Like I promised, here is an outfit with colour instead of all black. And I mean colour! My fluffy pink blazer is a vivid pink. I saw the blazer on a woman whom I follow on Instagram and found out that the blazer was for sale in my own town. So I hopped on my bike and bought it (it was a steal in the sale). It reminds me a lot of my baby blue ‘Big Bird’ blazer, which I still love.
Below: Spring is around the corner. More colour with these crocuses. I love that the council plants all these spring flowers in the parks.
Loes and I returned to the same place where we had planned a photo shoot before, but that day it rained the whole time. This day it was nice and bright.
Below: This blazer feels like a PJ top. I know I am not going to wear it every day, it is not a basic item, but it was a bargain in the sale and I think it will last me a long time.
Below: The silver bag is a couple of years old and by Nooki. They still sell them, just not in silver anymore. The silver boots are by my favourite brand EIJK.
Below: Just pretending to use the door knocker. I have no idea who lives here. The Paige flared jeans were hemmed to fit these boots, but I forgot to put on a belt.
Below: Long blue earrings by Lara Design. This photo shows the structure of the blazer well.
Below: We were in a picturesque part of Haarlem (the ‘Vijfhoek’).
Below: Ninety percent of the houses are really old in this area.
Below: Loes in her ochre coat.
Below: Loes with no coat (she suffers too LOL). I showed you her warm, cuddly jumper a few posts earlier.
Below: Great, a gate to hang in. This is my fuchsia Max Mara coat, which I bought ages ago in their Turin outlet.
Below: A colourful flower shop on the corner.
Below: Why not buy some tulips? So I did.
Below: We had coffee and cakes in the same restaurant/bakery we went in last time we were in this area. It is called ‘In den Gevulde Broodmand’. And they serve delicious cakes and outstanding cappuccino.
Below: And they sell coffee beans by the look of it.
It was another nice shoot.
What happened in my life this week
Hardly any appointments/dates in my agenda on Friday and by Monday the week was fully booked. Strange.
Below: Let me start with spring flowers. Beautiful tulips (not from the flower shop but from the market). Unfortunately, they drooped after three days. By that time I was gifted another bunch of tulips.
Below: Walking through the centre of Haarlem, I saw this statue again, depicting the flower girls of Haarlem. This time all the bicycles and motors were banned to the right, instead of surrounding the beautiful statue. Read more about the Haarlem flower girls here (you can switch to English).
Below: As you know, I have problems with my hair at the moment (bad cut). These adhesive curlers help a lot. I can keep them in in the morning when I am doing my make-up and my hair is back in shape. Ron took the photo saying “That’s nice for your readers…”. Hmmmm.
Below: One of my outfits this week. (Link to original post.)
A neighbour who lived next to me in 1981 in Amsterdam, got in touch again after we lost track of each other. She came to visit me after not seeing each other for 30 years. We picked up where we left off as if no time had passed. Of course we had to inform the other one about what happened in those 30 years. We did that in 2.5 hours and will make a new date to see each other again. She brought me two bunches of tulips (Tulips From Amsterdam, which is a famous song by Max Bygraves. And here is the Dutch version).
Below: Visited Kitty for a coffee and a chat.
Below: Many birds on the beach (photo taken by Ron).
Below: And here comes Watson, storming in from the right, chasing the birds, his favourite pastime.
Below: As the birds started to fly away (they are no fools), Watson changed direction and chased one bird near to him. Needless to say he never catches any, but boy oh boy, does he enjoy this.
Below: We had painters in the house, painting walls, doors, plinths etc. Everything that was damaged. It was cold with the doors open and I couldn’t move, afraid of touching the fresh paint.
Below: Marcella was supposed to come to our house for a coffee, but we decided to meet at a restaurant as it was chaos in our house. The risk of rubbing against fresh paint was too high.
Thursday the painters finished the job and we discussed the last details. Now the house looks neat again.
Greetje
I adore that fuzzy blazer, Greetje! It would match my Muppet skirt, ha ha! Lovely pics as always, you and your friends. The curlers made me laugh – I’ve done them too. Ugh, so sorry you had to live in that chaos – I loathe renovations because of the intrusion.
Fuzzy on fuzzy would probably be too much, at least for me LOL.
I only loathe renovations because of all the dust and the cleaning. The intrusion doesn’t bother me much.
What a wonderful blazer. I’m a huge fan of pink. The color is good for you. Funny, I just told Nikki (Midlife Chic) the same thing about a pink jumper that she was wearing. It’s not surprise, because you both have similar hair color and skin tone.
The crocuses in the park are beautiful. We’ve far behind you and won’t see them for a while. I’m settling for tulips from the store. Speaking of tulips, your photos of them are lovely.
Are you a big fan of the Barbie hype as well?
I still have to read Nikki’s post. Been busy trying to create new outfits with my existing wardrobe (hate that).
The weather looks very promising for the rest of the week, so perhaps spring is indeed on its way?
I am not sure that I am a fan of the Barbie hype. I haven’t seen the movie yet, although I want to. Went to a theater in September hoping that the crowds had all seen it and to my surprise it was sold out. I’ll have to watch it online.
I’m not a huge fan of Barbie dolls. I had them as a child, but I think that there are better dolls for children.
I do like pink though. In the years of women shunning it because it was too “girly” I liked it anyway. It may not be for everyone, but I find it boldly cheerful and I welcome cheerful colors.
I totally agree with everything you said, so I won’t repeat it. And whether a colour is a trend colour or not, I don’t care. Colours that suit me are always good as far as I am concerned.
You looked beautiful in that pink and relaxed jacket. A harbinger of spring indeed,
Especially with all the flowers and tulips. We did see the sun today and the rest of the week looks promising weatherwise.
Hello, You
Hooray, an outfit lovely enough to wipe out the memory of last week’s bloopy-droopy get-up! You look great, as do all your friends, a real glamourpuss gang!
I bet you are indeed glad that the decorating’s over with. I/we try to avoid it if we can: too much trouble shifting stuff around. As ever, the photos are so pretty. There really is something special about a Dutch cafe, back street, a bridge or row of bicycles…I love them all.
Have a good week, and a hug to Mama.
Gee x
Hahaha… “bloopy-droopy get-up”. Funny.
If I can avoid redecorating, I also do that, but this had to be done. Sanding and waxing the parquet floor is what I dread most.
The Netherlands is a cosy country. We have a word for it which does not translate: “gezellig”.
Love the pink blazer – and the oversize trend. I have been wearing men’s blazers for years (at my age, trends are not important, I guess). Wish we had flowers like that in the US. Florists are fairly rare and outrageously priced and even grocery store flowers have increased so much in price. Ron’s beach photos are great; love the clouds in the first one especially.
Don’t be modest Marta, you are a trendsetter.
The Netherlands traditionally have a lot of flowers (not only tulips). Flower shops are everywhere and reasonably priced, especially at the market. So we are lucky.
Ron has the creative eye. I love his photos too.
I love the Big Bird jacket but I think I like this Barbie pink jacket even more! Loes’s outfit is gorgeous – love the matching shoes. It’s lovely seeing all your spring flowers — we are about to have yet another snowfall here.
The Barbie pink jacket is so easy to wear. Often a structured jacket, although very friendly on little body flaws, can feel restraining.
I love that Loes always gets into the spirit of a photo shoot and dresses accordingly. Gives the readers more variation.
Snowfall…yikes. We have rhymes for March and April, both indicating that you shouldn’t be surprised if it snows or freezes. I certainly hope that won’t happen as all the flowers and plants have buds.
Love the statement of the color and the fabric! I have heard that called eyelash fabric and at one time I have a few garments in it. Another dramatic outfit with the purse offering a little more pop. I get that the size is the current style, but I haven’t yet adapted for myself. It looks cute on you, though. Also love the beach photos. The colors are like an impressionist painting. Bravo to Ron.
Eyelash fabric is a good name for it. I chose the bag, obviously to go with the silver boots but also to add more interest to the outfit as it has a little pattern.
The size is indeed a bit of a thing. Perhaps if the shop had had more sizes left, I might have tried a smaller one. But this is my usual size, so I accepted the fact that it is supposed to be oversized. Pulling a confident face helps a lot.
Ron has the eye for photography. Actually, he has a creative eye in general. Love his photos.
Love the bright pink. I am tired of grey, black, white, beige. I guess one has to get used to the oversized look – like the black winter jacket I was pondering -without your guidance it would be in the thrift shop Greetje.
Hahaha…glad I saved a garment for you. This pink jacket looks a size (or two) too big as well. But I just ignore that and think “oversized”. It is amazing what you get away with if you pull a confident face.
Wonderful cozy pink jacket! Your friends all look so attractive too. The purple crocuses are just shouting “Spring”! Thanks for the photographs.
I presume you are attracted to like-minded people. So most of my friends (not all of them) take an interest in their appearance and that is what makes them attractive.
Spring flowers like crocuses and snowdrops give such hope.
Je vous adore , littéralement !
Vous êtes tout ce que je ne suis pas longiligne , audacieuse ,pleine de vie .Je vis en Provence plus précisément en Drôme provençale. Votre style est gai et vivant .Mais je ne pourrai jamais porter des pantalons qui tombent sur les chaussures ,des pulls qui couvrent les mains ni de blazers trop grands .
Mais sur vous tout semble parfait …
Vous avez raison lorsque vous dites « tout semble parfait chez vous ». Bien entendu, ce n’est pas le cas. Je suis juste vraiment intéressé par les vêtements et le fait d’être beau. Et c’est pourquoi je veux y consacrer beaucoup de temps pour que vous puissiez bien paraître, quelle que soit votre silhouette.
I love 💕 the Dutch flower markets. When I visited Amsterdam in late October a few years ago, there were so many bulbs on sale…not for a traveller to buy though. Signs of spring here definitely with the tulips and daffodils on sale in the markets, and little pops of green poking up through the soil in the pots of bulbs I planted in January! Yes…rather late, but it’s still okay. Seeing the crocuses amongst the trees there reminds me of the forest floors covered with bluebells in southern England . Beautiful!
I too love Max Mara and have a black coat and a reversible blue and cream open one…both on sale since prices can be high with MM .
I think you suit the strong colours, Greetje…we are both lovers of colour…just different ones! Fun blazer and you’re definitely going to enjoy wearing it. Ron’s beach photos are terrific…the skies look so amazing…and seeing Watson in doggy heaven is funny. Here, dogs cannot be on our beaches in March and April due to the migration of Black Brandts..sort of like a small Canada Goose …that rest here while on their journey north. Otherwise dogs are welcome to splash about with enthusiasm. I had the interiors painted awhile back by a friend in her 40’s who would come and go when time permitted and did such an excellent job…and when there was more disruption we chose to go away and leave her to it. Such an enormous change that reflected our style , not the never ending caramels of the previous owner. So much brighter since.
Strange, I thought the large flower market in Amsterdam sells bulbs, specifically for people who travel. In travel parcels to get them through customs.
Forest floors covered with bluebells sounds amazing.
You are right, MM does charge high prices for their (amazing) garments. But they will last you a long time.
We don’t have any protected birds on our beaches so Watson can go ahead. He is now 5 years old and still hasn’t caught an animal. No, that isn’t true, he did fetch a bird in a lake, swam back to shore and carefully laid the bird at Ron’s feed. Undamaged, so it flew away haha. His breed is trained to this.
The blazer is very pretty, but I think you bought a size too big. It combines very well with your jeans, the look is very cute.
I get that you think it is a size too big. That’s what you get with this oversized trend.
Still glad you like it. Was last week’s black co-ord a bit too much for you (big grin)?
Last week’s outfit was really beyond my capacity for modernity. LOL
Hahaha, I thought as much when I saw your comment on Instagram. I loved it when I bought it (obviously) but as a matter of fact, the next day I doubted it very much. So I can fully understand you don’t like it.
On Instagram and on the blog I got so many comments and they were all raving about the outfit (but 1). I was flabbergasted. Never expected that.
Greetje, Nice blog. I loved that yard with all of the purple flowers. I could put some in our front woods except for my back. Grrrrr……
Your pink jacket should be fun to wear. Since the Barbie movie came out (was that only in the US) designers are calling that shade “Barbie Core Pink”. I have 1 jumper in it.
I loved the flower shop pictures. We don’t have anything like that near me.
I also loved the flower girl sculpture.
I’m going to have to steal Marcella’s pretty jumper and scarf! That’s my green:)
I am finished with my strong back med. I have 80 mg ibuprofen left until 2/28. She wanted me to work today; this is the first week I have been able to stand straight! I said no. I’m sure everyone is shopping and has spring fever!
I have a recheck with the doctor at the end of next week. I want to make sure the inflamation is gone so I can identify what issues remain. I doubt he will let me have another x ray. I did get a back brace to help me stand straight when working.
The issue is if I can stand 4 hours to work.
I have lunch with a friend next week if I can do it. Hopefully I will keep improving a little faster.
Enjoyed Watson’s chase!
Have a wonderful week!
Barbie Core Pink haha… Never thought I would wear something like that.
Flowers aren’t expensive in the Netherlands, so we have flower shops like this all over town.
It doesn’t sound like you can work and stand for 4 hours. Be careful, you only have one back and you don’t want to spend the rest of your life in a wheelchair.
Thanks for all the beautiful flower photos. They go perfectly with your wild pink blazer! Love the silver boots with the blazer.
Have a good week.
Thanks Anne. After we did the photo shoot I saw that one trouser leg was too long. Too late to change that with a belt. No biggie though.
Love the blazer, it’s so fun and very you!
Having painting done is a pain, but the end result it such a pleasure. Hope everything is dry and back to normal soon.
The blazer is very me, isn’t it. How would you describe my style (big grin)?
Yes, everything is back to normal and everything is looking so neat. Little mistake: I washed all sorts of cleaning towels and kitchen towels. But I did that together with two rags which I used to get paint off me with turpentine. I had to do it again as the smell was terrible.
You look so beautiful in your Pink Blazer. And your smile is radiant 💗
Thank you for your nice compliments. I am chuffed.