This month I've been preparing my wardrobe for better days (read: sunny days). My favorite thing to wear in the summertime is long skirts or dresses. It is so comfortable, but you still look like you've made an effort. I already have this maxi skirt from American Vintage in a beautiful shade of green, but since I'm blessed with a mother who can sew just about anything, I am now also the proud owner of a midnight blue and a pale aubergine version. Other new additions to my closet this month are:
1. My all time favorite sneakers: Converse All Stars. Courtesy of my brother-in-law who brought me back this pair from his business trip to the states. 2. I found this great tie dyed skinny and couldn't resist. 3. During my ongoing quest for the perfect white T-shirt I ended up buying this beautiful embroidered blouse. It's not a T-shirt, but who cares. 4. For my birthday I got this very cool wallet. (Officially it's a clutch, since it fits your mobile phone in the pocket, but I'm more the "tote bag kind of girl".)
Sadly, I've always identified more with hoarders than with collectors. I understand feeling that something you no longer use might still come in handy in the future, but to buy useless stuff just to "have" it? I don't get it. As a kid I did start new collections almost on a daily basis. Still, looking back, I think it was triggered more by my -hoarders- idea that an empty butter container can be used as storage than about the actual collection. Any enthusiasm I had for those buttons or rocks faded when the next empty jar came along. You could of course argue that I collected empty containers, but I'm not sure it counts if you stash them in the back of your closet.
Anyway, this documentary about (grown up!) people collecting the little toys that hide in kindersurpise-eggs simultaneously entertained me, fascinated me and made me a little bit sad. My favorite part is when the woman being interviewed is truly amazed by people that don't collect anything: "I don't want to say that they're boring people, but they do lead a boring life". So, there you have it: my life is boring. Lucky for me there are great documentaries like this one to get me through those long, long evenings.
P.s. Who knew we all could have been rich if we had just saved all that plastic crap?
P.s.p.s. The documentary does not have English subtitles, sorry!
Buying art sounds very expensive, but I'm here to tell you: it's not! It is in fact one of the cheapest ways to accessorize your home. There are lots of places where you can buy affordable artwork. At our shop Nith for instance. Illustrator Sietske van der Meij combines old techniques like Indian ink and charcoal with the modern medium of Photoshop. The result looks like full color remakes of old picture book prints. Very cute to decorate children's rooms with. Printed on quality paper and signed by the artist, so your kid has just started it's very own art collection. Sietske also uses her artwork to make postcards. It would be thoughtful to send them to your friends of course, but don't you think these would look great in a nice frame?
I always scan the broken furniture that piles up next to the garbage containers hoping for hidden jewels. So far, not much luck. But you always hear about people finding beautiful vintage cabinets or chairs on the street, don't you?
Someone that I know for a fact has found treasures on the sidewalk is designer Jackie Emily. Where we see an old couch with ripped upholstery, she sees: bags. That's the thing with creative people, they just need the raw materials to make something beautiful. The only thing that still reminds you of a previous life as a cast away leather couch or jacket is the tag that tells you what your new bag used to be. Now, that's what I call recycling! Have a look at the finished product on Nith.
P.s. Have you ever found anything good on the sidewalk?
With the Wood-Collar designer Anne-Marijn has given the vintage collar a fresh new twist. It still looks great with vintage items like sweet flowery blouses, giving them a more contemporary feel, but it also really complements a more modern look. Constructed out of thin layers of wood, every piece has it own unique pattern. And to make the necklace even more versatile, the latest series of Wood-Collars have a great feature: they can be customized. The top part can be taken off, so you can either leave it open or add any of a variety of colors that can be bought separately. The Wood-Collar is now available at Nith.
I received a WhatsApp today from my friend Annemiek: "I think we've been friends for 10 years now". I'm assuming she's right. She usually is about these kind of things, since -unlike me- she's a very organized person. And that's not the only thing about her that's very different from me. She's also much more outgoing then me. I cannot turn my back to her for more than 2 minutes and she's made new friends. She loves animals, children and working in the garden. Things I don't necessarily hate, but love is not the word I'd use. She takes risks and tries new things. I'm cautious and think about "the consequences". But, even though we're very different, it works. So, for ten years now, we listen to each other, give advice or encouragement, and most often: laugh about the stupidity of it all. And that's probably it, isn't it, what makes a good friend? Someone that's always on your side and who wants to share your life stories, big or small.
P.s.
The picture above is taken on a holiday about nine years ago. We both lost our luggage on the way to Spain and didn't get it back for three days. Forced to go shopping for clothes, we ended up with lots of new outfits. And, since we didn't want to risk losing these again on the plane ride back, we decided to wear it all home. Check out the salami on my shoulder!
P.s.p.s
While looking for a nice song about friendship to add to this post, one song reminded me of the time that Annemiek called me in a panic: If I remember it correctly she was working as a personal assistant for a guy that organized concerts at the time, and for some reason had gotten the rushed assignment to go interview Joe Cocker. I say "for some reason" because she had never interviewed someone before in her life. But apparently Joe Cocker was suddenly available for a promotional interview about an upcoming concert and she was the one who was close enough to make it to his hotel in time. So, of course, Annemiek jumps on her bike and goes, then realizes she does not have any questions prepared and, more importantly, she does not know were his hotel is. And that's where I come in: to give her directions, but mainly to laugh at her and share in her ridiculous story.
So, Annemiek, here's to another ten years' worth of life stories!
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