Believe it or not, there was a time you couldn’t take one decent photo of me. I always looked stupid in every photo. My, my… this blogging has taught me a thing or two. Of course when you have a great photographer (Kitty this time), it makes a big difference.
I combined this pair of lemon yellow trousers with a multi-coloured shirt, a bright blue clutch, bright pink belt and purple slingbacks. Loads of colour in this outfit. The shirt has always been a “thing” with me. I couldn’t style it any other way than with my blue skinnies and I didn’t even like that outfit much. Now with these yellow trousers I say YAY, perfect. Plus, I combined the shirt with other trousers as well. I am finally getting the hang of it. These are all items from my own wardrobe.
I posted every item a while ago: the yellow trousers combined with a long white summer jumper, the multi-coloured shirt with my baby blue trousers, the purple slingbacks with a fuchsia poncho. Couldn’t find the post with the blue clutch anymore. A clutch, by the way, which was gifted by my friend Marianne. Again, bless her.
Below: We started our photo shoot near the Maria Stichting. That is what people who live in Haarlem a long time, keep calling the hospital that used to be here.
Below: There are little corners and towers, old walls and big trees. Oops the curtains have fallen down.
Below: Magnificent old tree with sunshine on the leaves. Makes you happy.
Kitty wanted to take a photo of me with the tree. A bit of a problem. These shoes are far too high as it is and when the heels sink into the grass it is very difficult not to fall, especially with my bad knee. Ron always used to send me into sand and grass, now Kitty does it as well. Is it a photographer thing?
Below:Â I took my bright pink tote from the market with me to carry mirror, flat shoes etc.
Below: We moved on to the Dreef, a beautiful lane near the centre of Haarlem.
Below: Close-up of the shirt, belt, bag and bracelet.
Below: Oh that was tricky, walking on these heels. I am going to replace them, they are really too high. Even if my knee would be fully recovered, they are still too high. I just love the colour.
Below: I had 7 mm taken off these heels, but because they are on a slope, it felt as if I was falling backwards. So I asked the cobbler to add the 7 mm on again and he did. He is a miracle worker.
Below: A school class crossing, no uniforms in the Netherlands. My shirt is longer at the back because I tucked it in at the front. I love this trend. It is so flattering for my figure.
Below: There were several art objects at one side of the lane. (Artist Pieter W. Postma, name artwork: In Awe.)
Below: And with Kitty from the other side.
Below: Artist Sjoerd Buisman, name artwork: Stapeling (= stacking).
Below: Artist Leonard van Munster, name artwork: Power plant.
Below: Artist André Pielage, name artwork Out Loud.
Below: Kitty at work.
Below: And an old statue as well. For people who were executed during the second world war. On the 7th of March 1945, only months before we were freed.
Below: And here I am revealing my actual foot wear. I have told you before: never believe the photo, not even mine, although I aim to avoid fake. Heels are my weakness. I like them so much better than flat shoes.
Artist: Frank Koolen, name artwork: TOTEMETOT.
Below: We had a lovely lunch on a terrace at the end of the shoot and I took this shot of Kitty.
Below: When my braces are off, I will ask Kitty to take a photo like this and use it as a new profile photo.
What happened in my life this week
Saturday: had lunch with Misja and Anja in Jansje which is a shop with Fair Design presents and a restaurant with a group of intellectually disabled staff who display a range of talents. They won an award for being the nicest restaurant of Haarlem and the North of Holland. I agree, the atmosphere is enchanting. Sylvia of 40PlusStyle, who is the fourth member of “the Haarlem bloggers” just left for a holiday.
Below: Anja (blog Curly Traveller). She had a late night, overslept and just grabbed some clothes after her shower. Pretty well done I say. She is the Boho-type, the more-is-more type.
Below: Misja (blog MisjaB) left me in awe again. She is a master in combining different styles, colours and patterns. I live and learn looking at her, sometimes shamelessly copying her.
Below: We didn’t take a picture of me, but this is what I was wearing. All shopped from my own wardrobe again. White skinnies, but not too skinny (second-hand) and an anchor blouse by Marlene Birger, quite old. Seen before in this post. The black belt is so old that when I took it off, my white trousers were covered in black muck. The belt is definitely falling apart and I need another one.
Below: And because it was “layer-weather” I added this jacket which is ancient (brand: Tiger of Sweden).
Sunday: a day of rest for me. Ron was away to show Watson to his trusted “dog holiday sitter”, a girl who always took care of Charlie when we wanted to go on holiday. She lives in the south of the country which is a bit of a long drive. At least it is for us Dutch, two hours to be exact. I had a lovely lazy day, washing my hair with hair soap which ought to give me more volume At the same time, I used a serum to make it less dry. Quite contradictory. I was quite pleased with the result. I need a couple of more weeks to be sure, but so far it seems that hair soap instead of shampoo indeed gives my hair more volume.
Monday: heck of a day at the office.
Tuesday: saying goodbye to a colleague who is now on sabbatical leave and on return will work with another team.
Wednesday: working in the morning (on my day off!), then a photo shoot with Loes, drinks in my garden afterwards. Loes left and Anja arrived for drinks and a chat.
Below: Anja in her wonderful new dress.
Below: Close-up of her nails and bracelets.
After dinner Ron suggested we would take dog Watson to the beach. My plan was to work on my blogpost, but Real Life must always come before Virtual Life, so to the beach we went. It was lovely.
Below: Watson is a lot better dog now, but still a handful. As you can see from these photos, not a very placid dog. Ron is having a hard time keeping him quiet on his lap.
Thursday: hectic day again at the office and at 5 o’clock I headed over to friends whose dog had died the night before. They were heartbroken. After our dog Charlie’s death beginning of this year, I so understand what they are going through.
Still contemplating on the braces. Will I continue for another 10 weeks? Or call it a day because good enough is OK? At the moment I am leaning towards another 10 weeks.
Greetje
I’d love to hear more about that hair soap. My hair definitely needs more volume! Please let us know if you think it is working well for you.
Yes, the hair soap is working. Not to the extend that I suddenly have massive hair but it has improved. I am currently experimenting not using conditioner anymore (so far so good) and the last experiment is not to use foam for blow drying. That will be the trickiest I think. All those products work against the hair soap effect (silicones).
What is the brand name of the hair soap? Is it a bar soap? I do find that going without conditioner seems to help with my hair (and not washing it every day, but that is sometimes hard).
It is a Dutch brand: Botma & Van Bennekom. Bought it in the online shop called Zepig. The Dutch word is “haarzeep”
Oooo Greetje, the colours in your outfit are marvelous!! The pants are such a happy colour, and I like the style as well. Your friends are also so well-dressed. Anja’s new dress is lovely with all the pretty embroidery. Shelley
I am a colour bomb haha. Shopped all from my own wardrobe. So proud of myself. My friends are inclined to wear something nice when they meet me. They fear my camera haha.
Greetje
Thank you! I was very pleased with myself for creating this outfit with clothes from my wardrobe. I am finally learning a bit more about styling.
Thanks, Shelley.
You look stunning in this bright outfit!
Thank you. It made me cheerful when I looked in the mirror. I like colour.
Love this bold, bright outfit!
Those heels are very high. I’m kind of impressed you managed as well as you did for the photos.
Anja is looking lovely too.
Kitty’s camera is massive! It’s not often you see anyone toting around big cameras anymore. Everyone just takes photos with their phones. These photos did turn out excellent though and I’m sure that’s part of the reason.
Suzanne
http://www.suzannecarillo.com
Oh yes, Kitty’s camera takes wonderful photos. Of course the skills of the photographer herself are just as important.
Anja is very pleased with her new dress. And right so.
The heels, however fantastic, have got to go. Too bad.
Thanks, Suz! And yes, Kitty is a ‘real’ photographer and she makes gorgeous pictures.
You did a wonderful job of styling these pieces. I actually remember when you previously wore this pretty and colorful blouse on your blog. It’s a triumphant moment when you finally hit the perfect combination. There are so many great colors in this shirt, to feature in your accessories and the purple color is a fun one to draw on.
Ron is clearly loving Watson when even the “squirmy moments” bring a big happy smile to his face.
I too vote for continuing to wear your braces. A little more security for the best outcome possible …?
I am beginning to think I am getting the knack of creating an outfit with pieces from my wardrobe. It only took 6 years haha. And I am particularly pleased I got to use this shirt. I agree with you it is a lovely one, but it can look a bit frumpy if you combine it the wrong way. It is a Ralph Lauren one.
And yes Ron does love Watson. No doubt here.
The braces will stay on for another 10 weeks. Next Friday is my appointment to measure up and get new braces made for the last stretch.
Greetje
Oh, this top and yellow pants look like they were made for each other! Just brilliant. I also like how you used the bag and shoes to echo some of the other colors in the shirt.
Can’t believe how big Watson’s getting!
i did well, didn’t I? I was so proud for coming up with this outfit, all by myself and all from my own wardrobe. I am getting better.
And yes Watson just grew and grew. And very quickly. He really was a pup only for a month.
What a fabulous riot of colour! The photos are brilliant but I’ve never thought your photos are bad either. xx
I was so proud of myself for creating this outfit. 😊 Styling doesn’t come naturally to me although people often think so.
I’m surprised Greetje. You always look great. I’m a neutral’s girl at heart and I shot some photos out of my comfort zone the other day, wearing bright colours. xx
Ah.. I look great because I have lovely shop assistents, helping me creating an outfit. Shopping from my own wardrobe requires my skills. Talking about out of my comfort zone haha.
Good on you for wearing bright colours for a change. I wonder how you feel about it. I couldn’t live without them, but I know they look good on me.
Great outfit, so summery. Couldn’t you use colorful sandals in stead of heels, like the comfy sandals you wore, just in a bright color. Better for the knees. Those heels will set your knee back. Go for the longer time with braces. You won’t be sorry.
The photos are great especially using the artwork and naming the artist. I really need to visit your country. Love your post I check every Sunday.
You would think that wearing high heels are bad for my knee but it isn’t. I asked three different orthopedists and they all said the same thing: if you can walk on high heels, there is no reason why you shouldn’t. I even insisted and said: “But doesn’t that put more pressure on the poor knee?” But they stuck to what they said.
Of course it isn’t comfortable. It never was, not before the knee trouble either.
And yes I will go fo the longer time with the braces. I have already come so far.
I am a good ambassador for my country, aren’t I haha. Thank you for you sweet words about checking every Sunday. Makes me so happy.
Greetje
Lovely, as usual! I always look forward to your blog.
Such a comment always makes me so happy. Knowing that you mean something for someone is very rewarding. A writer wants people to read his/her book as well. Although I won’t be presumptuous to think I am at that level haha.
Greetje
Go the full 10 weeks. You will ask yourself later why you didn’t when you were so close. You asked! Hahaha.
These photos are AMAZING!! I love them all, every single one. You, the clothes, the photos, the locations, and the combo of you and Kitty together on that particular day hit all the right notes. Total harmony, yes! The heels look great but the flatforms are winners in the end – my feet are shying away from heels these days too, not for a particular reason, just instinct I guess.
Ron and Watson look very happy! All good.
I will go for another 10 weeks. Exactly for the reason you wrote.
The photos are good, right? I am so happy with her. Her angles are always good as well. She has a creative eye. “My” other photographer, Loes, is getting better and better. For someone without any experience she is doing great. I feel blessed. And I am thinking of buying another camera (one for dummies haha). But that is an expensive business.
About heels: the saying applies to high heels too: use it or lose it.
Greetje
Love the colorful outfit — so vivid and cheerful and beautifully put together!
I was really proud of myself for coming up with this outfit all on my own. Usually I need a shop assistent or a friend to put an outfit together. Slowly learning.
Greetje