And then took some more when I came home:

I got very excited yesterday when I received an envelope from APC. Not only did it contain their winter catalogue but also the most amazing poster. It's so nice, I can't wait to put it on my wall! Will post a picture of that later!

And once again, some new favourites:

1. the birds., 2. Untitled, 3. it's a bird! it's a plane!, 4. Untitled, 5. Carnations I, 6. give me a mountain paradise, 7. j, 8. portugal2, 9. in mind, 10. all alright.., 11. spöken, 12. i want to name them ~ one is definitely shirley, 13. Nothing to Say, 14. flight, 15. Untitled, 16. 8 a.m., 17. Untitled, 18. frompaulette, 19. I think this may be my favorite..., 20. he is searching

Take photographs for fun, for fun

2008-10-13T04:02:00.000-07:00

What better way to start a post then with some beautiful images:

1. Untitled, 2. rain bow hat, 3. Outside, 4. TwinSisterMoon, 5. Sweden summer '08, 6. theexecutionofallthings, 7. Untitled, 8. Untitled, 9. bird on blue, 10. samisen, 11. lape kukli, 12. Untitled, 13. Untitled, 14. swan ghosts, 15. Untitled, 16. ok

***

In a couple of weeks I'll be redecorating my bedroom, and I'm très très excited about the whole thing. I'm planning to give my wall a complete make over by decorating it with lots of frames and posters and whatever looks nice. Got a lot of inspiration from these beautiful images which I found on theselby.com and flickr:

***

I received this wonderful award from both mila and ariella! Merci beaucoup! I'm supposed to pass this award on to 7 other blogs I love and those are:

Restée Rêveuse, sweet dreams till sunbeams find me, discotheque confusion, chic looks, hello sailor! , coccinelle and intimate vignettes!

Hope you'll enjoy it!

How I'd wish I had an endless supply of polaroid film. It's funny how something as simple as a photograph can evoke such an immense feeling of instant happyness. Took these yesterday, in the late afternoon. I love autumn and it's everchanging colours.

No Room For Make Up

2008-10-10T00:00:00.000-07:00

I thought it would be easier to write an interesting post if I limited myself to writing just one a week, but apparently, it doesn't work that way. So now it's once again friday, which seems to have become my new favourite day to blog, and I have no idea what to write about. Yet at the same time I don't feel like waiting around for inspiration to flutter by, because I'm sure that would only make things worse. So I'll just start by apologising for my extreme negligence when it comes to answering comments and actually leaving them on other blogs. For some reason I really suck at doing both of those things. Trust me, I will try to work on that. In the meantime just know that your comments are all very much appreciated!

Perhaps I should share something that's a bit more personal. You probably haven't noticed this due to my already sparse blogging, but lately I haven't been feeling well. During the last 6 weeks I got pretty sick, not just once, but three times to be exact. And in between I felt really bad, especially mentally. It felt as if my head was stuck in some sort of unpleasant haze and there was no way out of it. It was quite scary actually, to the point where I was feeling anxious all the time. But luckily, last week turned out to be the first week in a very long time that I actually felt like my normal self again! And I'm unimaginably happy about that!

To celebrate that cheerful fact I went a little crazy with buying dvd's this week (just ignore my weird taste in movies, I simply can't help the fact that my cinematical preferences are pretty much all over the place). At least now I won't have to worry for at least another two weeks how to get through those boring evenings.

I also decided to get all girly and bakey and made a whole bunch of heart shaped cupcakes. It was a brilliant idea because they were absolutely delicious, the creme topping tasted pretty much devine!

Talking about sweets and girlyness, Chloé's latest collection seriously reminded me of pastries. So obviously I had no choice but to like it. If you want to win me over, connect something, anything, to food and I won't be able to resist it. It's a miracle I haven't reached the size of a whale yet.

I also happened to order these beauties from asos. And they arrived, quelle surprise, after only two days. Now that's what I call a vast improvement!

Took these two polaroids yesterday. I'm going to take a couple more this afternoon, so if you want to know how those turn out, have a look at my flickr, I'll upload them there asap!

I suppose that's all for know. I wish everyone a very pleasant weekend! Au revoir!

I have dreams of orca whales and owls

2008-10-03T03:13:00.000-07:00

This week has been a particularly inspiring week fashion wise, with all the beauty that comes with Paris fashion week. I was especially curious about Isabel Marant's newest collection. And I can't say I got disappointed. While the styling might be horrible and the plain uglyness of those chained boots can't be ignored, I must admit that I'm actually pretty excited about most of the pieces that were shown. The floral print shrugs and those gorgeous lace dresses are so beautiful, I think I'd better start saving some money!

In anticipation of the arrival of my new polaroid cassettes, I've been once again exploring flickr for some much needed inspiration. So here are some fresh flickr favourites:

1. bedroom, 2. It'll bloom again, 3. central hk ．pen ft, 4. happy, 5. Untitled, 6. gravity/grace, 7. (baby) beluga, 8. alone again, 9. Untitled, 10. Untitled, 11. wark, 12. redballoons2

These last few days I've been working on a new 'project'. I'm trying to create some sort of a diary, not just with thoughts and other ramblings, but with photographs, drawings and random images. Right now it looks a bit silly but I have a feeling it will look a lot better once I spend a bit more time on it. So once it's looking somewhat decent, I think I will take some pictures of it and show it to you!

Last but not least I wanted to show you my great new scarf. It's so warm and cozy, I've been wearing it non stop. So if you happen to be looking for a bit of warmth during these cold october days, h&m is the place to go:

Lovers in Japan

2008-09-26T08:02:00.000-07:00

I'm feeling quite happy today. It's amazing what a bit of sunshine can do for your mood! So I went out for a walk, took some photographs and danced to Coldplay's newest proof of genius aka Lovers in Japan.
I also made this collage. It's nothing special but I just love all of these images and they completely represent how I want to look these next few months!

Yesterday I got my cat mask in the mail. I didn't really need a cat mask, (as my nights as catwoman are a thing of the past) but I still liked the idea of a cat face gracing the side of my mirror. So I ordered one. And it's ridiculously cute! I think I'm going to dress up Max as a little kitten later today, I'm sure he'll enjoy that! I also received KOL's newest cd, which is BRILLIANT.

Chadwick Tyler is one of those photographers whose work gets better everytime you see it. If you like these I'd suggest you take a look at www.chadwicktyler.com for more of his beautiful work...

I watched Memoirs of a Geisha yesterday and it was beautiful! The costumes and the scenery are heaven. If you haven't seen it yet, I would seriously recommend it!

have a happy weekend!

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Viva la Vida

2008-09-23T01:30:00.000-07:00

The ever so lovely tea drinking english rose surprised me with a wonderful blog award! Now that is one gift that is always welcome! Merci beaucoup :)
For this award I'm going to nominate heart in a cage, mila, joanne, allure, luyi and jillian!

***

Talking about lovely things, last week I came across these polaroids of Michelle Williams from boy by band of outsiders and I ADORE them. Michelle is so adorable and both the light and colours in these photographs are beautiful!

***

I was actually lucky enough to be given yet another pretty award, this one by the charming Luyi. Thank you! If you ask me, daydream lily, knight cat, sophie jade, the search for chic and mettch all deserve this award as well, so I will pass it on to them!

***

Now it's time for something completely different. Last friday I received a packet from Hong Kong, carrying a bunch of new instax cassettes! Took a few photographs over the weekend but I'm not quite sure how I feel about them. Nevertheless, I'm still very excited about my Instax camera!

***

One last thing I really need to share (oui, it's indeed a pathetic cry for sympathy) is the following. Last week I was stupid enough to cut my hair. And since I'm fully aware of the fact that great minds think alike, even when it comes to stupid actions, I wasn't surprised when I saw Kate Moss with the same haircut I got. But can anyone tell me why she looks insanely cool with her new hairdo while I look like a cross between a dorky 8 year old and a middle aged secretary?

I must never cut my hair again. Ever.

***

To finish this ridiculously incoherent post, here are some more flickr favourites of mine:

1. c is for camera, 2. lipstick and ghosts , 3. Lomo self-made development - experiment1- the old man and the sea, 4. D _ LE 11, 5. Pastries and Scones, 6. Untitled, 7. Untitled, 8. Untitled, 9. kaysie - naples beach

Cold Desert

2008-09-16T06:19:00.000-07:00

So here I am again, back from holiday. Had the best time. I really enjoyed doing nothing at all. And the weather was perfect. Sunny, warm, but not too hot, a bit of summer in September. Unfortunately internet is still not working properly but according to my father 'it should be solved in a week :):):)'. And he obviously knows best.

Last saturday I went to Antwerp. There I found those suede boots I've been boring you with for what seems to be ages. It happened to be the last beige pair and they were just the right size. Although they're not from APC or Isabel Marant for that matter, I'm very happy with them! It's so nice to buy something you really love. I already know I'll be wearing them to death. Did some more shopping this morning. Got a new trenchcoat, dark gray skinnyjeans, a pair of awesome zara heels, a blouse and, don't ask why, another striped shirt (as if my closet wasn't already filled with at least a dozen of those).

Since I have nothing more interesting to share with you, here are some outfits with my new clothes:

a few more photographs of my holiday can be found here

Merde

2008-09-14T13:02:00.000-07:00

I have some sad news to share. When I came back from holiday I noticed that I was having major problems with my internet connection. So unfortunately I won't be able to post or comment until that's fixed (which is hopefully very soon).

2008-09-10T03:01:00.000-07:00

1. Untitled, 2. Untitled, 3. Untitled, 4. Untitled, 5. Untitled, 6. me, 7. Toy Stories: Hi-brow Photos From Low-fi Cameras 2008, 8. Deepsea underground sex., 9. Untitled, 10. Untitled, 11. Untitled, 12. tiny dancer, 13. ode to donuts, 14. Untitled, 15. Untitled, 16. Sunday

The Animals Were Gone...

2008-09-06T02:09:00.000-07:00

At last, my instax camera has arrived! And right on time I might add, as I will leave for a five day minibreak this monday. Nothing too fancy, just a bit of swimming and eating and doing absolutely nothing else. This week was ridiculously hectic (I unexpectedly had to take my mother to the hospital, my grandfather died, then the funeral, it wasn't exactly the kind of week I had imagined) so I could really use some serious relaxation!

***

Someone whose talent I can't get over and whom I've featured in my flickr favourites posts quite a few times before is the brilliant Susu Laroche. Her photographs are so breathtakingly beautiful that any further attempt to describe them in words would be an insult to their splendor:

To see more of her work just visit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jetsetandtrash/

***

Talking about photography (am I ever not?) I finally decided on getting myself a Diana Camera. And yes I promise this will be the last time I mention it. Lomography.com is offering the beautiful Edelweiss Edition that will totally have to be mine. Once it is I can finally stop obsessing about it. Which should turn out to be a good thing.

And now we're on the topic of spending money, I really crave a good old shopping trip. Haven't bought anything decent in such a long time, it feels almost unnatural. So I'll need to make time for that. After all, fall is almost here and most of my clothes do no longer fit me properly, oh the joy that's called stress, so I think I have a decent excuse. Anyone else planning some fall shopping?

That's actually all I have to share right now. I've created a little post that will be auto published on wednesday so you'll have something new to look at while I'm away.

I hope everyone has a great week! I'll be back next saturday :)

Flickr Favourites

2008-09-03T10:39:00.000-07:00

1. summer sketch*5, 2. summer sketch*2, 3. magnolia liliflora, 4. Untitled, 5. Untitled, 6. Untitled, 7. Untitled, 8. Untitled, 9. *Blue* & *love*, 10. Untitled, 11. Untitled, 12. Britton Rae, 13. begonia, 14. Isn't he lovely?, 15. blessed, 16. Untitled, 17. Save Polaroid, 18. Untitled, 19. soldatino di piombo, 20. Untitled

Time flies

2008-08-30T00:00:00.000-07:00

Bonjour mes lecteur(e)s!

Thank you very much for all the lovely comments, I will try to catch up on responding to them as soon as possible!

***

the adorable Ariella from pearls in your hair tagged me with the habits list, so let's start with that:

1. Clothes shop: I don't know. I'm having such a hard time finding anything decent these days. Whether I go to H&M or to a more exclusive store, almost nothing manages to live up to my expectations. The fit is wrong, colours are off, the overall style of current collections is simply not my cup of tea. And I'm affraid that isn't going to change anytime soon. Fortunately I really like clothes hanging in my closet.

2. Furniture shop: Ikea. I don't care about the fact that probably half the world owns my hensvik bookcase or my hjärta pillow. I love everything they sell and if I could live in an actual Ikea store, believe me, I would.

3. Sweet: icecream smoothies with strawberries and banana.

4. City: Paris aka my one true love <3

6. Music: lately I've been going through a Michael Jackson and the Doors phase, I literally can't stop listening to them. And I'm terribly excited about Kings of Leon's new album that will be released on september the 22nd.

7. Tv-series: I just love Jericho. It's such a shame they never got to finish the second season, my monday nights will never be the same. Other than that I'm probably the biggest Law & Order Criminal Intent fan you will ever meet. I can watch every single episode over and over again and still not get bored. I'm also crazy about 24. My family even makes jokes about it. Last year my mother got me a fake Jack Bauer watch for Christmas, I'm telling you, it was the best gift ever!

8. Film: At the moment I'm obsessed with Juno, as you might have read in my previous post. I can't get over how charming that movie is.

9. Work out: I don't work out. At all. I wish I could convince myself to get off my lazy butt and do something but I just hate sports. The only exercise I get is walking my dog, and that's not even something I do on a regular basis, yes shame on me.

10. Pastries: I think I love all pastries. Especially chocolate croissants, cupcakes, creampuffs, cheesecake, you name it.

11. Coffee: I don't drink coffee. Starbucks is only good for one reason and that would be their chocolat frappuchino's. Now those I do drink!

***

This week I purchased the most awesome camera on ebay! A Fujifilm instax instant camera to be exact. It's pretty similar to a Polaroid camera yet the film is a lot cheaper and more importantly, still produced! Now I'm anxiously awaiting it's arrival ;)

***

Yet another tag. The lovely Mila from Loveology gave me a present (thanks!), a bff gold card and I don't even have to spend the money wisely! So what shall I use this generous gift for?

To prevent the list from getting endless I will only name 5 'things', starting with:
- a little Puggle friend for Max. They are just too cute!
- a month long trip to la belle Paris together with my friends. So we can wander around the city, take a trillion photographs, eat good food and do some serious fall shopping

- a diana dreamer camera and a lifelong supply of film. I've been in love with this pretty version of the diana camera ever since it first appeared on urbanoutfitters.com
- chinese food, loads and loads of it

- a holiday to an exotic place with my family

I'm not going to tag anyone this time, but if you feel like answering one or both of the above tag questionnaires, consider yourself tagged by me ;)

***

This morning, after a relentless search, I was finally able to track down the new issue of Lula magazine. When it's first scan's started circulating the web I wasn't at all enthousiastic, but the more saw the more I liked it and when I was finally able to gaze at this issue in real life I was sold. It's once again filled with beautiful photography and great interviews, quite a relief when mainstream magazines are getting more and more dull each month.

That's it for today, perhaps I'll do another post tomorrow. Have a great weekend!

Words are flowing out like endless rain into a paper cup...

2008-08-23T00:00:00.000-07:00

First of all thank you so much for all your comments! I wasn't at all expecting so much enthousiasm. It might sound a bit silly but it really brought a smile to my face!

Now I actually have a hard time figuring out how to start this post, however stupid that may sound. So I'm just going to start with something random like some new things I acquired over these last three weeks

I'm so happy with the shoes, I've been looking for a creme/black coloured pair of flats for ages and was pretty disappointed about the fact that french sole never seems to update it's online stock. Luckily I came across these from Zara. My friend bought them a while back but unfortunately the were slightly too big for her feet. Not so much for mine though and she agreed to letting me adopt them.

With the purchase of those flats I've completed my summer wishlist and I'd like to think that I'm finally done reorganising my wardrobe at this point. All I need for the upcoming season are some boots and a coat, but there's still plenty of time for that. I'm, obviously, still dying for these Isabel Marant booties but I haven't got a clue for how much they retail which makes it quite hard to decide whether or not I should get them. So if anyone knows, please let me know ;)

***

I meant to post about the following a while back but for some reason I never did. When I saw this post at the knight cat's blog I felt immensely inspired to create something similar. So I went to Ikea, bought some frames, printed some of my flickr favourites and put them up on my wall. It's still under construction, I need to buy a couple more frames, but I think it already looks quite decent, especially with the polaroids.

Talking about flickr, I've been spending an insane amount of time browsing through that website lately

so here are some fresh favourites:

1. fly, 2. memories, 3. Untitled, 4. Untitled, 5. Los lunes al sol, 6. in the kitchen with..., 7. Untitled, 8. ., 9. Untitled, 10. Untitled, 11. lily of the valley, 12. the sky moves faster at this time of year, 13. Untitled, 14. Untitled, 15. ik door oona, 16. storyteller, 17. lovely afra, 18. ghost, 19. Kristin, 20. Untitled, 21. blur_simo, 22. Untitled, 23. (said with warm gusts of irony): it seems a gosh-darn shame, 24. reading in bed, 25. Untitled

***

Before I forget, I still want to do a book review before the end of this month. I just don't know which book to choose. So I was thinking that it might be a good idea to ask you which book you would like to see more of this time?

* for the love of light - Jenifer Altman
* the principles of uncertainty - Maira Kalman
* this is for you - Rob Ryan

***

Last but not least, last week I finally got to watch Juno and I think I fell in love with that movie. Ellen Page is such a brilliant actress and Michael Cera, gosh is he adorable or what? If you haven't seen it yet, you totally should, it's well worth it!

Well that's all for now, take care and see you soon!

Just for now

2008-08-19T00:00:00.000-07:00

Given the immense response on my farewell post (and thank you so much for that, really, there are no words that could describe how heart warming your comments were!) I reckon that hopefully no one will mind this little update. It's been almost three weeks now since that last post and I came to the conclusion that I would still enjoy updating the blog every now and then (even and mostly if it's just for my own pleasure). I might not be posting nearly as often as I did before but perhaps something like a post a week would be ok? I hope I didn't scare everyone off with my goodbye post, but if I did, so be it ;)

I took these polaroids last week. The film was a gift from a friend of mine, or actually, she traded me the film for an origami owl. A pretty fair deal right?

more at http://www.flickr.com/photos/carbon_monoxide/

Anywhere I lay my Head

2008-08-01T10:25:00.000-07:00

This week I made a decision. It's a pretty definitive one and I'm not completely sure whether I'm going to regret this later on, but at the moment it feels like the right thing to do. I've decided that I'm going to stop blogging. I've been keeping up this blog for almost a year now and it has been a wonderful way to share all kinds of inspiration with others. But enough is enough. I do no longer find the same kind of joy in writing/posting as I once did.

It feels like, in a way, I've outgrown this blog. These last few days have been really busy, I've been enjoying life the way it should be enjoyed and that made me realise that I want to focus more on those things instead of keeping up with an "online life". Surely that can be done without saying goodbye to my blog but I prefer to give it up completely.

I do however not want to leave without thanking everyone for the incredibly nice and friendly comments you've left, I truly appreciated every single one of them! I also want to mention how great it was to 'get to know' so many wonderful fellow bloggers, whom I've come to admire not only for their creativity but mostly for their kindness!

I must admit that I was a bit hesitant to post this at first. I feared that this post might get mistaken for a cry for attention, for wanting people to tell me that I shouldn't leave, when that's really not why I'm writing this. I just reckoned that it wouldn't be very fair to leave without offering some sort of an explanation.

So I guess this is it, the final goodbye. Or as the French would say: Au revoir mes ami(e)s!

ps. for those of you who asked, you can email me at this adres

Medicate the Kids

2008-07-28T00:00:00.000-07:00

fall inspiration

I noticed that fall gear is already starting to take over stores and with it's arrival one can't help but wonder.

"What will I be buying/wearing during the colder and much more dreary half of the year?" might seem a bit of a premature question at the end of July, but experience has taught me that the best things tend to turn up early and I'm pretty confident that this year won't be an exception. Eventhough I can't, or should I say won't, be buying anything until September, creating a wishlist on polyvore has never hurt anyone, at least not to my knowledge.

red/creme striped sweater, dark corduroy skinny pants, black woolen coat, black patent high heel lace up boots, some jewellery, suede ankle boots

I'm still a bit hesitant about the red/creme striped sweater. I have this tendency to buy red coloured clothes and then feel really uncomfortable while wearing them. I don't know why I keep buying/craving all this red but it seems to be for no apparent reason as I don't even like the colour. Yet this sweater is fooling me once again. I should probably stay away from it since I already own 2 red/white striped sweaters, although not nearly as pretty as the one pictured above, so we'll see. Everything else is a definite yes, especially the suede ankle boots I mentioned earlier. They're genius and remind me of a pair of ankle boots I bought when I was 13. They lasted me 5 years and I wore them to death. Suffice it to say, they deserve a worthy successor.

Keeping in mind that I only want to buy a couple of key pieces per season (basics not included) I had to put a lot more thought into these possible future purchases and there is a lot less room for error as I will most probably be spending more on a single piece. I do however believe that purchasing less would require one to have a clear idea of what they want to look like and what works/doesn't work for them. So I hope that the era of gigantic style-moodswings is finally over and that I won't be making yet another 180 before summer ends. Which, frankly, is not completely unimaginable. Hot pink tutu anyone?

But despite these former moodswings, I've always been enamoured by the idea of having a distinct style -I get the feeling everyone is these days- and with it the freedom to buy a lot less and still look decent. So about 2 years ago I decided it would be worth the effort to give it a try. It actually took me quite some time to figure out IF it would work for me, and if so, what this distinct style would have to look like. Especially the latter part involved quite a bit of experimenting (believe me, it wasn't always pretty). It seems to be really working though, I've had a rather clear and steady vision of how I want dress for almost a year now (the longest period of time such a divine insight has ever lasted) and I'm still not sick of it. On top of that I came to the conclusion that I actually really enjoy sticking to a certain way of dressing, even if others don't recognize it as such. And it really does save you money, and a lot of stress in the morning, when you don't have to re-do your entire wardrobe every six weeks, now who would have thought that?!

It is tricky though, and it does require a certain form of self restraint. I can't go out and just buy everything I like anymore and sometimes it can be rather difficult. Especially when you're facing the most wonderful dress/top/skirt, yet you're unable to buy it, simply because it "doesn't work". But personally I have never regretted not buying something and learned to appreciate the things I do buy so much more. I guess you could say that in the end it does pay off. But I suppose you will only feel that way if it's really what you want, otherwise it's pretty easy to get frustrated an throw all your resolutions overboard ;)

So is anyone else already anticipating fall or is it just me? And if so, what's on your wishlist?

Last but not least I want to say thanks for all your incredibly nice comments, they really helped cheering me up!

The Principles of Uncertainty

2008-07-23T12:08:00.000-07:00

Recently I ordered Maira Kalman's book "the Principles of Uncertainty" which is a collection of her illustrated columns for NY Times Select. I first noticed this book on Book By It's Cover and her beautiful illustrations immediately caught my eye. When I later spotted her book at the American Book Center I was a bit hesitant to pay 40 euro's but luckily I was able to order it at bol.com for a little more than half that price.

I would also like to mention that I won't be posting anything these next few days, I'm experiencing some sort of a family emergency as my grandfather has fallen terribly ill with no chance of recovery and I have a hard time focusing on other things at the moment. But please do check back after the weekend. Hope you have a good one!

Wreck this journal Pt. 3

2008-07-22T08:25:00.000-07:00

As requested, here are some more pages from "wreck this journal". I've decided that I'm going to drop it from a high place again (hopefully this time from somewhere a bit higher than my grandparents attic), and this time I'll be filming it!

bigger versions and other pages can be found here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/carbon_monoxide/

And some really good news for fellow Keri Smith fans. She will be releasing a new book in November called "How to be an explorer of the world - portable ~~art~~ life museum". So far it looks very promising!

Amy Earles and more

2008-07-20T05:07:00.000-07:00

This afternoon I rediscovered an old favourite of mine, Amy Earles. I remember coming across her work last summer and being in complete awe of her creativity. Unfortunately and for reasons I do not remember, I forgot all about her work and it took me almost a year to return to that point of awe. Unsurprisingly I'm still extremely charmed by her beautiful paper dolls and pretty, slightly dark, drawings!

More of her work and her online shop can be found at:
etsy & pushed under

***

On a totally different note, today I completed some more pages from Wreck this journal. One of them being the "climb up high and drop this journal" page. Together with my six year old niece I climbed up the narrow stairs to my grandparents attic. There we opened the window and threw out the journal. She was incredibly excited about the whole ordeal! If anyone's interested I can take some photographs of the newly completed pages and post them later this week?

I also purchased some cute things this weekend from Caitlin Shearer's etsy shop. (I wrote a post about her work a while ago) I had such a hard time choosing from her beautiful artworks! So I'm pretty sure a second order will follow soon ;)

ps. I'm currently experiencing some problems with my photobucket bandwidth. I've fixed the photographs on the first page but unfortunately the pictures on the other pages (that are down right now) won't be visible until the 5th of august. Apologies for the inconvenience!

Sunday Smile

2008-07-20T02:10:00.000-07:00

This post took a little while but here it is. I got tagged by the delightful tea drinking english rose, who not only has a great blog but also did a great job on making the premio look a lot prettier! And as I've learned today, the lovely Mettch has tagged me as well! Thanks girls!

The Rules:
1) When received, you may post the premio on your blog
2) Link to the blogger you received from
3) Give it to 4 blogs
4) And link to those blogs
5) Also, leave those four bloggers a comment about receiving the brilliant premio.

So now I have to pick 4 bloggers to give this premio to, which is a really small number considering there are quite a few more bloggers who would totally deserve it (but I hope you know who you are even without the premio confirmation!)

My choices will be (surprise, surprise) : Mila from Loveology , Kim from Heart-in-a-Cage , Heloïse j. from In This Style 10/6 and Lana from Smells Like LonPardonis! Hope you enjoy this pretty premio!

Shake it, shake it, shake it like a polaroid picture

2008-07-19T03:11:00.000-07:00

Not only did I receive a copy of "for the love of light" today, I also got to pick up my polaroid cassettes at the post office! It's a bit unfortunate that they had to be picked up this afternoon because otherwise I would have been able to take my polaroid camera with me to Amsterdam yesterday. Nevertheless, I'm thrilled with their arrival! I obviously had to try them out and what would be more appropriate than to take a snapshot of the book dedicated to polaroid photographs? Cheesy and brilliant at once, right ;) Unfortunately my scanner is staying with my sister for the summer on hostile territory, so this photograph of a photograph will have to do (until I've found the courage to enter my sisters domain that is) Here it is, not completely finished developing, but you get the idea:

Amsterdam was once again terrific. The weather was surprisingly nice and my friend and I walked around the city until our legs hurt. We suited ourselves with some delicious food aka french fries, strawberry creamcake and sandwiches. That obviously helped a lot. Unexpectedly I was even able to stick to my aforementioned wardrobe plan as all I bought was this black AA sweater for fall. I also meant to take some decent photographs but the light was blah so the photographs I díd take turned out horribly. C'est tout pour ajourd'hui, have a nice weekend!

ps. you might have already heard my new blog song, (unless you immediately turned down the volume to stop the 'horrible' sound from entering your ears) it's pretty brilliant right? I never expected Scarlett to have such a nice singing voice!

Flickr Favourites

2008-07-19T01:00:00.000-07:00

1. Duaflex: Alber Orchard, 2. White Rabbit, 3. Cotton Blossoms [Analog], 4. Untitled, 5. Untitled, 6. the picnic tree, 7. canakitchencounterbeinteresting, 8. Happy Birthday Weda3eah :*, 9. Untitled, 10. Cotton Blossoms [Analog], 11. paris - polaroid look, 12. cupcakes with friends, 13. Untitled, 14. (edgeless polaroid) I baked cupcakes today, 15. Treehouse song, 16. cobbled

Book of the Month - July

2008-07-16T03:20:00.000-07:00

I've been wanting to add something different and new to this blog for quite some time now and this morning I came up with a luminous idea. I feel that something like a monthly book review, not in words but in photographs, would be the perfect addition. Hopefully this will encourage me to invest in some beautiful books (which is one of my mid-year resolutions) and I hope you will enjoy looking at these books as well!
I was thinking that my latest acquisition would be a nice one to start with.

Lina Scheynius - "01"

More info can be found here: http://www.linascheynius.com/book.html

Days of Summer

2008-07-16T00:00:00.000-07:00

It might be rainy and cold at this very moment, but I feel like I've finally gotten the hang of summer dressing. The days I wished for fall to return are over. If only the temperature could rise a degree or 10 and the sun would reappear from behind the clouds, we'd have a perfect situation. It's called summer and it's gooood.

Some inspiring looks:

May I also add that I most probably WILL be going on a summer vacation after all. Nothing's certain yet but I already like the idea of leaving this place.

Say Cheese!

2008-07-15T07:04:00.000-07:00

Today has been a particularly lovely day so far. Sun's shining, I've practised my Daft Punk dance moves wearing the most fashionable outfit ever (I was wearing a striped bikinitop over a black bra combined with a black waistskirt. Seriously, if this look isn't going to be huge next summer I don't know what will) and this morning I went to a nearby thriftstore to kill some time. I wasn't expecting to come across anything worth the while, but then I spotted this great blue polaroid camera for only 2 euro's. I ended up purchasing the pretty thing because there's always a slim chance it will work (providing I ever get to try it out) and if not, it still looks cute, in a "this camera actually reminds me of Pinnochio's blue whale" kind of way. Talking about polaroid camera's, I finally took the bold step of buying some cassettes for my polaroid image system (not pictured above). If everything goes well they should arrive next week. I can't wait to have some fun with them!

I like you

2008-07-14T06:51:00.000-07:00

The wonderful 'Mila' from Loveology tagged me and now I have to name 6 things I currently like and tag some other people to do the same.

Well, here they are:
1. Baking cupcakes. Even without baking skills it can be done, and they taste like heaven!

2. Art books. Illustrations, photography, paper art, Impressionism, fashion, my wishlist goes on and on.

3. Watching Travel Channel. I've been a Globe Trekker addict for years and years and it's a nice surrogate for summer holiday as I won't be traveling anywhere myself. At least not any time soon.

4. Daft Punk's Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger dance routine. It's genius and silly at the same time and I would love to learn it myself.

5. Rummaging around my room. Cleaning out my closet, sorting through my bookcase, create some order in my deskdrawers, rearrange the furniture, it's all good.

6. Short suede ankle boots. I'm in love with these APC ones but am equally enamoured by the original ones from Isabel Marant. If only I could find a similar pair for this winter!

I tag: Heloïse j. , Laurel, Jillian, Joie de Vivre and Joanne!

Ana Laura Perez

2008-07-13T08:16:00.000-07:00

A couple of days ago I came across the beautiful work of the Argentinian Ana Laura Perez, who's not only a fashion design student but also works as a designer (for her own brand BANG!) and as a freelance illustrator.

While browsing through her work I was most impressed by these absolutely wonderful drawings she has created. Eventhough they are lovely and dreamy, that dreamyness is not covering up a lack of aesthetic depth (an 'offense' other illustrators so often commit). On the contrary, if you take a closer look and look past the first impression of serenity you will see how interesting they really are. Which is very refreshing!

More of her work can be found here: http://www.bang-bags.com.ar/

and here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/gold_leaves/

Proust?

2008-07-12T13:23:00.000-07:00

+Maco+

the lovely S.C. from for the moment asked me to fill in this Proust questionnaire. As always, I'm more than happy to oblige.

What is your idea of perfect happiness?
Being pleased with who I am.

What is your greatest fear?
Losing a loved one.

What historical figure do you most identify with?
I have yet to come across that kind of person. I don't know nearly as much as I would like about most historical figures, so any identification with one of them would most probably be an inaccurate one.

Which living person do you most admire?
My mother.

What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?
Insecurity.

What is the trait you most despise in others?
Disloyalty.

What is your greatest extravagance?
Books, food, clothes, traveling.

On what occasion do you lie?
When I feel like comforting someone with a lie would be better than hurting someone with the truth.

What do you dislike most about your appearance?
I absolutely hate how small my waist is.

Which living person do you most despise?
Any person who deliberately chooses to hurt another human being or animal.

Which words or phrases do you most overuse?
(roughly translated) I'm hungry/ oh well/ nevertheless/ what are we doing today?

If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?
Be more appreciative of what life has brought me so far.

If you could change one thing about your family, what would it be?
I'd wish they were a bit more open minded and less self absorbed.

What do you consider your greatest achievement?
Being where I am right now.

If you were to die and come back as a person or thing, what do you think it would be?
I honestly don't know. I feel like any answer I could possibly give would come out of arrogance anyway.

If you could choose what to come back as, what would it be?
A dolphin.

Who are your favorite writers?
JD Salinger, Jonathan Safran Foer and Oscar Wilde.

Who is your favorite hero of fiction?
Blue Van Meer

What is your most treasured possession?
My photographs.

What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery?
Not being able to see the beauty in life.

Where would you like to live?
France. Eventhough Paris would be great, I think I might prefer to live in a tiny house situated in a small village somewhere in the Cote d'Azur.

What is your most marked characteristic?
My sense of humour (I hope).

What is the quality you most like in a woman?
Courage and self awareness.

What is your greatest regret?
I try to not have any.

What or who is the greatest love of your life?
I think it's a little early to answer that question.

If there is a Heaven what would you like to hear God say when you arrive?
I don't believe in God. At least not in the religious sense of the word. I know it's not the answer to the question, but I find it impossible to come up with something more appropriate.

How would you like to die?
As a happy person.

How will you die?
I prefer to not think about that.

I'm not quite sure if I'm supposed to tag others, so if you want fill in this questionnaire yourself please just go ahead and do so ;)

Wreck this journal pt. 2

2008-07-11T12:59:00.000-07:00

I've been 'working' on the Wreck this Journal project for quite some time now (you might remember me writing about this book/project a while ago) and I thought it would be fun to share my progress with the rest of you:

Lullaby

2008-07-09T00:00:00.000-07:00

Browsing through flickr is a great way to to entertain yourself on rainy days. Especially if it leads to terrific discoveries. Like these breathtaking photographs from variationsonthewordsleep.

ps: thanks for all the comments on my previous post! I'm a bit busy right now but I will respond to them as soon as possible :)

In my closet

2008-07-07T11:19:00.000-07:00

(pre-massive sweepthrough)

As you might have noticed, it's been a while since my last decently written entry. I might be able to use a lack of inspiration as an excuse but that doesn't change the fact that I seriously dislike flooding this blog with wordless entries. So I convinced myself that it would be worth the effort to write something down that consists of more than 5 words. For some reason, I tend to resort to blogging about something fashionrelated everytime I feel uninspired (I wonder why?). Apologies for that.

Anway, these last few days/weeks I've spend an awful lot of time on cleaning out my closet. I had so many clothes that had never even gotten to see the light of day, I figured I could just as well get rid of them. It was more difficult than I thought it would be, parting with clothes that are in a way still wearable isn't exactly easy. But it was necessary. I tend to get a bit overwhelmed when I have too much choice, and I feel obliged to wear the things I don't completely love, just because they are hanging in my closet. Hopefully my new smaller wardrobe will make getting dressed a lot easier and more fun.

Right now my summer wardrobe consists of:

6 dresses
1 striped sweaterdress
3 blazers: black, navy, white
1 short trench jacket
2 button up shirts: blue&white stripes/purple&black plaid
5 blouses (short sleeves)
4 tops
1 vest
7 tshirts
3 cardigans
2 skirts
4 pairs of shorts
2 pairs of jeans
1 pair of trousers
5 scarves
2 bags
8 pairs of shoes

It will be a challenge to make it work, but I have no other choice since I promised myself that I won't buy anything new until fall collections hit the stores. Or as I like to call that moment, september. And from then on I will only buy pieces I am madly in love with. Eventhough I'd love to pretend otherwise, paying a little more for something you absolutely love is so worth it. (remember my Isabel Marant blouse? I wish I could wear it everyday!) ~~Even~~ Especially if that means I'll be able to buy less, true love over quantity, right?

I'm not quite sure how this information could be useful to anyone, but I noticed I quite enjoy reading about the content of other people's closets and their approach on purchasing new clothes. So I took the liberty of assuming that some of you might actually feel the same. After all, I don't believe that I'm the only one who has developed a certain dislike towards mindless consumerism.

I guess the real question of this post is: are you satisfied with your wardrobe?
Do you prefer having a large amount of clothes over having a smaller, more compact wardrobe? Do you think there is such a thing as owning too many clothes? What's the first thought that pops into your mind when you open your closet doors? Do you prefer quality over quantity or vice versa?

the Call

2008-07-07T03:54:00.000-07:00

Saturday I went to the cinema. Went to see the Chronicles of Narnia, as I'm a huge sucker for costume movies. Even if they feature talking animals, which was quite the (unpleasant?) surprise. I'm not going to elaborate on the plot though, I just want to point out that Regina Spektor's song that's played at the end of the movie is wonderful! As soon as I came home I youtubed it, and I haven't stopped listening since. If you enjoy Regina's music I would certainly recommend it!

050708

2008-07-04T09:44:00.001-07:00

A bit of inspiration for summerdressing...

Holy Roller Novocaine

2008-07-02T08:19:00.000-07:00

I haven't done a what am I wearing today post in ages, but today I simply had to. My new blouse finally arrived and I love it! The fit is great, and the fabric is soft and light which makes it perfect for summer!

blouse: isabel marant etoile
skirt: topshop
flats: zara

Summer picks

2008-07-01T03:15:00.000-07:00

Amsterdam

2008-06-30T08:11:00.000-07:00

Amsterdam was great. Did some sightseeing, some shopping, and ended the day with a mcchicken menu at good old McDonalds.

I bought a few new tops because last week I came to the conclusion that eventhough my closet is filled with a plenty of dresses, shorts and jackets, the top department is seriously lacking in inventory. It should be up to par again by now. Didn't see much else I liked. Except for this wonderful APC skirt and this dress, but unfortunately my size was sold out.

And that's it.

Zootastic

2008-06-29T10:20:00.000-07:00

Went to the zoo this afternoon...

Q&A

2008-06-27T05:54:00.000-07:00

An entry full of answers this time. And I wanted to thank everyone for the nice words! I will do a post about Amsterdam as soon as I get back.

Wat wil je later worden? :P (What do you want to become when you grow up? :p)
I’m not quite sure yet. I would love to work for the united nations, as a middle east expert. But becoming a journalist would be great too. I want to make a difference. There’s this jewish principle called tikkun olam that says you should leave the world a better place than you found it. I’m not Jewish but that is exactly what I intend to do. I would also like to mention that one day I would love to become a professor at a university or get involved with politics. But that’s of later concern.

Wat ben je van plan om te gaan studeren? (What do you plan on studying?)
Right now I’m planning on studying oriental languages and cultures, focusing on Arabic and Hebrew. But History is still an option. As is Filosophy.

Wat is jouw favoriete eten en drinken? (What's your favourite food/drink?)
Chinese food, definitely. I love bami and babi pangang. And cheese. I can never get enough of cheese. My favourite drink is orange juice. Not freshly squized though. It’s too sour for my taste.

Wat is op dit moment jouw favoriete kledingstuk? (What's your favorite piece of clothing atm?) My new navy blue blazer, it goes with almost anything

Wat is jouw favoriete collectie (op dit moment? Seizoen maakt niet uit. (What's your favourite fashion collection, season doesn't matter)
Stella McCartney S/S 08

Favoriete tvprogamma's? (Favourite televisionprograms?)
Law & Order Criminal Intent, Jericho, Will&Grace and 24. I used to be really into the original CSI series as well but after the 7th rerun I got sick of it. And I love documentaries. I love watching history channel, national geographic and travel channel.

Wat zijn jouw hobby's? (Hobbies?)
watch movies, read books, take photographs, fool around with my dog, travel

Heb je geheime interesses/fascinaties? (Do you have secret interests/fascinations)
Conspiracy theories, mysteries of any kind, cults, secret society's. I'm interested in most phenomena that are out of the ordinary. And chess. However strange that might sound.

I was wondering what you do these days. You wrote some time ago that you wanted to start university in the autumn. But what do you do now, work, study?
After what happened to my mother I had to cancel my job because I had to take care of her and help out at home. Right now I’m still busy doing exactly that so I haven’t really been thinking about getting a new job yet. Unfortunately because of the whole situation here at home I wasn’t able to get everything done in time for the exams. Which means I will have to wait another year before I can attend university. Obviously this has been a major disappointment to me and I have a hard time getting over that fact that it’s not my fault. But I will find a way to deal with it eventually, I always do. I am planning to do some travelling next year though. Most probably a trip to Paris to improve my french, and a traintrip across europe to visit the major cities.

Also (no need for an answer if it's too personal), I was wondering what you are like in reality. Are you outgoing, shy or something in the middle? Are you very social or like your own company?
I suppose I’m something in the middle. When I’m with people I don’t know very well I am a bit more reserved. I’m not the kind of girl that jumps on top of you saying how fabulous it is to meet you. But I will strike a conversation with a stranger if I feel like doing so. I just don’t feel the need to be the center of attention. With people I am more accustomed to (at home or when I was still in school), I am really outgoing though. Rather opinionated and not afraid to speak my mind. I love making silly jokes and have everyone’s attention.
I used to think I was a very social person and that I needed the attention of friends and family to feel happy about myself but experience has taught me that I like being on my own as well. But being on my own does not always have to be in the most literal sense of the word. I love being alone while surrounded by others. Living in my own little bubble. I enjoy that more than being completely on my own.

What is your favourite movie?
As boring as it might sound, Amelie. But since there's no need to stick to just one movie, I'd like to mention a couple more. Like the Pianist, which is absolutely magnificent. Adrien Brody IS the pianist. He made that movie. Another one is Lost in Translation. that movie is so fascinating. I love the atmosphere, the chemistry between scarlet and bill, the humour (lodgaah moll) the apparently simple story that ends up captivating you in the most literal sense of the word. Pan’s labyrinth is a fantastic movie too. As is Sunshine, which is a whole other category. Growing up I never liked sf movies, but my mother was crazy about them. So I ended up watching so many of them, that I actually started liking them myself. Especially when they’re directed by Danny Boyle and have an original theme. And ok, Cillian Murphy’s presence isn’t too much of a downside either.

how would you feel without your blog?/what would you do instead of blogging?
I don’t know. I wouldn’t feel lost but I would miss having the possibility to share my idea of beauty with others. It’s probably some form of arrogance, thinking that whatever I think about something is relevant to others. But to be honest, if nobody would read my blog I would still enjoy documenting my taste.
I’d probably be keeping a diary if I couldn’t blog anymore. Which I used to do when I was younger. The period between my 12th and my 17th birthday is neetly documented on paper.

which is your most expensive fashion related buy?
I bought a pair of Prada heels during my first visit to London. They were 85 pounds, which was a 120 euro’s at that time. They’re made of pink satin.
And I once bought a pair of diesel jeans for 140 euros but I felt so bad about spending that much money on a pair of jeans I returned them the next day. Which was a HUGE mistake. They were perfect. And totally worth the money. The most stupid thing is that I didn’t even had to pay the full price for them. My mother offered to pay half. I’m such an idiot.

Who else do you love to read/want to read?
I love Russian, French and English literature as opposed to dutch literature which is predictive and boring. I have a weakness Dan Brown’s books. Especially the Bernini Mystery. And I love everything that was written by JD Salinger, Jonathan Safran Foer and Philippe Claudel.
I desperately want to finish Bulgakov’s the master and margarita. I’d love to read more of Oscar Wilde’s work. And Dostojevski. Tennessee Williams. 100 years of loneliness by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. Paul Auster’s moon palace. And a while back I bought a bunch of classics that still need to be read as well ( the great Gatsby, wuthering heights and madame bovary,etc.)

Mijn vraag: hoe ziet je gezicht eruit? (what does your face look like?)
I hate the way my face looks on photographs, seriously, If I were to look like that in real life I would avoid mirrors at any cost. But I was able to find a pretty decent one from last summer ->click

Nog maar een vraag erachteraan: Hoe kom je aan de stijl die je nu hebt? Was je van kinds af aan al met mode etc. bezig of is het er langzaam ingeslopen? En heb je het gevoel voor mode en stijl een beetje van je ouders of geven die er niks om?(How did you develop your sense of style? Have you been interested in fashion ever since you were a kid or did it grow over time? Are your parents interested in fashion or do they not care at all?)
I never cared much for fashion when I was younger. My mother made most of my clothes. She pretty much had to since I was very tall and skinny for my age throughout my whole childhood and nothing would ever fit me properly. So you can imagine that looking fashionable was the least of my clothing related concerns. Not that I didn’t like clothes. I just didn’t care about looking a certain way. And I had horrible taste.
Things changed when I went to a different school. At first I was still caught up in my small town mentality of not caring about my clothes, but after a year or two I started to realise that dressing a certain way can make you actually feel better about yourself. I was 15 when I first bought a copy of Vogue Uk and asked my mother to switch my fancy subscription to an elle subscription. Which she did. And the experimenting commenced. I don’t think there’s a style I haven’t tried.
Now I’m back at the point where I once again don’t care that much about how others feel about my clothes. I’m mostly inspired by Parisian streetstyle and French actresses in general.
My mother likes clothes and loves to dress nice, but she doesn’t really care about fashion. She loves the way I dress though. At least, she says she does. My father couldn’t care less. Quelle surprise.

Wednesday

2008-06-25T05:38:00.000-07:00

I'm feeling a bit weird these days (hence this pointless entry). If I were to take horoscopes seriously I could blame it all on the alignment of the stars this week. But I won't. After all, when a couple of weeks ago the stars were saying my lovelife would finally become a bit more interesting again, nothing happened either ;)

Despite feeling weird, I am also quite excited about the upcoming weekend. Saturday I'll be going to Amsterdam, haven't been there since December (can hardly believe it's been that long) so that should be interesting!

I was thinking perhaps I should do one of those 'ask-me-whatever-you-want-posts' as well. It could be fun. If anyone actually has a question that is. So if you feel like it, just ask away!

Let's boogie..

2008-06-22T08:40:00.000-07:00

I got tagged by the très lovely Jillian from nova.style and the magnificent heart-in-a-cage!

The Rules: "List 7 songs you are into right now. No matter what the genre, wether they have words, or even if they're not any good, but they must be songs you're really enjoying now, shaping your spring. Post these instructions with your 7 songs, then tag 7 people to see what they're listening to.

Manhattan/Cold Desert/whatever it's called - Kings of Leon
I can't stop listening to KOL's newest song. It's both addictive and brilliant. And now I really can't wait for their new album to come out. Why oh why is september still three months away?

Hey Hey Hey - Room Eleven
Because it makes me happy.

Summer in the City - Regina Spektor
Eventhough the title gives you the illusion that this song is about sunny days and lazy afternoons in the park, this song is in fact the perfect example of how beautiful sadness can be.

la Noyee - Yann Tiersen
Amelie, Paris, Yann, summertime, all combined in one melody. Sheer brilliance, that's what this song and it's composer are.

Love her Madly - the Doors
I have never been a big fan of the Doors until I rediscovered their music a couple of months ago. I think watching the most fascinating documentary about the life and death of Jim Morisson must have triggered it. Anyway, Love her Madly brings a smile to my face and makes me want to dance like a crazy girl.

In Transit - Albert Hammond jr
THE ultimate summer song. Albert's voice might not yet be as good here as it is right now, but I think that's actually part of the song's charm.

Knocked up - Kings of Leon
the second KOL song on my list. It could have easily been a list with nothing but KOL songs, as I'm addicted to their music, but that would have been pretty boring. Knocked up was one of those songs I never really appreciated until I heard a live version of it. And now I can't stop listening to it. Seven minutes might seem long, but I wish this song would go on forever....

The people I tage are:
A.V.A, Allure, Héloïse j., Ariella, Nita-Karoliina, <3 fashion chalet and little parisienne
It's up to you now!

Book of Dreams

2008-06-22T07:46:00.000-07:00

When I came across Lina Scheynius' new book I immediately knew I had to have it. After all, I am a huge huge huge fan of her work! The way she is able to turn every single one of her photographs into a dreamy little masterpiece is unlike anything I've ever come across in the world of photography. If you're not familiar with her incredible talent yet, have a look at http://www.linascheynius.com/ and see for yourself!

More info and a video of the book's content can be found here.

Zomerkriebels

2008-06-21T04:22:00.000-07:00

Today is a happy day. Not just because it's the first day of summer but also because I was finally able to fit into my favourite pair of jeans again. Which is quite an achievement for someone who prefers pizza over apples.
Along with the new season came better weather. After days of rain and cold the sun has returned, and with it came a temperature of 23C. To celebrate the return of summer we're going to have a barbecue this afternoon. I was actually contemplating on bringing out the inflatable swimming pool as well but I seemed to be the only one who liked that idea.
On a completely different note, yesterdaynight I was watching the history channel, my latest addiction, and there was this really interesting documentary on about the maya's and the end of the world in 2012. I had heard of this theory before but it once again made me think about what I would do with my life if there were only 4,5 years left. It pretty much forces you to see things in a different perspective.
So suppose you knew for sure that you had only 5 years left, how would you spend that time? Would you travel/work/do nothing/try to become an astronaut? Would you change your behaviour towards other people? Would you even care? I'm really curious!

Have a great weekend everyone!

and don't forget to vote for laurel ;)

In the navy

2008-06-19T08:49:00.000-07:00

Ever since the beginning of last autumn I've been looking for thé perfect navy blazer and a white/navy striped sweater. Today, after months of fruitless searching, I finally found them at Mango. Sale had started, so I was even lucky enough to get them for half the original price *does the crazy happy dance*
They're both from the Penelope and Monica Cruz collection, a collaboration I was never too excited about, but unlike what one might expect, the pieces they came up with are surprisingly well made. Eventhough they certainly weren't worth the original price, they're well worth the money I ended up spending on them!

Daily Inspiration

2008-06-17T06:04:00.000-07:00

Jeux d'Enfants

2008-06-14T08:22:00.000-07:00

This afternoon I watched Jeux d'Enfants and was blown away by how fantastic this movie is. The story, the scenery, the acting, everything's perfect!

If you want to see for yourself, you can watch it here: http://video.google.nl/videoplay?docid=8774266442681923665&q=love+me+if+you+dare&ei=2-NTSKmeFIaIjQLT3MjtDg

I've been tagged

2008-06-12T01:48:00.000-07:00

Today I got tagged by the wonderful Laurel! So here we go:

The Rules:
Post the Rules, Answer all the questions, Tag 6 people and let them know.

1. What were you doing 10 years ago?
Let's see, ten years ago I was ten years old and anxiously awaiting summer holiday. Most probably passing time by running around the streets, playing ballgames with the other kids, half my class lived in the same street, and stuffing myself with loads of candy on a daily basis. Those were happy times!

2. What are 5 things on your to-do list today?
1. eat lunch, it's only 11am and I'm already hungry
2. some shopping this late afternoon
3. walk my dog, not really something I'm looking forward to considering it's rainy and cold.
4. watch law & order svu tonight
5. look through the book I just received and perhaps start reading the first few pages

3. Snacks you enjoy...
I think it would be harder to come up with a snack I don't enjoy. I will pretty much eat anything from the snack department. Fries, burgers, pizza, anything with molten cheese, crisps, fried chicken, cookies, you name it. I know it's not healthy but [insert a lame excuse here]

4. Places you have lived...
I've been living in the same place my whole life. With the fullest intention of getting out of here as soon as possible. The town I live in is located in the south of the Netherlands, and has somewhere around a 1000 inhabitants. It's as boring as you suspect it is and I think that everyone who has been here longer than 30 minutes would agree.

5. 5 things you would do if you were a billionaire?
1. Travel the world! Kenya, Japan, Sweden, Russia, Egypt, India, Greece, South Africa, the Middle East, the USA, China, the list goes on and on.
2. Buy a house in the south of France and an appartment in Paris. It's my ultimate dream to live in France one day.
3. Donate a lot of money to charity and become a volunteer myself so I can help out and at the same time make sure that the money is well spend and doesn't end up in the hands of those who have no claim to it. I think that would be a very fullfilling existence.
4. Make sure that the people I love are taken care of financially.
5. Start buying the things I've always wanted to have but could never afford.

6. People you want to know more about...
Marlene Dietrich, Lenin, J.D. Salinger, Sofia Coppola, Kofi Annan, Albert Einstein, Stephen Hawking, Jim Morrison, Jean-Paul Sartre and many others. I'm always intrigued by other people's influences and motivations.

Well, that was fun!
I hereby tag: mila-loveology, heart-in-a-cage, lana, anna, sophiejade and boutdelu

A walk on the wild side

2008-06-11T10:55:00.000-07:00

Today I ordered this plaid dress from Forever 21. Although it's not as brilliant as the one I was opting for first, which was this wonderful plaid dress from Isabel Marant, I think it does come rather close. The buttons seem a bit out of place though but I suppose replacing them with some non blue ones shouldn't be too difficult.

Despite my current enthousiasm, I wasn't really sure about the dress at first. You see, for these last few months I've been kind of stuck in this 'let's buy nothing but basics in neutral colours'-phase and this was, obviously, keeping me from buying anything with a print. I wasn't pleased with this, but I didn't really know what to do about it. Recently I've come to realise though that the only way of getting out of it is by buying something a bit more exciting. Or as Oprah would say, get out of my comfort zone. (yes I have been watching her show a lot lately) It's still miles away from a vibrant poison green pair of skinny jeans, and thank god it is because those should be banned, but I think it looks very nice and summery! And hopefully it will encourage me to think outside of the basic dressing box.

L is for Light

2008-06-10T15:14:00.000-07:00

Because of this post by one of my favourite fellow bloggers I learned about the most wonderful book! It's called 'for the love of light: a tribute to the art of polaroid' and it features a vast amount of beautiful polaroid photographs taken by 25 different photographers.

I'm quite the fan of some of these photographers (I've actually already written about a couple of them) and if it wasn't for those unreasonable import charges I'd be ordering the book right away. But right now it would turn out a little bit too expensive for my taste. Hopefully amazon will soon decide to start selling this little gem as well!

For those of you who don't fear the tax man or live somewhere where these charges do not apply, you can order the book here: http://www.fortheloveoflight.com/

Hey hello....

2008-06-10T03:57:00.000-07:00

www.loverthelabel.com

the Young one

2008-06-07T10:27:00.000-07:00

Elizabeth Young
http://www.elizabethyoung.com/

Let's play

2008-06-07T08:36:00.000-07:00

What I would really like to wear this summer is one of those extremely nice and comfortable playsuits. Preferably in black, but really, any colour would do. As long as it doesn't scream 'I'm only 10 years old but really tall for my age'. Eventhough I wouldn't be that tall for a 10 year old. Or maybe I would. Who knows how tall 10 year olds are these days anyway. Well back to the playsuit. I really like how they are worn in these pictures. I actually think the one above could be easily made out of an old shirt. Simply sewing the lower hems together should do the trick. Perhaps I'm going to give it a try!

sources: thesartorialist & milk

Self Service

2008-06-05T08:48:00.000-07:00

I'm thinking about ordering the latest issue of Self Service but I'm not quite sure if it's worth the 28 euros. The fact that it's more of a book than a magazine seems to justify the price but I'm still a bit hesitant. Can anyone who has this issue, or a previous one, tell me if it's any good? Merci beaucoup.

Deux jours à Paris

2008-06-04T12:40:00.000-07:00

One of these days the movie 2 days in paris will be released on dvd and I seriously can't wait to see it! If the trailer that's up on youtube hadn't yet convinced me, the fact that it's situated in Paris would have easily done the trick. ( ah here we go again, yet another 'I adore the french and everything France related' post. For some reason I just can't refrain myself from going there. It's a disease, please find me a french doctor, pronto!)
At the top of this post I added one of Danske's beautiful polaroids of Paris. If you haven't done so yet, you should totally visit her blog, trust me it's worth the click, her photographs are the most wonderful polaroids I've ever seen. They totally make me want to spend a ridiculous amount of money on some polaroid cassettes myself. If I knew where to get them that is. I actually have 3 polaroid camera's, all without film and yet I have never made a single photograph with either one of them because I can't seem to find a place where they actually sell cassettes. So if anyone knows where to get them, preferably online, please let me know!
And for those of you asking where my shoes in the previous post are from, I ordered them at gojane.com

http://www.2daysinparisthefilm.com/

You've got mail

2008-06-03T07:16:00.000-07:00

Today I received the most amazing pair of shoes. They're strappy, skyhigh and black. At a price of not even $25, seriously, what more can one ask for?

I also got this bag in the mail. I've been longing for one of mj's canvas savannah print bag's ever since they first came out. It's very roomy and perfect for summer!

I DREAMT I DREAM

2008-06-03T04:05:00.000-07:00

by Roberta Ridolfi
http://www.robertaridolfi.com/

Verdammt noch mal

2008-06-03T01:44:00.000-07:00

In case you are wondering what the hell I'm doing writing an entry while I should be in Berlin, well, it seems like faith doesn't particularly like me, as our trip got cancelled last minute. If there is such a thing as bad karma I must have done something horribly wrong in a past life. But it is how it is. Eventhough I'm disappointed and a bit mad there's really no point in making a big drama out of things I had no control over in the first place.
Instead I will just continue my blog from now on, at least that will keep me occupied for the time being. So please check back later today for a new post!

Bis Samstag!

2008-06-01T00:00:00.000-07:00

Thank you so much for all the wonderful comments on my previous post, they are VERY much appreciated!

Tomorrow I'm off to Berlin and instead of leaving you with nothing at all I figured I'd share some of the photographs I made this weekend.

Auf Wiedersehen!

more at flickr

2008-05-20T17:26:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to let you know that I've decided to take a break from blogging. At the very least until I come back from Berlin (june 6th), but perhaps even longer. There's a lot going on in my life right now, unfortunately not in a good way, and because of this I'm lacking both the inspiration and motivation to keep up with my blog.

au revoir,

Daily Inspiration

2008-05-19T12:45:00.000-07:00

source

Blogging about celeb outfits might be the most obvious thing to do, and therefore it is not exactly something I enjoy doing, but when I came across these outfits I just couldn't resist including them in a daily inspiration post. French chic executed perfectly, I like it!

Wreck this Journal

2008-05-19T06:21:00.000-07:00

I've always been an admirer of Keri Smith's work and today I decided to order her newest book called 'wreck this journal'. The purpose of this journal? Well here it is:

"This book was created for anyone who has ever had trouble starting/keeping or finishing a journal/sketchbook. By forcing ourselves to wreck it on purpose, the “journal as an object” loses it’s preciousness, and allows us the feeling of completion. This book was created for every person who has looked at other artist’s journals and said, “I wish I could do that. I’ve started dozens of them but didn’t stick with it.” or, “But the journal itself is so beautiful, I don’t want to wreck it with my ideas/handwriting/drawings.” Or, “I feel pressured to write something good.”
In this book good does not exist. The goal is to fill it up, to shift your perception of the blank page and the journal itself into a place for experimentation. Into a place where you just get stuff out onto the page. A place to start working against your better judgment. To do those things you were taught to never do (make a mess, destroy, fold down pages, write in books, play with dirt). This book IS the place.
Each page of Wreck This Journal is filled with prompts telling you how to systematically ‘destroy’ the entire book."

more info at www.wreckthisjournal.com

Daily Inspiration

2008-05-18T10:25:00.000-07:00

source

Daily Inspiration: COS

2008-05-16T11:19:00.000-07:00

source

What's going on?

2008-05-16T08:18:00.000-07:00

I usually don't like to post about issues that concern me, but right now there's something that really upsets me. Eventhough I rarely talk about it, I'm a huge animal lover. When I was younger I even felt bad about walking outside, affraid I would crush some innocent ant. So when I received an email from the WSPA this afternoon, informing me about the critical situation of animals in Burma I was rather heartbroken. As you might probably know, Burma has been hit by a tropical storm almost two weeks ago and death tolls (amongst both humans and animals) are still rising. While everybody is worrying about getting the emergency supplies to the people of Burma, the animals are in just as much need of help, yet not receiving any either.
But luckily we can help them. One way of doing so is by donating to the WSPA. They're currently not able to enter the country but they have a vetinary team waiting in Thailand that will cross the border as soon as it gets permission. If they are not able to get into Burma at all, the money will be used to help other animals, so it's really a win win situation. You can read more about this matter at:
wspa international or wspa.nl

ps. by bringing this up I'm not trying to make you feel bad if you don't want to donate money, it's completely up to you. I just figured that it might help make people more aware of the situation if I talked about it.

Daily Inspiration: Marie Antoinette

2008-05-14T07:13:00.000-07:00

Daily Inspiration: Cut&Paste

2008-05-13T11:27:00.000-07:00

because nothing beats a good oldfashioned cut and paste party

Is it better to be alone?

2008-05-12T02:32:00.000-07:00

source

Daily Inspiration: Summer days

2008-05-09T00:23:00.000-07:00

Nico

Lina Scheynius

unknown

Wendy Bevan

Marie Antoinette

Debbie Carlos

the ballad of Jack & Rose

Stefania Paparelli

unknown

Cop Stop

2008-05-08T03:12:00.000-07:00

Since I'm bored and quite uninspired I am resorting to a 'what did I buy last week/today post'.

This afternoon I headed towards the city with a wallet full of cash, eufemistically speaking ofcourse, and a happy sunny day smile. Bought two new blouses (photographs will be included later on), a scarf and Vogue Paris. As you might know, think I've mentioned it before, I've subscribed to VP only a couple of weeks ago, but apparently they didn't feel the need to send me the current issue. Merde.

Last week I bought some new cd's. One of them is BOTT from my beloved Kings of Leon (which I already own but this one came with a special dvd). The lengths I go to to get my hands on a KOL dvd, it's unbelievable. The other one is Gavin deGraw's newest album. I'm not quite sure what the general concensus is about Gavin these days, but I feel like he's pretty underrated. Whenever I mention liking his music people tend to look at me a little funny. -Am I missing something here? Is there a good reason for this general dislike?- Anyway, his new cd (had been waiting for it to come out FORever) is brilliant! Just insanely good. And totally worth the ridiculous amount of money cd's cost these days.

Though I might be lacking the ability to come up with a decent post (evidence is right above), I do however still recognise a good looking guy when I see one. And when I came across these photographs of Louis Garrel (the only reason that made the dreamers worth watching) I figured, an attractive guy, photographed remarkably nice could just as well serve as daily inspiration as any other pretty editorial. So it looks like I'm not completely uninspired after all. Hurray!

http://community.livejournal.com/foto_decadent/

Ich bin eine Berlinerin

2008-05-05T12:12:00.001-07:00

In less than a month I'll be leaving for a five day citytrip to Berlin! Obviously I'm sehr excited, especially after the Kopenhagen fiasco. The thing is, I've never been to Berlin before and because of that I really don't know what to visit, where to shop and most importantly, where to get a decent meal. (in Paris we had such a hard time finding something to eat, it nearly ruined our trip) Eventhough I will most certainly go and get myself a bunch of city guides before I leave, I figured it's much more interesting to hear about the city from people who have actually been there. So please share your knowledge if you know anything useful about Berlin, it will be much appreciated!

ps. excusez-moi for the lack of interesting updates. The extremely welcome warm weather is leading me astray from blogging. I'll try to update soon though!

Daily Inspiration: Hot Air Balloons

2008-05-03T13:17:00.000-07:00

How cool is this?

Daily Inspiration: Lara Stone

2008-05-02T07:10:00.000-07:00

I have to admit, I'm a lousy patriot. I wouldn't even cheer for our national soccerteam if they were playing world cup finale. Dutch athletes at the Olympics? I couldn't care less. As soon as I cross the border I immediately try to forget I ever was on the other side of it. And even on holiday I try to be as vague as possible when asked where I'm from.
But for once I'm willing to set my dislike of anything Dutch aside. Because I like Lara, I kinda think I do.

Daily Inspiration: Velvet Tees

2008-05-01T06:33:00.000-07:00

Velvet Tees
www.velvet-tees.com

Daily Inspiration: Regina Spektor

2008-04-30T08:57:00.000-07:00

The first time I heard about Regina Spektor was when I was introduced to the song 'modern girls and old fashioned men' by a friend of mine. (the song is a collaboration between her and one of my favourite bands, the strokes.) At that point I did not now that this pretty Russian girl with red haid would rapidly become one of my favourite artists. Nowadays I adore Regina. Not only is she insanely beautiful, she also has an amazing voice and her music comes close to perfection. I'm in love with her weird lyrics. Whether she sings about biblical figures or lonely summers, she always manages to make you want to listen to her songs over and over again. If only she would come to Europe again, I would love to see her perform!

Better

on the radio

Daily Inspiration: Stella McCartney

2008-04-28T08:38:00.000-07:00

So beautiful!
www.stellamccartney.com

Flickr Favourites April

2008-04-26T11:59:00.000-07:00

1. schreibmaschine brief, 2. yellowblouse&seahorse, 3. 少一張, 4. Untitled, 5. Disco!, 6. In The Window, The Manic-Basso Echoing In The Optic, 7. Untitled, 8. stars, stars, 9. milkandstuff

Daily Inspiration: Hubble Deep Field

2008-04-24T04:24:00.000-07:00

(Today's inspiration is slightly different from what you're used to, but nevertheless I think it certainly qualifies)

Ever since I was a little girl I've been fascinated with astronomy. I've always thought that galaxies, nebula's, supernova's and other exotic phenomena were immensely intriguing. And nothing has ever excited me more than learning/discovering something new about the universe, whether it would be the discovery of a new planet, the theories behind quantum physics or the existence of dark matter. Stephen Hawking's book 'a Brief History of Time' is one of my all time favourites and over the last few years I have spend a fair amount of money on books and dvd's about pretty much everything that's even remotely related to astronomy. So I suppose it won't come as too much of a surprise when I tell you that it has always been a dream of mine to study physics.
Unfortunately this dream came to an abrupt end when I first failed a math test. And then another. And another. Later my lack of mathematical skills (they strangely only disappeared during tests and never during classes) prohibited me from getting the grades I needed to be allowed into the physics program, eventhough I was quite good at both physics and chemistry. All this inevitably led me to the conclusion that I would never study physics. Or at least not in the first decade or so. And eventhough I've settled for something 'less' right now and am even rather content with where that has taken me, I never got over my passion for astronomy.

Because of that today's inspiration will be this Hubble deep field shot. I know that seems a bit geeky, but it always inspires me to learn more and it reminds me of what I love the most!

Daily Inpspiration: Chloé

2008-04-23T04:25:00.000-07:00

I've been in love with this ad campaign ever since I first saw it 5 years ago ♥

Chloé s/s 2003
photographed by Craig McDean

Daily Inspiration: Le Temps De L'innocence

2008-04-22T04:20:00.000-07:00

Vogue Paris May 2008

photographer: Mario Sorrenti

model: Lara Stone

styling: Emanuelle Alt

thanks to berlinrocks at tfs