Normally I would have used a head-to-toe shot of my outfit to start with. Only such a photo of Haarlem’s town hall is too good not to use as a first picture. Besides, you cannot miss that yellow jacket with black leather trousers. The jacket makes for a beautiful pop of colour.
Kitty was my photographer and the town hall served as the background again, as it has done for the post with my houndstooth blazer. The temperatures were not too bad and the sun came out to play. Sometimes the sun was a bit overenthusiastic, making the yellow of the jacket too bright.
You will see the jacket with different accessories: two scarves, one brooch and one pocket scarf.
Below: When we walked through the gate, we discovered they had put a new sculpture in the courtyard. The bench is a new feature as well. I know this for sure as I didn’t sit on it in my post with the houndstooth blazer. You know me, whenever there is a bench, I sit my bum on it to be photographed. My poses are limited.
Below: This bench underneath the stained-glass window, has always been there. And of course I am sitting on it. See that the colour of the yellow jacket is too bright? Kitty liked this scarf best with the outfit. It is a present from my friend Anja, from way back.
Below: Close-up of the stained-glass window.
Below: We started with the brooch. It is the same dollar brooch as you have seen on my red jumper and it snagged the lapel. Darn. The yellow in this photo is accurate.
Below: Better view of the brooch. It does look good on the jacket I think. The leather jogging trousers are quite old. When I put the suede boots (IRO) on, I finally got what stylists mean when they say you need to vary material and structure in an outfit. Had I worn smooth leather boots, it would have been so wrong with the leather trousers, but suede is right.
Below: Plaque on the wall. World War II is still very much remembered.
Below: With the pocket scarf in leopard print. I added the crossbody bag without trying it in front of the mirror. Mistake. If I had done that, I would have seen it is too short to wear it crossbody on top of this jacket. And the scarf should have been tucked in a bit further. Oh well, you get the idea. The bag is a present from my friend Marianne.
Below: At least my hair was cooperative. Which was a miracle as it was rather damp and we had to cycle to town. Usually that is the end of a nice hairdo.
Below: Even the back of my hair has held amazingly. Three cheers for my hairdresser. The colour of my jacket in reality is much less bright, believe me.
Below: Walking out of the gate to the big market square, now with a black and white scarf and the giggles.
Below: Kitty loves taking photos from a lower viewpoint and I still hate it. This one isn’t too bad and you can see the steps of the town hall with the historic buildings and a little bit of the market square.
Below: Last photo of Kitty’s favourite variation, the leopard print scarf.
Below: I got Kitty to take off her coat as well haha. I don’t have to be the only one to suffer. She was wearing a cute new dress. The black in this photo is a bit harsh (iPhone photo).
Below: I liked this one as well and couldn’t choose.
Below: With black cardigan and a swept scarf, the entrance gate in the background.
Below: After the shoot we fetched take-away coffee and cakes at Vascobelo and sat on a bench in front of a clothes shop. Restaurants are forbidden to allow customers to sit outside on a bench as that would be like having a terrace. And terraces are forbidden. But if your next-door neighbour has a bench….
Kitty wiggled her iPhone to stand at the curb in such a way it could take our photo with the 10 seconds’ delay. It is a vague photo but I think it is hilarious that we are both holding our hands together and pointing them towards each other. And we are both sitting with one leg across the other, both in opposite directions from one another. This was all pure coincidence.
What happened in my life this week
After a very quiet weekend, my week was busier than anticipated. I couldn’t really remember what I had done last weekend and asked my husband Ron. He said teasingly: “Why don’t you look at your bank account charges? That will give you a fair idea of what you have been up to.” Rascal.
It did help though as I bought coffee for us at the beach on Sunday, after walking the dog. Watson loves running along the floodmark chasing the birds. He runs like lightning, never catches them but never gets discouraged. Actually, our dog isn’t simply called Watson. It is Doctor Watson du Coin de la Bruyère. “Doctor Watson” is after the help of Sherlock Holmes and “du Coin de la Bruyère” after the kennel where he was born. As Ron had a good sense of humour, he added the title “Lord” to this by buying Watson a piece of land in Scotland. Being a Scottish landowner gives him the right to call himself Lord. The “land” is 30 x 30 cm (11.8″x 11.8″). How about that? Lord Doctor Watson du Coin de la Bruyère. What a joke. Of course he never said that Doctor Watson was a dog. I doubt whether dogs can be landowners.
My car got its annual service and I was pleasantly surprised by a very low invoice. That helps with the spending of last week. The mechanic called me and said the car was ready to be picked up and by the way… he found € 50 underneath my car seat. How is that possible? I never lose money. I gave him a good finder’s fee of course. Jolly experience.
My friend Marjolein visited me and we walked through Haarlem and did a little bit of shopping. She found two coats and a scarf. I found a long and wide A-line jacket in bright gold and black in a second-hand shop. It wasn’t worn (tags still on it) and a steal. We did take photos but you will see them in next week’s blog post. We were as careful as we could be, handling the camera to minimize the risk of catching Covid. As we sat on that same bench Kitty and I sat on above, we ate our take-away lunch, being rather cold. In the afternoon the sun came out and we had our coffee on another bench (in front of a lamp shop), being warmed by the sun. You have to adapt.
The next day my friend Eefje spent the afternoon with me. I hadn’t seen her for quite some time. We only had limited time and although we walked through Haarlem and did enter two shops, we didn’t buy anything. Too busy catching up. No photos. Eefje isn’t very keen on being photographed, so I left that.
Below the outfit of that day, my green jumper from Bellamy Gallery, worn before in this post. The brooch is new and from the same artist as the orange brooch which you have seen before. I will show a close-up of it another day. It is not an outfit I am particularly fond of but you might think differently.
Too much information (you can skip it if you want haha)
The doctor took another smear and the results will be in two weeks. It is a case of “we want to be absolutely sure we didn’t miss anything”, so I am not worried. As I was there anyway, I had two ugly old age spots removed with nitrogen. They were in my bra area, so I thought it would be best to go home bra-less. It felt weird. Although I was young in the seventies, I have never been a fan of burning the bra. My breasts are still good-looking, although 4 cm (1.5″) too low but I don’t like the feeling of letting them go free like two little bunnies hopping in the grass. (Now I know for certain, there are readers thinking “how can I shake off this image?” hahaha.)
Had a nice chat and coffee as Loes visited me for an hour. She is also prepared to take my photos again. YAY.
Wore this that day. Link to original post where I wore it as a dress as well.
Someone in the my cobbler’s family has Covid so they closed shop. I hope everything will end well for them. Visited Marianne of course although it was only for an hour. I made her happy with some household stuff she couldn’t get and a warm furry scarf for her neck. Wore this “jeans” Sportmax dress on Friday, high heels and all. Here is the link to the post with this lovely dress. My apologies for the bad iPhone photos in our bedroom. It is the only place with a big mirror, unfortunately with little light on that side. I haven’t been able to solve this “problem”.
One last funny story
Ron met a woman in the park with a big Basset dog (sturdy with very short legs). Her dog and Watson played together.
The woman said: “What a nice dog Watson is”.
Ron gave his usual answer: “Well, you know what they say… dogs start resembling their owner!”
She laughed and asked: “And? Does that apply to my dog as well?” thus creating a precarious situation, given the dog’s appearance.
Ron, never lost for words, replied: “I don’t know, as I do not know your husband”.
Take care, stay safe.
Greetje
Hi Greetje, My favourite is the one with with the striped scarf. That look really suits you. I also wear my scarves like that, I think we have similar figures, eg. a bum as flat as a pancake, ha-ha. It can be a curse although my sweet husband insists it is better that than the opposite. I did have a laugh too at you reference to the bunnies running free. When I was a teenager if I wasn’t wearing a bra my late Mom would comment that my puppies noses were showing. LOL. Never heard that expression from any one else but your free bunnies came close and reminded me of that. Take care, Lise
I agree with your husband about the bum. My mother used to say the same to me when I was young and complaining about it.
Love your mum’s expression about the puppies noses showing haha. I will remember that.
You carry off bold colours like the lemon yellow jacket so well. You and Sheila look great in bright yellow, which is a difficult colour for most people to wear.
I love that Ron bought a small parcel of land for Doctor Watson so he could have the title of Lord. You have a very witty man for a husband. I also had a laugh at your description of going braless – even though my girls are smaller than yours, they are still large enough to bounce “like little bunnies” if I don’t wear a bra 😉
The beauty of having a blog with no commercial purpose, is that you can write whatever you want. You don’t need to worry whether it would cost you readers or losing advertisers. None of these things. When I wrote that part about braless I giggled myself.
Love the yellow jacket, it is as bright and uplifting as your blog! My favourite combination is the black striped scarf with it. And I really like the forest green jumper & jeans look – but I get that a bright green would look even more fabulous on you.
I would wear that yellow jacket more often if it wasn’t for the fact that the neck always get dirty very quickly (and I do wash my neck). And then it is off to the dry cleaner again. I never thought about those things when I was still working and earning well. Now that I am retired I have to mind the pennies a bit better.
Ooh, Greetje, that yellow blazer is magnificent! I love your styling with the various scarves and those leather joggers are amazing!
It makes me proud to be Canadian when I read that plaque from WWII.
I am envious of your expeditions shopping with your friends (I love the pic of you and Kitty sitting in mirror image!), as we are not allowed to do that right now. No meetings, although we can go for a walk (but not shopping, as it becomes too social).
I’m glad you are being safe with your health check. I can’t go braless at all (saggy water balloons is my image for you! ha!), and I got a chuckle out of your free little bunnies!
Ron is a smooth one! First the quip about your banking records, and then a very smart recovery about that lady’s dog!
Have a good week, my dear!
Hahaha, you made me laugh as well. And.. eh.. my bunnies aren’t really that little I am afraid. Never do they fit properly in a sheath dress and usually a jacket doesn’t close properly.
As a women’s glossy once said: “Fashion and teet, the twain shall never meet”.
Ron is very quick with his thinking and his wit. I had to really up my game when I met him.
Your blog always puts a smile on my face. Love the fashions you share and your humorous commentary. I liked all of your style photos and the one item that really caught my eye was the scarf that Anja gifted you. Looks great with the blazer. Have a good week.
Putting a smile on your face is why I blog. My ultimate goal, entertaining people, making them smile.
Anja’s yellow leopard scarf has never been out of the closet but I knew, one day it will create the perfect outfit. Et voila.
I love yellow and I think it is a very successful color for you. I love it with your black leather pants, black and yellow are a good combination. The accessories are magnificent, I especially like your striped scarf. Then … your jeans … your icon, how much I like them! The big rose dress is cute. Today I find your close-up missing, there is a pretty close photo … but it’s not the same, the beautiful details of maturity are not so close! LOL
My husband never liked the combination of yellow and black. “Too hard”, he said, but he is warming up to it.
The close-up photo was on IG this week and will be in next week’s blog post. Just for you.
Well that gave me several good laughs….Thank you! I appreciate how open you are….makes me realize how many silly little quirks and worries I have. Haha.
Those leather pants are perfection on you and the possible outfit combinations with them must be nearly limitless. Lovely scenery, as always.
I often got the comment from friends and colleagues: “Oh Greetje, stop, TOO MUCH INFORMATION.” hahaha. I never stopped.
The outfit combinations with the leather trousers (sorry, I always use the British word) are limited I am afraid. All tops must always cover my bum as the trousers are rather wide there and my bum is flat as a pancake.
Thank you for another delightful post. I really enjoy your outfits and the humor.
I am delighted to read this. My goal is to entertain and going by your comment, I succeeded. Yay.
Thanks for taking us along on your week Greetje!!
The dog story cracked me up…I wouldn’t have thought to say that!!
OXOX
Jodie
http://www.jtouchofstyle.com
The dog story in Dutch is even a little better as we have different words for a female and male dog owner. As Ron used the “male dog owner word” when he referred to himself, his remark to the woman about not knowing her husband, was even more to the point.
That yellow jacket is so fabulous on you. I agree about mixing the textures between the pants and boots, it worked very well here! My favorite photo is the one of you coming through the blue metal gate. Just a perfect image.
LOL! good thing Ron is quick on his feet. I applaud his clever answer.
Let’s chat soon! We’re back on partial lockdown, so will be staying close to home for the next few weeks.
I still love that first photo of me standing in front of the town hall very much. But, yes the one of me coming through the metal gate is good too. So nice when you can do a shoot with splendid backgrounds.
Ron makes me laugh a lot. He has “Amsterdam wit/humour”. It is a particular kind of humour, very quick and I adore it. So nice to have an Amsterdam husband.
Chatting will be lovely. This weekend?
You sparkle in your yellow jacket!! Great color, splendid brooch, and leopard scarf as accessories. Well done. Love the Sportmax dress, girlish, youthful, and the color suits you. Kitty looks splendid, her dress fabric accessorizes well with the various designs/textures of the surroundings!! quite stunning actually from a visual/architectural standpoint.
Ron has a great sense of humor, and yes, owners resemble their dogs. That is clearly true and you can easily discern it if you go to a dog show!!!
I even inherit their aches and pains. My lovely apricot color miniature poodle who is 15 yrs old suffers from back hip problem. Same with me, we both walk dragging our feet off the ground. Benny, (as in Benny and the Jets) does not have a lordship, just a marquis!
Happy December!!
A hundred procent positive comment, I am very pleased haha. I have a picture of you and Benny dragging your feet off the ground. Hopefully you can have a hip replacement?
Those leather trousers look fantastic on you, Greetje. And that forest green jumper really suits you too, it’s a great colour for you even if you prefer bright colours. The top photo with the yellow jacket and Haarlem’s cool town hall is inspired. Great post as always!
I have never been too sure about the green jumper as it leans to teal and teal has too much blue in it. I need the yellows.
But I am glad you like the post and the trousers. That first photo of the town hall… when I saw it, I went “wow”.
I’ve got to hand it to Ron. He was pretty quick on a perfect comeback to the lady with the Bassett Hound. Hilarious! Love the yellow jacket with the leather leggings.
Ron is always pretty quick with replies. He is a very witty person, always comes up with jokes. I am so lucky to have so much humour at home.
Ha ha I’m Scottish I am happy to share my heritage with such a wonderful person as Lord Doctor Watson if only all our Lords were so worthy of this title.
He is very sociable and a happy dog. And I have a soft spot for the Scottish as my best friend (who unfortunately died last year) was Scottish. During the time we hung out together a lot, I developed a slight Northern accent myself.
Great story and I’m loving your leather trousers Greetje!!!!!,Hugs,Paula,XXX
Love the yellow jacket with the striped scarf and the leather trousers look great on you. Ron is very quick thinking, a lovely story, really made me chuckle!
Oh yes, I really had to up my game when I met Ron. He is so quick in his thinking and his wit.
Thanks Paula, those leather trousers were a great find a couple of years ago. They keep very well. And.. story telling is what I love.
Love this post. Fun stories.
Thank you. So nice to hear. Entertaining is my greatest joy and it seems I succeeded in that with you.