Jeans…everything goes with jeans and a black and white checked top is a no-brainer. My friend Peggy gave me this Essentiel Antwerp top as she didn’t like it on herself. She knows I am rather fond of this brand, although this season’s collection isn’t my style. I already had a black and white checked top but when I took it out, I saw it was torn at the back of a sleeve. It is beyond repair, so Peggy’s gift came at the right time.
Loyal readers know that I virtually live in jeans. Whether they are skinny, boyfriend, straight or flared, they all suit me (…she said modestly…LOL). In this post I am wearing my G-Star Raw boyfriend jeans in a dark wash, without cuffs for a change. The black and white called for some colour near my face, ergo…the beautiful green earrings by Lara Design. You saw them last week for the first time. They are in heavy rotation.
My friend Jeanne took all the photos. Prepare yourself for a lot of photos in this post. Jeanne is my friend since we sat next to each other in class when we were 16 and she lives in a small town called Maassluis. It is not a village, she corrected me, as they were granted city rights. I looked up “city rights” and came across an interesting piece of information on Wikikids.
“City rights were granted to a city by a landlord, from the 13th century onwards. These rights gave the cities privileges such as the right to build a wall to defend themselves better and to hold a market, which yielded a lot of money. The city rights in the Netherlands ultimately became the downfall of the nobility. Because the cities became so rich and powerful they no longer needed a lord to protect them. So they didn’t pay the lord anymore (or far less). If he didn’t like it, they could defend themselves against an attack from him. As a result the counts and dukes received a lot less money and had far less power.” (Can you tell this is kids’ language? Or is that the way I write anyway? LOL.) You can read more about it here.
Maassluis‘ city rights were granted much later (1814).
Below: To give you an idea of beautiful Maassluis, here are a few photos. It is a very old city with a lot of water (canals) and bridges.
Below: The first photo of this post was taken in front of this grand house. There was a guy standing in front of the house, ruining the photo, but my photoshop skills are improving. I got rid of him…heh heh.
Below: I love the wonky lamppost. There aren’t any trees on the right side of the canal, which I think looks horrible, but I don’t know the reasons for that decision.
Below: Now, let me introduce you to Jeanne. It is almost impossible to take a good picture of her as her face moves constantly, but I succeeded in the end. She is a kind and helpful person who laughs a lot.
Below: We started taking photos near her house. I am wearing my awesome lime duster coat. I love that thing and don’t wear it enough.
Below: As we were standing in front of a neighbouring house, the neighbour opened his door to see what was going on. Good-looking neighbour.
Below: The temperature had suddenly gotten so much better, that I packed the coat in my tote.
Below: I always schlepp this big tote with me. It holds the camera, a mirror, brush, comb and…my duster coat. Walking across the street (which is also a dike) to the stairs leading to the centre.
Maassluis is a city with a dike. Jeanne lives in a house with several levels. The ground floor is the level of the dike and her garden and basement are down a level.
Below: Across the dike there are stairs going down to the centre. Jeanne turned out to be a very good photographer. I hope you like all the green elements I tied in together: the edging on the sleeves, the earrings, belt and bag.
Below: The top from the back. Not that interesting but still good.
Below: This beautiful building is called Gemeenlandshuis. More about the building here. Further down you will see a photo of the back, where there is a canal (remember the chimney and tower).
Below: Great door to sit in front of.
Below: Detail of the chimney and the roof windows.
Below: Down the same street is the “Nationaal Sleepvaart Museum” (National Towage Museum), also with the canal at the back.
Below: Jeanne was giving me a historical tour through Maassluis and our next stop was the harbour.
Below: Singing: “Sittin’ on the dock of a bay, watching the ships roll in“.
Below: As I said, it is a very old town. It says 1653 on the plaque. The city was originally founded in 1340.
Below: We walked all the way around the harbour. Across the water are the two buildings I have shown earlier. You can recognise them at their chimneys and towers (the building in the middle and on the right).
Below: Close-up of the earrings by Lara Design.
Below: Close-up of the basketball sneakers I scored in the sale at LAB Women’s Clothing (great shop). They are by Vic Matié. I have difficulty finding sneakers and boots to fit as I have flat narrow feet with a very low instep. It means I can get into any shoe or boot, but it doesn’t necessarily look good. I will just wear socks in them.
Below: As we returned at Jeanne’s home, I took this photo of her tree of life above the front door. Many houses have these ornaments.
Well, this was more of a historical tale than an outfit post. Sometimes I wonder whether people want all this information. I know you lot in America think it is great, but I wonder about other readers. I think I have shifted too much and will probably ease up on it.
What happened in my life this week
Saturday was my last day of health and I visited my mum. Forgot to take her photo.
Sunday, Monday and Tuesday I spent sneezing, couching and generally feeling miserable. A severe cold. Of course I did a self-test to see whether Covid reared its ugly head, but fortunately only one pink line appeared. Nevertheless, no fun.
In the meantime, my (yes, I said “my”) new-to-me Volvo got its inspection and apart from some minor things, it is a fine car. The garage is busy this week to repair the minor things (like a new battery) and on Monday the inspector will check whether everything is executed as it should be. I am a very trusting person, but with things like second-hand cars I do not take any risks. The business has a very bad reputation.
Wednesday I felt much better and normal life resumed. Marcella came round for the weekly video (hoop earrings this time). In the afternoon I went to Karlijn in her shop (kpa) to video talk to an expert who Karlijn consulted for her business.
Thursday started with a visit to the doctor. On my list were: spasms in my calves during the night, headaches and stomach pain. The latter was already solved and we agreed it probably was a little kidney stone. For my spasms she advised to drink more water during the evening, even if it meant I had to pee more. The explanation is: your body gets rid of waste and drinking water helps the waste to leave the body. That process doesn’t stop at night. OK, I am going to try that.
Headaches was the next thing on the agenda. The doctor asked my since when I was suffering from them. I told her: “33 years, just as long as I know my husband”. She replied: “Have you ever tried leaving your husband?” And we both burst out laughing. She knows Ron well and knows our relationship is solid. I thought it was very funny. Long story short: I am not allowed to take any painkillers for two months and I can only be on my smartphone or tablet twice a day. And I know she doesn’t mean two times three hours LOL. We’ll see how it goes.
So, if you are on Instagram or Facebook and you hear almost nothing from me, this is why.
In the afternoon I had a very nice lunch with a fellow Instagrammer, Janna of Timelessstyle. We agreed to meet in Amsterdam and she chose a very posh hotel to have lunch. It will take a few weeks as I have a lot of outfit photos in stock, but you will get to hear the story and see the photos in the near future.
Friday. A bright and sunny day with a little autumn chill. In the morning Kitty and I did a photoshoot in the woods with beautiful hazy light. It is going to be a good post. Coming soon.
In the afternoon Marita came for a visit. We sat in the garden and had some good laughs together. As she was leaving, Ron saw her in the street and said to me afterwards: “She looks as if she likes clothes as much as you do. She looks expensive”. I immediately messaged this to Marita and she thought it was very funny. The beauty of it is, Marita was wearing the same white shirt as I have (as seen in last week’s post). Ron never says I look expensive. I told Marita it must be her face; she has an expensive face LOL.
Below: Marita.
Below: Earrings Marita.
A mixed week. And on to the next one.
Greetje
Good morning dear Greetje,
I just discovered your wonderful blog!
My name is Ilona (Lony) and I live at the German-Dutch border near Roermond. We only have to ride our bikes for 8 minutes and we are in the beautiful Netherlands. I really like the architecture and the great interior and decoration shops in NL!
Until September we had a little house on Goeree-Overflakke, that’s near Maassluis, I think? But we sold it last month because we are now renovating an old house with a large garden in the country here in Germany.
I’ll add your blog to my blog list so that I don’t miss anything.
Have a nice autumn weekend for you and your loved ones,
sends greetings
LONY
What a wonderful comment! Welcome and thanks for the compliments. Goeree-Overflakkee is indeed not that far from Maassluis. I have been blogging for 9 years now and it is fun to see the change from November 2012 to now. As you say, strictly a hobby.
I’ll check out your blog as well of course.
I like the checked top with denim and the green accents. Nice! Enjoyed all the lovely photos. Scrolling through them and reading your comments is like a mini vacation. Good job. My husband is dealing with kidney stones. Very painful. I hope you feel better.
I love how I am able to give you a mini vacation with my blog post. Makes my hobby worthwhile.
Poor husband of yours. I have had kidney stones last year (or the year before, I cannot remember) and it was indeed very painful. And for men it is even worse of course. As soon as that stone has landed in the bladder, the pain is more or less over with women, but with men…
I was going to say ‘I hope you are feeling better’ but having read some of your responses, it sounds like you are already are. The backdrop to your photos are stunning. I thought I had heard of all the major towns and cities in The Netherlands, but admit I had not heard of Maassluis. You are right that everything goes with jeans. I am not somebody who likes to wear jeans in the summer, but they are now emerging from my wardrobe again.
Have a lovely week!
I agree, jeans are usually too hot to wear in summer. Same with me. As autumn has definitely arrived, they are in heavy rotation again.
Maassluis is really a very small town. Apart from the sites/buildings I have photographed, there isn’t much more haha.
I really like this plaid blouse, I find it very pretty and it looks perfect with all the jeans that fit you so well LOL. The lime coat is beautiful, I love this color and also its design. I love your green bag, it’s beautiful. I love your close-up with your hair blowing in the wind and your beautiful green earrings. Some beautiful photos of a beautiful city. Thanks.nt
If you like an outfit and a blog post, I am always very happy. Thank you for taking the time to let me know.
I love these posts, Greetje! It’s wonderful to see your outfits, as well as the beautiful country that you live in.
Sorry that you were unwell last week. My husband and I both had a horrible cold for a few days too but we’re feeling much better now.
LOVE the black and white blouse with the green detailing!!
Hugs
Suzy xx
All countries have beautiful things. And ugly things. The latter I just don’t show haha.
My cold has gone now. Thanks for the compliments on the outfit.
Hello from Melbourne, Australia. I continue to enjoy reading your posts. This means every aspect of your posts such as the travels, the day to day happenings, outfits etc. Please continue to keep them this way! That checked top looks lovely on you too! 🙂
Gosh, you are the third Australian reader with a comment on this post (all positive fortunately). It is as if you all got together and decided to keep my blog work going haha.
And for you Australians, my outfits must often be in the wrong season. Like now you are in spring and we are in autumn.
Hello from Tasmania. Nice outfit and your blog is so very entertaining. It is my favourite of many I follow and this is because of all your interesting pictures and snippets of what has been happening in your week.
I look forward to Monday morning when you have a new post up.
Many other bloggers do not seem to care very much about their readers – they will post an outfit when they want to make money which is fine but not always very interesting.
Don’t stop posting photos! We love them!!!
I was doubting, but you made me think I might have found the right ‘format’ for my blog. A bit of this and a bit of that. I am not in it for the money, I don’t earn a penny with my blog, nobody sponsors me and nobody gives me free clothes.
Which is why my content is different from most blogs I guess. Thanks for the feed-back. I will continue.
Just read this comment Greetje, I am the very same, I do it just for fun and I love to meet (also if only virtual) other nice people! Blogging is my favourite hobby, but I do no cooperations at all, it is just for my personal fun and to show inspiration! I am a blogger since over 20 years now, and I never did any coops! I also prefer to read blogs that don’t advertise too much (at least not in every post).
Keep up the great work!
LONY x
My focus has shifted a bit from just outfits to showing cities and buildings as well. But I am not sure whether I want to really continue with that. I don’t know, but the thing is, people who don’t like all these pictures of buildings, usually don’t tell me that.
Comments are generally positive.
I think it’s unanimous. Your outfit is a success and cute. I love all the history and details you point out. I don’t know when I’ll get to Amsterdam again, so I look forward to seeing all the photos in your blog. Your day trips out of the city are interesting too. Keep up the good work!
This was definitely a trip out of the city as Maassluis is about an hour’s drive away from Amsterdam. I think I have taken photos of all the interesting things in Maassluis. There are no more haha. It is a small town.
Here in locked down Melbourne I love your posts, just the right amount of travel and style for me.
Thank you!
You are most welcome. Although it is of course the wrong outfit most of the times as you are in spring and we are in autumn now.
Hi Greetje – I enjoyed this post as always. Even if I don’t comment every week, I look forward to your posts here in Canada. Love the put together yet causal look this week with the green touches. I wonder if a touch of pink or red would add even more? Maybe I’m overthinking.
I like the information and photos of the Netherlands as we can’t really travel right now so it helps me dream of better days. Thank you!
That touch of pink or red might be very nice. I will try that. Thanks.
Glad to be able to give you some vicarious traveling.
Fantastic checkered top, Greetje – I love the green trim on the sleeves. Wonderful pictures!
Sorry, life is getting busier for me, so less chatty comments, but I do read the whole post!
Girl, I will be the last person to hold a short comment against you. I so know how life is getting busier.
I loved this outfit from the first photo, but with the bright duster, it’s even better! I can’t get enough bright green these days. So cheery.
I’m curious about the self-test. Are they inexpensive and easy to find in the Netherlands? I understand they have been expensive and hard to find in the U.S. and the government said this week that they are working to change that. It would be so reassuring, especially for parents of young unvaccinated children, to be able to get quick test results at home.
I hope your headaches ease up. It must be miserable to have them so frequently.
The Dutch government initially supplied two free tests per person per household.
Further to this when one came into the Netherlands through Schiphol the tests were given out so that travellers could self test on day one, five and seven.
They are no longer free but easily available.
There is a list of the approved ones on the Dutch governments website.They basically need to have a CE code and four digits.
They are easy to do if slightly uncomfortable.
I hope this was of help.
You are very right Fee. Just a little footnote…my doctor told me those self-tests are for people who fly in from abroad and have no symptoms. But (and here it comes), with me, being vaccinated twice, the test isn’t reliable. I have to go to one of these ‘test streets’ by the government. Bummer.
I agree, bright green is a lovely colour.
My headaches aren’t too bad, but they are too frequently. Often for 24 days of the month. And then I take a pain killer and the headache goes away, but 24 pain killers (or more) a month, that cannot be good. Which is why I want it treated. And believe me, I have tried A LOT in 33 years.
As far as the self-tests are concerned, a fellow reader has answered your question on the blog. But I made a footnote with that.
I like all of your content, whether fashion or not. Please keep it up. Thank you
I was just wondering whether I should ease up on it, so thanks for your feed-back (and compliment).
I’m a fan of black and white checks, and I love that you’re wearing the shirt with jeans. Love the ruffles and green trim on the shirt as well.
Hope your headaches improve. I notice that, when I spend too long on my computer, I start feeling headachy and odd. Stepping away always helps.
Have a good week.
Who isn’t a fan of black and white checks? Or black and white polka dots? I was amazed that the top suited me so well (and happy about it).
So far I have halfened my time on the mobile screen. Which isn’t good enough. I have to go down to an hour a day max.
The Netherlands: Where all the men are handsome and all the women are beautiful. 😉
I do love the man who opened the door to check on you — very nice face.
Back to the topic. I think the blouse, belt, earrings, and bag are perfect together. So nice!
Whahahaha… where all the men are handsome and all the women are beautiful….So Not True. But yes, the neighbour of Jeanne is a handsome lad.
Thanks for the compliments on the outfit.
The photo where you mention the green elements tied in together is especially good because of the sunny foliage in the background… also bright green! A very well-composed photo that brings out your green bits very well. I like the sneakers and the black and white shirt; would definitely wear something like that. Loved your headache joke with your doctor!
Sometimes things come together. You have an eye for this. I hadn’t noticed the sunny foliage in the background.
That headache joke with my doctor was a good one, right? It made me laugh very loudly.