The number of photos of this outfit with the white shirt, is limited for a change. Loes and I couldn’t think of a very interesting place to do the photo shoot and chose a park. That limited the options.
Nevertheless, I hope you will enjoy this post.
Below: While we were shooting, this beautiful dog and his owner passed us. A King Poodle.
Below: The white shirt is from kpa.haarlem which I told you about a couple of posts ago. I love the sleeves and the collar. And it fits across the bosom.
Below: The trousers are quite old. You saw them before with a bright yellow jumper in this post. The green belt and the transparent green bag are by Essentiel Antwerp.
Below: Found a bench to sit on…oh yes.
Below: The low-heeled pumps are by Paul Noyen. The little veins are mine.
Below: And I adore these new green earrings by Lara Design. They were my favourite from the beginning, but Marcella did them with a heavier gold-plated creole, which was too heavy for my feeble earlobes. Now that she has attached the green wooden pendant to a hollow circle, it is lighter for me to wear comfortably. Because I help her with Instagram videos and such, she insisted these earrings were a gift. I gracefully accepted. If you want a pair as well (€ 69), they are on her website in red (search for Stef). She can also create them for you in green, black, yellow and blue at no extra cost, just email or phone her.
Below: Very near the park is this pretty church.
Below: After the shoot we had coffee and tea at coffee shop Cleeff, which is next-door to the church. We took this photo of Cleeff because the top of the building is so nice. As I was uploading the photos, I saw the waste disposal tankers. How horrible. Those poor people of Cleeff will not be pleased.
Below: Fortunately there is a cycle lane between the pavement and the waste disposal tankers. The photo taken from this side (around the corner), shows it might not be too bad. I have put a red circle around the tankers.
Below: Lovely photo of Loes, waiting for her tea. She told me that a woman in her Pilates class recognised her from my blog and asked whether she was the photographer of No Fear of Fashion ! We are famous haha.
Below: Inside the coffee shop. The lines on the floor were put there during lockdown to indicate IN and OUT for customers to take away coffee.
It was short but sweet, as they say.
What happened in my life this week
Been busy like a bee. The funny thing is that on a Friday my agenda for an upcoming week seems pretty empty. By Monday it is chock-a-block. So strange.
Saturday I agreed to take Marianne to a place of her choice. Poor Marianne has a very painful left shoulder because she does everything with her left hand (and arm) while she is steering her motorised wheelchair with her right hand. The left shoulder is overloaded. She therefore didn’t want to go anywhere where there are cobble stones as that hurts as hell. I came up with an idea: the new outlet in Halfweg. All the pavement is smooth there (although it could even have been better) and there are very accessible toilets. We spent most of our afternoon in the Max Mara group outlet and on the terraces.
Below: Marianne and I were having excellent cappuccino before lunch. I was wearing my antique Japanese kimono. (Link to original post, although I am now against the high heels, I should have worn flat shoes. Apparently this short jacket is called a haori and a full length one is a kimono.)
Marianne and I scored pretty well at the Max Mara outlet even though the prices were much higher here than in Turin. (Oh, how I long to go back to Turin and Daniela.)
Below: Marianna is wearing a scarf which she just bought (I bought the same one as it is warm, looks wool and is synthetic, so no itching). The big shopping bags by Intrend (the Max Mara outlet brand) are filled with purchases but also with a lot of air. We bought big handbags.
As I pointed at a particularly big bag, I said: “These are all the rage now and they are EXPENSIVE !!!!, sooo EXPENSIVE !” Then I looked at the price tag and it said €46…Marianne killed herself laughing. Obviously, the bag was no leather. We both bought one.
The next day, as I was ready to visit mum and drove away with my cool box filled with frozen home-made dinners, I heard a very disturbing sound, got out of the car and saw that my left front wheel was flat as a pancake. I drove the car to a safe spot and cancelled my visit. Then a whole circus started.
This is the third time in one and a half year that I have a flat tire and my Alfa Romeo Mito doesn’t have a spare wheel, not even a tiny one (a ‘get-you-home’ wheel, as it is called). It means that if I call in the help of the AA, they will take off the wheel with the flat tire, drive me and the wheel to a depot, put another tire on it, drive back and put the wheel on the car. “Fine”, you might think…”what is wrong with that?” Well, the depot doesn’t have my 4-seasons tires, so they will sell me a normal tire and I have to replace it with a 4 seasons tire as all four tires should be the same. Double the costs.
Anyway, on Monday I called my garage who sent a mechanic (not for free of course) who solved the matter. I was so angry with these flat tires that I said to the garage: “I am fed up with this. I think I am going to buy another car, one with a spare wheel”. The garage is a Volvo dealer (used to be an Alfa Romeo dealer) and the guy replied: “Then why don’t you buy a Volvo? Then you can continue being our customer”.
So I started to look at Volvo cars. Husband Ron thought I was off my rocker but he also knows that when you start looking at another car, you get into a flow of wanting it. To make a long story a little shorter…I am almost the new owner of a pre-owned Volvo V40, if the inspection by an independent company proves the car is good. There goes my old age saving. On the other hand, I live now; nobody knows how old you will become.
Marcella popped by, not for an Instagram video but to show her latest design with gold-plated and semi-precious stones jewellery. She was enthusiastic and wanted to share it. See below. One creole is missing from this set, as the two pendants on the right can be hung on two creoles. The creoles have a little gold dangle which means that the pendants don’t fall off and it also fills the little ring on the pendant. Or you can wear the creoles without pendants. Or you can buy another set of 3 pendants and vary. Nice !!
Kitty promised to photograph friend and neighbour Annelies, in a couple of outfits. It was her birthday present, with me thrown in as a stylist. I am not a stylist at all but apparently I did pick up a few things in the past 9 years, as I could give Annelies a few good suggestions. Felt really proud of myself.
The photo shoot went perfectly. It was the one day of this week with beautiful weather, we were so lucky. It was a lot of fun for the three of us.
Below: Kitty photographing Annelies on the swing with the beautiful Saint Bavo church in the background. Annelies wanted some typical Haarlem backgrounds for the shoot and Kitty remembered our shoot with the black Vivienne Westwood blouse.
I went for my last pedicure this summer. My feet are easy to maintain and I can do that myself. Only in summer I need a pedicure plus varnish on my nails. In winter, when my feet are in boots, I don’t bother with nail varnish.
Had a little brainstorm with Karlijn of kpa.haarlem about her business. Spent two afternoons investigating and searching for information and loved it. I like to crunch data. And now that I have time, I can google all the answers to my questions. Keeps my brain active.
We ended the week with a dinner at our friends Georg and Marla. They are marvellous cooks, so it was delicious as usual.
Miscellaneous
Below: Just to make you smile…this is Watson sticking his nose through the cat flap to smell the outdoors as he often does. He used to be able to go into the garden through this flap but definitely outgrew that. (The kitchen door is filthy because the rain spattered the soil of the garden against it.)
Below: Despite his size, Watson still things he is a lap dog.
Below: As I passed this tree in my neighbourhood I saw that somebody made a tableau around it.
Below: A woman told me that every night somebody closes the door in the tree with the dog doll inside. Funny.
That’s been my week.
Greetje
That photo of Watson on Ron’s lap made me laugh! He’s so cute!!
Love the white shirt, Greetje. I think everyone should have a good white shirt in their wardrobe.
Your shopping trip sounded fabulous, and successful too.
We hired a Volvo V40 (or whatever it’s called) once and thought it was a great car, and if it comes with a spare tyre, even better! I tried to go out earlier this week too but my car wouldn’t start. Michael came back from work to help. He charged it all afternoon but nothing. It needed a new battery, which I now have yay!!
I hope you’re having a lovely week!
hugs
Suzy xx
I agree, a good white shirt is a staple in your wardrobe. (What a cliché haha.)
It is such a bummer when your plans fall through because the car malfunctions. In my younger days I would get a tantrum (what must the neighbours have thought…). Now I can control myself and just think: “I am still alive and well, too bad, this will pass.” I have come a long way.
Watson is such a handsome doggie (and the guy he’s sitting on is pretty good looking too). You can’t go wrong with a white shirt, and the sleeve design on that one makes it special. I just bought a white shirt two weeks ago but I have to wait until it gets colder here to wear it as I want to layer it under something.
That is a lovely photo of Loes – the light is very flattering.
Sorry to hear about the mess with the tires. I know that Volvos are very dependable cars so hopefully you will have luck with it if you get one.
It might get harder to put Watson into ‘day care’ at a dog centre. Yesterday he was there and they said he might get refused some time soon as he is soooo out there, playing, running and never getting tired, that it apparently drives the other dogs mad. (Pussies.)
That would be a problem for us, especially in the future. You want to be able to go away without a dog for a day or a long weekend. We’ll see.
I still have to layer my white shirt underneath something. I don’t think it creases much, which would indicate it isn’t 100% cotton. (Fine by me.)
I love white shirts in women’s outfits, they are the most elegant basic. With your pants, of this beautiful cut, the shirt is perfect. The shoes are very cute, they are very well integrated into the outfit, like the beautiful earrings that I already saw on IG:
I think the white shirt is a very good addition to my wardrobe. It also looks good on jeans LOL.
I really like white button down shirts and yours is appealing with the gray slacks. The beautiful King poodle complimented your clothing colors. Neat! Your shopping expedition with Marianne sounded fun. Congrats on finding a pretty warm scarf and bag. Our leaves are changing and I am starting to think about Fall clothing but daytime is still in the 80’s. Hope you enjoy your new car.
I never thought about the Kind poodle complimenting my outfit. I should have posed with it.
We have had cold weather and lots of rain for a week now, so I am heavily into fall. But they forecast 68F for the coming weekend. That’s better. Not too warm, but much better.
I still haven’t got my car. The check-up was today, but I will be getting the report tomorrow. Fingers crossed.
You look fantastic in that kimono jacket. Love the red/black/white combo; it’s one of my faves too. The photo of Loes is really nice, she looks so friendly! All your pals are very stylish. I laughed at the photo of Ron and your “lapdog”! Have a great week.
Ron and I discovered the kimono (or haori) jacket in Antwerp one day. The woman in the shop knew her business and gave us a lot of information about its history. When I was shopping in the outlet with Marianne, a Japanese lady asked me about the kimono and complimented me. It is hand stitched and I have to be very careful with it. In the old days, they would take it apart to clean and then stitch it back together again. Nowadays I bring it to the dry cleaner and hope for the best. So far, so good.
Loes is indeed a very friendly woman, but so are all my friends. The fact they are stylish is nice, but their character is far more important of course.
A very simple and very chic ensemble.
Love the green earrings.
Watson is very photogenic!!
Sometimes I can do chic, LOL. Those green earrings were the first ones I saw on the website of Lara Design that I wanted to have. But at the time the execution of the creole bit made it too heavy. So glad Marcella found a solution.
Oh, I love so many things about this post! Of course, I love your outfit and your friends, and Watson sticking his nose out the cat door, and of him thinking he is a lap dog. But I especially love your photo of what we call a “fairy garden.” We have two little girls who live one street over from us. They began building a fairy garden last spring, and my husband saw it develop as he was walking our dog each day. We bought a number of tiny ornaments ( animals, fairies, gnomes, flowers, etc.), and Bob added an ornament once a week as he want past. It took a long time for the little girls to figure out where the items came from, and much fun was had by all!
What a lovely story about the fairy garden! I can picture your husband chuckling every time he added an ornament. The stories those girls must have told their parents haha.
Oh and the missing photo of Kitty and Annelies? My fault. I have added it now.
I’m glad to see that the photo of Kitty and Annelies isn’t loading for everyone else. I thought it was just my old computer which has been giving me a lot of grief lately. Almost time for a new one, I think.
That is a really good white blouse, Greetje – it suits you well. I love the big sleeves.
Great pictures, and I’m excited to see what you bought at the Max Mara outlet. I have one piece of Max Mara – an orange skirt – and I like their stuff.
I enjoy seeing you hanging out with your friends, and Ron and Watson too!
I bought two, very large bags and three warm scarves. No clothes. One of the bag is blue leather and one is black “faux” leather. I still laugh over these word inventions: vintage, faux fur, vegan leather.
It is all good in the cause of sustainability.
Hello, You!
Like Susan, the photo of Kitty and Annelise didn’t come out on my iPad either.
And also like Susan, I liked the white blouse, it’s lovely but wonder if those big sleeves will crease under a coat or jacket? The combination of white with grey is tres chic!
Unlike you, I keep my toe nail polish going all year. I don’t think I could go bare now and feel right so I have bright ‘piggies’ all year round, to match my hands.
How annoying about your duff tyres, but lovely picture of one man and his dog.
Have a good week.
Thanks Gee..I like being “tres chic” although most of the times I am not.
I love nail polish and would like to have it all year round on hands and feet, but I am sooo bad in applying it. Too much trouble. Besides my toe nails are pretty weak and need some air from time to time. And nail polish on my hands is forbidden for me as I am very susceptible to staphylococcal infection which is pretty dangerous. It is a long (and boring) story. I used to have bright red nails for a long time and loved it.
The missing photo of Kitty and Annelies is my fault and I have added it.
You might want to try nail wraps, one of my friends says they are pretty good and less toxic
That would be a nice idea, but anything that covers my nails, suffocates them. I will just have to be content with normal nails without polish.
I love that colorful chair Ron is sitting in! And the one picture previously mentioned isn’t loading for me either unfortunately…
Hi Lauren, that colourful chair is done with fabric from Designers Guild which we bought and had it upholstered.
The missing photo is my fault. I have added it now.
Your white shirt and grey pants look so fresh and crisp. Watson looks so cute as a lap dog. I was not able to get that picture either, just the one did not come through. it looks like you and Marianne had fun shopping and lots of goodies to take home. I love the white shoes, and the detail in the close up makes me want to find a pair like that with a block heel too. Good luck with the car issues.
It was my fault Diane that the photo of Kitty and Annelies didn’t show. I have corrected it now.
If you want to look for the white shoes, I suggest to wait until next spring. Unless you live down south in Australia or Africa where spring is starting.
I like that white blouse on you. The sleeves make it interesting, but I wonder are they hard to get underneath a jacket or coat?
Just FYI, the photo with Kitty and Annelies didn’t display for me.
Watson is too funny!!
To tell you the truth, I haven’t yet tried that. Well, I did wear a summer coat with the shirt and that went well. Time will tell. I think it doesn’t crease much.
The photo of Kitty and Annelies not displaying must be a glitch on your side as I can see it on my mobile.
Darn… it is a glitch on my side. I have added the photo now. Sorry, I didn’t doublecheck.