Admittedly, there is not a whole lot of difference between the styling of this bright blue jacket with white trousers the last time and this time. Last time my heels were higher and the top and accessories leaned towards more chic. As I didn’t wear the trousers enough with the high heels, I hemmed them shorter and put on my white braided heels. They still have a pointy toe but are much more comfortable.
I spent the day with Katrien, a former colleague, in her lovely town Leiden. Today you will not see anything of beautiful old Leiden as I showed you photos of that town two weeks ago (at the end of the post). To make up for the little variety in this outfit, I will show you a lot of photos of Katrien. She is very unique in her styling and great at designing and sewing her own clothes. You might get inspired.
Alas, there is a problem with the braided slingbacks, a problem which did not occur with the higher heel I had on before.
Below: See? The trousers are getting caught in the shoe. Darned. Oh well, I can always use my white pointy boots instead or hem the trousers up even higher and wear them with sneakers.
As the coffee was so good at Lavendi Coffee the week before, Katrien and I had our cappuccino there as well.
Below: Two photos of Katrien, one without and one with glasses. I think I took a pretty good portrait.
Below: Katrien is definitely not a woman who is afraid to stand out. Quite the contrary. Looking like everybody else is something she will never do. The skirt she is wearing, she sewed herself from old children’s bedroom curtains. She got a lot of compliments on the skirt that day.
Below: Remember her puffy coat from February? Also designed and made by her.
After our great cappuccinos Katrien took me to a very upmarket shop, called Main street. Really, the brands in that shop are taking fashion and outfits to a higher level. I was quite pleased with my outfit, until I put on a sweater by Dries van Noten, hanging in their shop. Suddenly my own outfit felt outdated, old-fashioned, dowdy. So I got the sweater, even though it is white with black, not my best colours. Just couldn’t resist it. Of course they had more things that I wanted but they were out of my league. It is nice to have a few really good shops like that around.
Below: We had lunch at the office of Katrien’s husband, giving me the chance to meet her husband. He very graciously paid for the delicious lunch and Katrien sweet-talked her way into the upstairs space where these wooden sculptures are displayed.
Below: OK, now me and the ornaments.
Below: We tried another angle to get a good head to toe shot. The T-shirt is a design by my niece but she only sells in bulk to shops. I decided to use a long small belt to elongate my shorter upper body, but the difficult thing is, there aren’t any loops on the trousers. This means the belt never stays in place. Of course for the photo we made sure it sat right, but this is not a good option. Because I had back pain, I didn’t wear my body shaper that day, which adds a size to my waist and to my belly (it really does). At the time I wasn’t aware I was suffering from kidney stones.
Holding my tummy for the photo. Hadn’t washed my hair which makes it stringier and thinner. Never mind, I am the only one who notices this.
The outfit was documented, so time to go straight to the second shop Katrien wanted to show me: Lionheart Vintage, Haarlemmerstraat 190 in Leiden. As the name indicates this was quite 180 degrees from the first shop. Mix and match eh ladies?
Below: The owner is Antoinette and what a cheerful, energetic person she is. Never gets tired or grumpy, she just keeps on coming up with new ideas. And not in pushy way, quite the contrary. She is a treat to customers. Katrien is contemplating about the oversized denim jacket which was so good.
Below: After Antoinette and Katrien admired the green dress, the green jacket was the next thing to consider. Funny thing is, they called it Kermit green, which is exactly how I call my green jacket.
Below: Katrien tried it on with this denim skirt and a denim blue leather bag. The jacket and the bag were a done deal.
Below: Even though the skirt looked custom-made, Katrien is much wiser than I am and she didn’t buy it. At home she has a beautiful wide pair of jeans (Vivienne Westwood) which is perfect for the green jacket.
Below: I tried the jacket on as well, but for me it was too short. My own jacket is longer and has a bit more yellow in the green. Both things are better for me. The white flared jeans I have on, did come home with me. The prices at Lionheart Boutique are soooo friendly, I couldn’t leave them behind.
Below: Inspecting Katrien’s new bag. My hair is a mess after trying on loads of things over my head, but at least I don’t have to worry about exposed extensions.
Below: Katrien had another look around.
Below: Shot of lovely Antoinette. She is terrific at styling and gives you the idea of having gained a friend.
It was a lovely day which I really enjoyed. In spite of the back ache and financial pain. Perhaps I need to be hypnotized in order not to spend so much money. Could that be a solution?
What happened in my life this week
Saturday. The kidney stone pain came back, just as the doctor predicted. Darned. In the weekend only at night, which is still no pleasure. During the day it was better. I couldn’t wear anything pressing on my tummy or back, so the dress below was perfect (link to original post). The weather was rather nice, but I had to change again around dinner time. Did anything happen that day? No. Only Anja, leaving for Spain, for good. Bah.
Sunday. Lousy day. pain, nothing to do etc.
Monday. I was supposed to meet a woman I “met” on Instagram and who lives in Amsterdam. But as the pain came back during the day, I cancelled. We will see each other another time. The only fun things that day, was lying in the sun from 15.00 to 17.00 hours (covered in SPF 50) in the garden and Ron’s home cooked dinner. Ron is always the one who cooks and he is getting better and better. With me, if it takes more than half an hour or requires more than 3 pans…I am out. Hate cooking. Ron made chicken with marinade and mustard plus haricots verts and lentils. It was so delicious that I ate every little scrap plus I emptied the pan. I am a fortunate woman.
Tuesday. Got myself energized to do my exercises (proud of myself) and then I was fed up with that kidney stone. Rang the doctor and she agreed and gave me the papers for further examination. Got myself an appointment for an X-Ray and an echo on Wednesday.
Ron and I had a consult by telephone with the notary about a legal document. To be signed later this month. All done. The weather here is getting warmer and warmer. Wore this Cabi dress, nothing pinching my waist or belly or back (link to original post):
Ron ordered a ‘steampunk’ face mask. No idea what that is? Neither did I. Well here it is (daft man):
Wednesday. Echo and X-Ray at the hospital. Fortunately, there wasn’t a kidney stone in sight. They could see it had been there and that there was still some grit on its way out, but no stones anymore. I can go out again; I don’t have to be afraid of a major attack lurking in the background.
We celebrated by eating paella in the garden of our friends Georg and Marla. Ron made it. I swear, that man is getting better and better at cooking. Lucky me. Wore this very light summer dress all day and switched for heels in the evening (link to original post).
Thursday. To the beach with Ron and dog Watson to meet Ron’s “girlfriend”. He met a lady with a dog there one day and the dogs are very fond of each other. So when they can, they meet. Lovely lady.
In the afternoon I headed to Utrecht to deliver some stuff to my stepdaughter (and take other stuff home). It was very hot and I cannot stand anything tight around my waist/belly yet. That area is still sore. Thank god for summer dresses. Wore this one again (link to original post).
After visiting my stepdaughter I drove into town (oh gosh the parking garage fees…) and met my friend Aafke, the bubbly, happy personality. She showed me the former post office of Utrecht, converted into a huge library. So beautiful.
Below: Two photos of the building.
We had a lovely dinner on the terrace of Danel in Utrecht. The food was excellent and the staff really went out of their way to accommodate me. I wanted a piña colada and they didn’t have that on the menu. They got the ingredients from the restaurant next door and made me an excellent one. How about that for service!! One of the waiters offered to take a photo of Aafke and me. Needless to say it was a smashing evening.
Friday. Really too hot to do anything but…I did do my exercises so I am very proud. Went to the pedicure on my bike (another exercise box ticked). Then I noticed I couldn’t really pull out the drawers from the freezer. I had to defrost it and that only took 20 minutes. Did some gardening, blogging and got a tranquilizing pill for my cat as she has to go to the vet on Monday.
Stood on a chair in the garden and Ingrid, my next door neighbour, got onto her table and we chatted over the fence haha. Very Covid-19 proof. Wore this that day (link to original post -scroll down):
Greetje
Lovely blue jacket and fab outfit!, sorry that your cute shoes didn’t work properly with the trousers but they look fab anyway!
Love your friend Katrien’s style, she totally rocks and her skirt is amazing!. Lovely that you had a nice time at the second hand shop too!!
Sorry that you’ve been suffering so much pain, poor lady!, at least you look absolutely fab in your summer dresses, so colorful and elegant!
And Ron’s steampunk mask is totally amazing and Cool!, totally stealing the show! ;DD
besos
The pain from my kidney stone is now completely gone, so I am very pleased. And yes Katrien’s style and designs are awesome.
I asked Ron whether he would ever wear the mask in public and he says he most certainly will. Crazy guy haha.
What a stylish, attractive and talented lady you are. I love looking at the photographs on the website and reading your often humorous and well crafted writing. Thank you, long may you continue.
Be happy and well, John
Thank you very much John. These are kind words and I appreciate them highly. As I love this little blog hobby of mine, you rest assured that I will continue for a long time.
You can tell Ron that I think his steampunk face mask is VERY cool! How lovely it would be to have someone to cook for me. You are lucky!
I love Katrien’s style – the portraits of her you took are great, and I prefer the one with her bold eyeglasses. I remember the fab coat she made and the Walt Disney skirt is wonderful.
I’m glad your Kidney stones have gone away – hopefully the pain will do the same soon
I agree that I am a very lucky woman with a husband like Ron. I don’t think he is ever going to use his mask haha.
He would scare people away.
Katrien is a unique woman in style and design.
The pain of the kidney stones sometimes comes back a little bit but I suppose it will eventually disappear.
THAT PUFFY COAT SHE MADE!!!!!
WOW………….ABSOLUTELY GORGEOUS!
GOOD NEWS ABOUT THE KIDNEY STONES!!!!
YOU ARE LIVING YOUR BEST LIFE even during a PANDEMIC!
XX
Yes, Katrien is really good in designing clothes (and sewing them).
As a proper Dutch person, I do complain a lot about everything haha. The weater (too much rain, too hot) and the fact I was house-bound all the time. First because of the pandemic, then because I did my back in, then with the kidney stone and now I cannot move because of the heat. Rain and storm are ahead so that will give me something else to complain about. But seriously, I do find time to have a good time.
I love to visit libraries and that is an especially impressive one. Very nice. And you looked great in the dresses. The Cabi was my favorite but all were good.
I was very impressed by the library too. They did a swell job of renovating the building and using it for this purpose.
In this heat (we have a heat wave here in the Netherlands) it is very good to have summer dresses.
I love your classic looks here, Greetje! I love seeing some of your dress collection too – I covet a few of those!
Your friend Katrien does have great style. That skirt is hilarious, but I really love her puffer. Ron’s facemask made me laugh, as did his “girlfriend” (L also collects “girlfriends”). Aw, I hope your cat is okay.
Thank you for taking the time to dig through and respond to a bunch of my posts earlier – I love seeing your comments. 🙂 Have a great week, my dear!
Our husbands have no idea how lucky they are that we aren’t jealous and let them have ‘girlfriends’. I always say: “If you can do better, please go”. (Knowing of course he could NEVER do better haha.)
The cat was all right although she did drop weight a lot. It isn’t cricical yet, but the vet doesn’t like such a drop in weight. It usually means something is wrong. So I will probably go back in a couple of weeks and have her tested. I hate going to the vet with her.
And I love seeing your posts. You are very creative. We are very different as you know, so I am not always on board with everything you show, but most of it is really inspiring.
I hope you start to feel better soon Greetje. I hear kidney stones can be as painful as childbirth, but as I have neither given birth nor had kidney stones I cannot confirm.😃 Katrien is very talented. What a fabulous skirt and coat. As always, I love reading about your adventures and looking at your lovely clothes and photos.
Blue and white is a sailor combination, I like it, but I just can’t see it on you. I think they are not the usual colors in your looks. The shirt seems very pretty to me, but I don’t know if it combines much with the rest of the look. I think this look would look good with sneakers and a shirt of another color, maybe navy blue? You know something, I like the set with the green jacket better, I think it’s more your style. I love the four dresses at the end of the post, especially the orange one, it’s cute.
Oh yes styling lessons from you ! I am listening. I agree with you, this is not my best outfit. It is also too classic for me. But hey, my posts cannot always be 100% right. I am human, I make mistakes haha.
Like you, I prefer my green jacket outfit.
Your suggestion to use navy blue underneath the bright blue is something I would never have thought of. I will definitely try it.
And yes, I think I will take the trousers up a bit more and start wearing them with sneakers.
A husband who likes to cook is SO nice! Mine has cooked most of our dinners since we married fourteen years ago. I used to cook once or twice a week, but he doesn’t like my almost-vegetarian meals. I‘ll eat WHATEVER he cooks, but I’m starting to feel guilty. I can see he is tiring of it and I need to make some effort. I’ll blame this COVID situation for my laziness.
Jealous, as always, of all your fun with friends and the cute shops. That second one, in particular, looked fun. What little clothes shopping I do these days is online and mostly duplicates of items I already have and like, but in a new print or color. Knowing they will fit well saves the hassle of returns.
Thanks yet again for a happy and colorful post to brighten my Sunday!
We used to take turns in cooking, but about 5 (is it 5?) years ago, he retired properly and said to me: “as you are still working, I have made it my purpose to make life for you as agreeable as I possibly can”. Isn’t that sweet? He is also a much better cook than I am. Now I only cook when he asks me too (for instance because he is bored) or now that it is so hot, that he only wants to serve lettuce.
Yes, we can have fun with friends and visit shops, hairdressers etc. But the contamination numbers are going up rapidly now that a lot of people do not take the social distance seriously. So it is a matter of time before we are back in lock-down or such. Stupid people.
And I will try and keep your Sunday bright.
You look best in shorter dresses!! Great legs, great proportions! I would shorten the beautiful long dress a few inches. the white pants you bought are perfect. The ones you are wearing could use a subtle narrowing from the knees down and slightly shorter. More chic!!
Your friend is absolutely lovely and highly spirited fashion wise.
Splendid library, makes me thing of the fabulous library in Seattle, Washington, but in a very different way. they both stand out, though!!!
My late husband was a great cook, he was very fast throwing together a few ingredients for a great meal. But, oh, the multitudes of pans left behind afterwards kept me in the kitchen cleaning up for 2 hours!!!!!
However, I would rather paint, or create jewelry rather than cook, though, I‘M not a bad cook. Just not my thing!
Always enjoy your blog, your ability currently to socialize is enviable. Here in the San Francisco area its still not advisable to roam about!
I have exited for the mountains, at 7800 feet. Plenty of space to roam about!! And Good air!!
Keep your blog coming. It’s highly enjoyable.
Well, you might be right, but I like all dress lengths: on the knee, midi, maxi.. just not too high above the knee.
As for the wide white trousers, they are fine as they are, I don’t want to change the style, but they are a bit big on me, so I might have to have them taken in around the hips. And I need to style them differently. Job for the future.
I can cook, but the basics. In Dutch terms that is: meat, vegetables and potatoes. That’s it and I really don’t like cooking. Been doing it for 3 days in a row now (mostly heating things) but that is because Ron doesn’t want to cook in this heat and I am bored with lettuce.
Glad you are enjoying my blog. That’s what it is there for.
Love your blog and styling, Greetje. I wish I could shop with you around Amsterdam! Haha, maybe someday when we can travel again. When are we going to see pictures of your cat? Does he/she hide from us?
Shopping around Amsterdam is always a joy. Who knows when we can travel again. I am not going anywhere, that’s for sure.
Pictures of my cat hah? I just took a photo of her in the shrubs so you’ll see it next week.
Oh, I’m so very sorry your kidney stone gave you more trouble! Hope it leaves you alone now.
I’ve had the same issue with pants getting caught in slingback shoes. I don’t own any currently, but have found they work better for me with slim ankle pants. The blue jacket and white pants is a very elegant look, though.
That green jacket is smashing on Katrien!
Ron’s steampunk mask is AWESOME! What fun.
The pain is gone. I am off the pain killers. Hurray.
I agree with you that slim ankle pants work better with my slingbacks. Just hadn’t thought of it when I hemmed my wide trousers. Bummer.
Ron’s steampunk mask is just a whim. He is never going to wear it haha.
Sorry to hear about the kidney stone/issue. I will share my journey (as I’m sure others have shared with you…but I always think the more information we know, the better.)
Once I stopped taking calcium supplements, the kidney stone issues stopped for me. I know you don’t hear about this and I didn’t even believe it at first (one of my male friends recounted this to me years before I stopped), but it’s how it happened for me.
If you take calcium supplements, you might experiment??
XOOX
Jodie
http://www.jtouchofstyle.com
Oh gosh Jodie, that is valuable information. I don’t think I do take calcium supplements, but I do take Vitamine D3. Is that also calcium (just shows you how little I know…).