I like

Gold
not sure if tacky
shoulder pads
Michael
chains and studs

15 minute romper

Doing something different than forever wrapping belts around the load of too big second hand dresses I own. Fold in half, cut out a triangle, sew together, voila!

Defending democracy

I've been admitted to one of the best schools of journalism in holland, and can't wait to start in September! Offcourse I want to write about fashion, I realize, and it bothers me, that fashion magazines are seen as inferior magazines and writing about fashion will probably be regareder as empty, commercial and useless by my teachers. (Wikipedia stated about fashion journalism that "the term "journalism" is used as a monicker, but does not carry the overall procedural and deontological aspects of professional journalism." In other words, writing about fashion isn't professional, Surprisingly other specialisations like medicine or sports are much more accepted.) They would rather train us into political experts to defend democrasy. But isn't democracy about freedom, to think and choose for yourself? Being an individual is one of the core elements in order for a democrasy to work, but individuals don't wear uniforms, sheep do, obedient nazis do, insecure teenagers do. People are so trapped in opinions of others around them that they don't even remember their own. They Wear and do what is expected from them, with no appreciation or understanding whatsoever for someone who looks unexpected. Unexpected as a boy in heels or a die hard fan in star trek suit. It seems as if Social control is still above democracy. Because anyone who falls outside of the boring ordinairy is punished by society. It's like being trapped in the 50's. Clean the front garden for the neighbours, wear a suit for your boss, and so on. If it would be generally accepted to be yourself no matter what might come out, it would be unimaginable how different the world would be. Would people make different choices if they could profile themselves freely and find their own true opinions without influences and ettiquettes of what is and what is not acceptable, obligated and expected from you, having an uncomplicated opinion. I think fashion is so important, it is the visible reflection of society.

DIY elastic cage dress

Thoughts of elastic Cage dresses, skirts, corsets have been going through my mind every morning while getting dressed, specially when I look at the amount of nude pieces that I have collected and that need something strappy added to them. Somewhere I feel like a fraud to make something that is someone else's idea, but who's? Buying an "original" was harder than I thought. If the cages are not sold out, they are of numerous brands and all very simillar.
After making the "frame" I tried out dozens of possibilities for the bottom part by pinning the elastics in many different shapes. I still havn't figured out wich one I'll choose. It's too easy not to make a few.

Celeste, minty eyes, gold chains

Celeste, photo byBianca de Jong, styled by me
I am not supposed to post this, but I just couldn't resist this particular picture..
Sea foam is my favorite color, at the moment at least. If working at american apparel taught anything, it would be a million color names. It's not really mint, it's the pastel version of mint: Sea Foam. It even matches my Blog title.

Cleaning out the closet

Imagine all wardrobes being thrown in a hole, just to be dug out in 100 years. What will the content say about us? What do our clothes reflect? That we lived in a standard society of mass production, chain stores, with little appreciation for quality, that the dress code was uniform-like, cheap, quantity over quality and that our way of life is simillar to that of our clothes: standard, average, empty. Not me! It's time to throw out all of the unworthy shit. My goal is to have items I that I will never want to get rid of, shoes that I'll keep for the rest of my life and dresses that my grandchildren would still want to wear.
Inpiration:






Zana's frocks on display, Garbagedress

On my way to work

On my way to one of my last days of work, the lovely Felicia from Damstyle took my picture.

my life is happy again

One month no blog update. Latest developments: I finally resigned my job at American Apparel, I am so relieved that there is finally a view on something new in my life. And because of that it makes me enjoy the few days(only 6!!) i've got left there more, work harder, and realize that it wasn't that bad at all, I had a great time at that company, going to wear their bodysuits for the rest of my life and met alot of interesting people. That said, the 9.5-hour boring workdays are over and I am so excited to have ome spare energy left to do something new and with substance. My brain needs training! Even my vocabulairy has shrunken from putting the full amount of my time in something that doesnt involve much thinking or creativity. I am so ready to spent a day in the library, buy a A3 format sketchbook, take some pictures, visit foreign cities, do an internship, go thrifting...What also musn't be underestimated as an influence on ones moods is new footwear. My new Givenchy babies were delivered 2 weeks ago!

Oh the Irony...

I find pleasure in sarcasm, it is just a little step further than Irony.
The kind of Irony as a 16 year old girl dressing like a granny, with a wardrobe that makes you wonder whether she took the content of an entire elderly persons home. The kind of Sarcasm of wich Alexander McQueen's latest collection was all about.
Provoking people and portaiting -fashion as it is now- almost as a cliché freakshow with lips from a porn star and dresses made out of trashbags. Today I thought I wasn't wearing anything too fancy, untill I entered the tram and everyone started giggling. Specially when I go out with my daughter I've caught myself dressing down, and taking in considerance what people will think about me as a mother. I realized it, I'm over it, I don't care what narrowminded uncultured people think. Next time I walk outside my front door I will wear something like 80's glitter stilletto's, my golden givenchy clip earrings that I love so much, or decide that I am an old soul in an old fashioned dress and a hat with veil for the day.

backstage alexander wang

This is why I'm not a fan of online fashion shows.
images models.com

depressed and vernis a ongles

Every time around the end of February, I come to realize that most of the plans and resolutions I made for the new year havn't been working out as greatly as I had hoped. To name one, updating my blog frequently. Sadly, I've spent the first two months of 2009 becoming almost brain-dead in retail, working 5/6 days a week for 9 hours a day. I wish I had invested all that time in developing myself and doing something I love. I wish I had more time to do inspiring things. I missed Margiela in Antwerp, I missed Vibskof in Eindhoven, I havn't gotten a chance to go to the Richard Avedon exposition. And it seems that there isn't going to be an end to this situation anytime soon, it is so depressing. uhhhgg, but I want money! I want more shoes! I want more clothes!(My wishlist is growing beyond control) I feel broke enough as it is, quitting one of my jobs would make it worse. And to pretend I am in a real crisis I invested in some nailpolish instead of new clothes to make voguish nails while trying to figure out some french, staring at Lara and feeling sorry for myself.

No Lack of Black

My Lovely friend Suzan
Two familiar faces present
Funerals have something dramatic about them. I imagine people wearing their best black clothes,lace vails and hats, tight suits, umbrellas, sunglasses, and women in sheer tights with a backseem on black high heels.
So dissapoitning when poeple dare to show up in their daily jeans and sneakers.
But there was nothing dissapointing about the amount of black that showed up friday at amsterdam fashion week.

The Iris van Herpen show was something many had been looking forward to , including me. Her inspiration was egiptian mummification and considering her signature materials wich are leather and industrial materials, it promised to be mindblowing. It was a short show with only a few looks yet all the viewers were left in complete awe.

The Real Fashion Journalists, or just anonymous little for-free-workers?

How isolated, not up to date and shutted out did I feel when my internet was disconected for a few weeks. I bought a shit load of magazines in an attempt to keep up with the latest developments in fashionland, But it seemed that by the time fashion news reaches the printed pages of a magazine, it has allready moved to "<< OLDER POSTS " on most blogs.

Among some Fashion Journalists its not even a taboo that the main source of their articles are often fashionblogs,and not what you would expect >inside information they get from designers, brands and other panjandrums. Magazines shamelessly use the blognetwork as an always up to date fashion database.

A girl at my former internship is who made me think about this issue in the first place, She loves to write and is is good at it too! so I assumed, she must have a blog. But I was wrong. She didnt have a blog mainly because she was of the opinion that bloggers are Journalist's anounymous little workers that dont get payed.

I question this statement, because if journalists can find the blogs, so can everybody else. 2 fashionmagazines have disappeard in Holland last year,(I will specially miss Elle girl)I hope no more will follow. It is sayd the cause was a lack of ads. But that can also be another way to say: they have less readers and therefor companies dont want to place ads. Is the 'economic crisis'to blame? Or where the readers lost to the amazing and inspiring online network of independed non-advertisement-aimed fashionblogs?

My first big magazine proyect!

Last week I was busy doing the most exciting proyect I have ever done alone. To style a fashionshoot for material girl magazine. Shot by supertalented photographerToeps. The exact date was given to me 3 days before the shoot, going into complete robot-like stress was inevitable.
But this stress was an enjoybable thing,the photoshoot was the only thing on my mind, and finally I had some pressure to perform. I had to get my hands on some magazine-worthy clothing fást! Looking for clothes in my area seemed to be a difficult task but surprisingly it wasnt!

What I learned last week was that just because the big fashion weeks are covered by literally everyone, and we're being bombarded with the images of it, doesn't mean it ends there. Browsing through websites and collections of recently graduated designers, I came across Sarena Huizinga. One of Hollands 20 best fashion students to graduate in 2008. Her minimalistic collection was inspired by hosophobia (fear of dirt). The white knits and a bit of black and white leather were completely my cup of tea and made me stress out even more because I was determined to incorporate them in our series, and it wouldnt be the same without.

When I finally had her amazing pieces at home and was able to see the detailing I was in complete awe. The entire collection had such unbelievably proffessional detailing. Unbelievable that this came from a "student". Even the shoes were soo amazing, as if they had just come out of a high quality store. If I may citisize, alot of settled dutch designers use existing shoes for their shows and just spray some paint on them, or glue fabric on them...very crafty. But every single of Sarena's items seemed to be on a higher and more proffessional level from bags to knitwear, from shoes, to leather elements. I can honestly say I've become a fan, and I can't wait to see more of her work in the future.

hairy earrings

There hasnt been an update to my blog lately, I havnt been upto a lot lately. My money is going everywhere except to clothes. That doesnt mean I havnt been (window)shopping. But only looking at the displays in window is also not really what I've been upto. I've gone through all the procedures of shopping, but just havn't bought anything.. I just want to be aware what it is that the stores are selling, try something on, touch the fabrics, or just hug a beautiful skirt to let it know how much I love it. I have been druelling over my laptop looking at shoes that I wanted for christmas, and I could have made a post out of that. But we all know how the givenchy bird cage bootie looks like, and I dont want to become a blog that consist only of wishlists that might not even come true. Besides, Its not all about spending money! The contrary. With few recourser one becomes much more creative and will do things that one would never have done with all the resources(CASH)available. Like making hairy earrings from a piece of weave I still had laying around.

Black Christmas

This sunny morning I woke up with the christmas spirit, and was determined to buy the best christmas tree I have ever had, in my favorite color: Black. For this occasion I thought I'd wear these home made shoes by my boyfriend and I. They used to be high boots with a beautiful soal but with an utterly ugly and cheap looking upper part, so I cut off all those bits. Then my thoughtfull Romeo(no its not a metaphore, thats his real name) came home one day with square, round, big, small, silver and golden studs and applied them on my shoe. The result is Black and sparkly, just like our christmas tree!

making beautiful images

No glitter blushes, creams or shimery foundations give your face the almost wet looking glow that I've been looking for. Yesterday I learned that what I need is Fix+ from Mac. I'm lucky to have been present at a shoot for the dutch L'Officiel by unbelievably amazing photographer Alique.
The pictures will be posted on my blog as soon as they are published. You can safely call them Art, and I was in awe of what this great team was able to acheive in a spontanious way, on a very short notice and with fewer resources than they are used to.

It might seem like this post is extremely postive,(great things make me forget less great things) or it might just be that I am young,new and get excited easily about this stuff. Hopefully that is not the case and I will never loose my enthousiasm. But I promise there is also a very critical and pessimistic side of me that also wants to shine in blogposts.




The lovely, lovely, lovely Cato van Ee.

Opening The House of Victor & Rolf

Monday, 4.23 PM
I am in Antwerp central station,
emergency: I have to pickup some clothes,
I have no money, it is cold,
but most of all it is BOOOORRRIIING

But it is all worth it, because the same boss who send me here this morning,
will take me to the opening of The House of Victor & Rolf, wich will be launched later today in the town I live, Utrecht! I wish it were 8 Pm allready.. how exciting! (actually I wish it was 4.59 so i can sit in a warm train) Specially because the online fashion show was a bit of a disapointment to me.
Even though I had the same front row seat as any magazine editor, and the collection was very nice, it still feels like I missed alot. JUST ONE MODEL, no front row pictures, no backstage stress,No backstage photos! Those are always my favorites! Models standing in line in beautuful garnments, laughing and doing silly poses. I just didnt get the envious and happy feeling that drives me when I see who díd attend the spectacle of a show on paris fashionweek. There is no free internet here, my train is still not here.

Under my orange nailpolish my nails have probably turned purple, so i'm going to stop typing and put my hands in my pockets before they freeze off.




Monday, 8.00 PM

ahhh what an amazing exhibition, and it was also vert nice to see Viktor & Rolf were there themselves! They actually dont look that much alike, exept for their identic hairstyles, glasses and suits. The title 'the house of victor& Rolf' can be taken very seriously, because there was litteraly a giant three stories high spic&span white dollhouse, filled with beautiful and a bit freaky looking porcelin dolls,
all wearing miniature Victor & Rolf pieces, of wich the originals were also present at the exibition on life size porceline dolls. The details were impressive to see from up close but also the size of the pieces, it was a complete different experience, 109879732575490546 times better than their online fashionshow.











It was held in the Central Museum of Utrecht.
And it is very interesting that they were the first museum to buy something from victor& Rolf, in 1998.
ever since they have bough several pieces every year and now own 29 Victor & rolf Couture pieces wich were also incorporated in the exibition.


I just had to take their picture so I wouldnt have to stare so long, but instead could analyze them from my camera hahahahaha!is that too honest?!
but I mean that these two were dressed better than most of the women.

Great Loss amongst dutch fashion magazines: ELLEGIRL IS DEAD

(Yes I was a faithfull reader,I know that with 20 years of age I dont really fit the targetgroup) It was sooo sad to hear that the Dutch Elle-Girl has just brought out their last issue, at first I was hoping it was just a rumor but a message on the official website confirmed the disapointing news.(quote site: RIP ellegirl) I have collected their bionthly magazines for more than a year now, after I discovered that Ellegirl's substance was quite good! Even after skipping the "boys, diy nailpolish"-pages it was still a very entertaining read. I will miss their columns, streetstyle pages, new models, and most of all their not too serious, colorfull editorials with an edge.

The Sales have STARTED?!

I havn't noticed much change because of the economic recession. But retailers obviously have, because the sales have allready begun in some important streets of Amsterdam. And I am looking forward to see how high the discounts will rise. But for now, I'm satisfied with the studded bracelets and bangles I have abought for 50 and 70% off!(yes I bought them all)