PERSONAL | Musical influences

I do not think that the off-day needs much explanation because it is such a common phenomena. Today just had to be one. Started with heavy grey clouds along my mind and sky and a lack of, well, pretty much everything. Troubled thoughts, loaded problems. Today started as nothing and it ended up to be a discovery, moreover musically. As Pete Murray can express so precisely: "Dream yourself along another day, never miss opportunity. Don't be scared of what you cannot see, your only fear is possibility." I needed that little boost, a sunshine that reflects in the screen of my MacBook, the power of going on and going strong. I just saw the documentary about The Dark Side of The Moon, the best known album of Pink Floyd ever. It is brilliant to see how fifteen-minute lasting bombastic songs started with three chords and the psychedelic musical minds of those men. Real people with real passion, that is my inspiration for today.

INSPIRATION | Red, red wine

ARCHITECTURE | Shoreditch House

ph / Tim Soar for Dezeen

I often discover similarities between arts like styling, editing, painting and due to this project, even architecture. It is in the details of mixing materials, find matching -or controverse- fabrics, layering the structures, finding the ultimate combination between functionality and aesthetics. For me, the Shoreditch House in London did the best job. It is shaped like a traffic light, but in neutral colours. The old pub annex private members club has turned into one of the most oblivious boutique hotels in the surrounding area. The modern steel is adding the extra height the building desperately needed. The amount of contrasts put in one construct is adding a touch of modern simplicity into this age-old pub. Drinking a classic pint in a fresh surrounding. And fresh is what we like.

MY FAVOURITES | From COS

ph / COS

There is high street, and there is above high street. COS is a label that is definitely one step ahead of the H&M, Zara-like stores in individuality and quality. Unfortunately, the prices are also a few pennies higher than my regular buys. The newest spring collection is materialwise brilliant: stiff, thick fabrics and slightly oversized cuts. As I am a fan of colder colours, the overload of blue hues in the lookbook is right up my alley. Combine that with the ultimate springtrend: ankle-cut pants, and COS has stole my heart - again. I'd really like to get my hands on the simple sandals or a pieces with a twist, such as the odd trench coat in the picture beneath. Prices start at €15, but easily rise up to €69 for a draped top or €150 for spring coats.

Met een budget dat niet bepaald 'tot de sterren en daar voorbij' reikte maakte ik elke keer een vreugdedansje als ik iets voor niets vond bij een H&M of Zara. Toch heb ik de laatste tijd steeds meer voorkeur gekregen voor kwaliteit dan voor kwantiteit. De interesse verschoof zich dan ook van de high street labels naar kleinere, meer exclusieve merken als COS. De lentecollectie (ja, ik ben laat, het is praktisch al zomer) ligt helemaal in mijn straatje. Dikke en stijve stoffen, simpele cuts en lichtelijk oversized jassen, het is bijna alsof meneer COS me deze lente overhaalt zijn winkel over te kopen. Vooral de slank gesneden broeken op enkelhoogte en de simplistische sandaaltjes zijn items om bij weg te smelten. Helaas, bij een exclusieve look hoort ook een bijpassend prijskaartje: misschien is die three-piece French wardrobe toch wel een goed plan.

Hartenstraat 23
Amsterdam, Netherlands

Venestraat 17-19
Den Haag, Netherlands

ART | Kaleidoscope

ph / Rad Hourani

As I promised, here is the latest 'What's Comptemporary?' project by Rad Hourani. I like the fact that he is very abstract in collected inspiration for his collections and love what he does here. The fun thing of a good old kaleidoscope in the mix with stiff architecture. The effect is wonderful.

P.S.: Good day today: my boyfriend is finally coming back from India!

YES | I got accepted!

ph / Cover of ANT Magazine

I got very pleasantly surprised yesterday: I received a positive result for the study International Fashion & Branding at AMFI! After hours and hours of photographing, editing, writing and preparing myself for the interviews, I finally got in. A colleague of mine drove me to the bakery to celebrate this message with some pie! Above you can see one of the first projects of the Fashion & Branding crew years ago, the ANT Magazine (now Odd Magazine). With a history in magazines, I am really thrilled to be part of the community that takes care of the visual and textual translation from fashion into this sort of papers. I am absolutely looking forward to take place in that process. I also discovered that, due to the different start date of this study, I am able to visit Lowlands this year as well! Double trouble.

You might like these posts as well:
WORDS | Authentic Self
QUICK | Editor's note
LOWLANDS | Festival in vogelvlucht (Dutch)

FILM | 3x Rad Hourani

Collections #6, #7 and runwayshow #4 of the just-discovered artist Rad Hourani. His (no-)background and intense curiosity inspire me. This man still believes in the equivalent of heaven; he got rid of all the restrictions: No gender, no season, no rules, just epitomizing the values of freedom and unisex elegance. I stumbled across RAD by total accidence, by fascination of his beloved project 'What's contemporary' (more about that later). In my humble opinion, this man has accompanied a lot more then any other fashion designer, with a thick layer of philosophies covering each collection. One to remember.