Changes.

Tabby Feia used to be super cuddly, clingy and affectionate. Like a little dog, she would follow me around the whole day (sometimes we would fall upon each other), and as soon as I sat down she would jump on my lap and make herself comfortable. At night she used to cuddle up to my arm and start to purr (which would later evolve to a snore). She would lie there the whole night, wake up with me, do the morning routine with me, have breakfast… Feia and I used to be an inseparable team – and sometimes it made my life a bit complicated. But I always loved it this way.

For a week or so, our close relationship is over. I wake up in the morning – no Feia. Sit at the table – without Feia. Go to bed at night – still no Feia. She is too busy doing other things like watching birds, chasing little flies, ambushing unsuspecting Atze (the Persian)…

Last night in bed: I was reading a book when little Feia elegantly entered the room, winking at me. I was so happy. “Old Feia is back.” She walked over to the bed – but instead of jumping on it, she went under it – a couple of seconds and weird scratching noises later she appeared behind my head (and the bed), with her paws and head between the poles (as you can see on the picture). And before I could react, she goes “puff, puff, puff” with her little paw on my head and disappears. She continued doing this for about half an hour, so I could take this picture of her. I think Feia is going through a phase from being a kitten to becoming a teenager cat.

Oh you little clown. You make me so happy even if I should actually be mad at you.

Atze. She seems to be in a constant state of sleepwalking. The only time she’s really active is around dinner time (the two minutes before we feed her). You may think I don’t love her as much as I love Feia. Absolutely wrong. I love Atze to death. But since she’s a little reserved towards me, there’s not so much to tell about our relationship. (But Atze loves Alex! You should see the two together…)

Something blue.

No, this post is neither about Will and Kate nor about bridal fashion or anything related to weddings (but I have to admit, that I’m really curious to see what kind of wedding dress Kate has chosen for her big day and if it makes her look a little less frumpy than her everyday outfits).

This is my current nail polish, YSL Duo Favourite Chic No. 5 (the other part of the duo is a mink tone). I love it. What a shame that it will take only 2-3 days max. until it starts chipping.

For those who don’t know what “something blue” has to do with weddings: it goes back to an old English tradition, according to which the bride should wear “Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed, Something Blue.” (I would love to see Kate wearing a blue nail polish.)

In my closet or: Dresses over pants.

A couple of days ago, Balenciaga Fall 2011 reassured me that dresses/skirts worn over pants are cool (here) – to that extend that I even promised you to show you my version of a dress worn over pants. Said – done. And so I re-discovered two dresses that I haven’t worn in (at least) three years. They were a mispurchase, but today was their calling.

(Daslu, LV, J Brand, Prada)

(Paul & Joe, Marni, Current/Elliot, Chloe)

New column: Fashion Fail.

The following print ad inspired me to something, which is gonna be a constant column here on my blog: the Fashion Fail. However, it’s always a matter of personal taste if an outfit or an accessory is a “fashion fail”. So, please don’t take any offense. This is my blog, so you’ll get my view on things. But your opinion, whether you agree with me or not, is always welcome as per usual…

Dear Mr. Ralph Lauren,

What exactly were you thinking, when you came up with the outfit of the following ad? I’m sure that you’ve got a huge design department and that this creation might not even be yours alone (maybe not yours at all), but: no excuse! Your name is on it and judging by recent pictures of you and your own outfits you might just as well be the one to be hold responsible for this fashion fail. Seriously, even if one was really, really ironic about this outfit it wouldn’t work…

P.S. In the coming post I’ll show you my version of dresses worn over pants. Hope it’s not gonna be a fashion fail, too.

Inspiration Balenciaga.

I love dresses, but since my hair has grown really long (which I feel makes me look quite girlish) I don’t take my dresses or skirts out very often – too preppy. But I’ve found a way to enjoy wearing them anyway: over pants. And I’m not talking about the Avril-Lavigne-jeans-skirt-over-leggings style – I’m talking real dresses, the puffier the better, over real pants. It’s not a revolutionary style, I know, but I think it’s been neglected and underestimated in fashion quite often. I will come up with my own version on this blog soon (no worries, I won’t bother you with my Prada shirt-dress again – but I have to admit: it came to my mind for the fraction of a second. Nooo, just kidding.), but I want to show you my inspiration first.

Nicolas Ghesquiere presented some shining examples of skirts worn over pants in his Fall 2011 collection for Balenciaga. As for the pictures in which the model doesn’t wear trousers underneath her skirt – simply imagine there were some. Wouldn’t the outfits look absolutely gorgeous, too? (Joking aside, how lovely are the dresses? And isn’t the original Balenciaga spirit from the 1960s very much apparent?)

(This is a really special outfit – in a good way: suit pants combined with sneakers, skirt over pants, and on top a furry colour explosion. I want exactly this outfit!)

No pants visible, but it doesn’t matter because she could wear pants if she wanted. But the 1960s vibe alone, plus the colour combination and the fabulous clutch matching the chestnut brown shoes – this is already too good to be true! No pants needed in this case.)

The shoes! Oh, look at the shoes!

(There’s one thing I have to criticize, though: the background alone is a really cool accessory for every outfit. That’s been a very smart move to make the design look even more interesting. So if you don’t happen to have a similar wallpaper (with you/behind you all the time), you will never achieve to look that quirky. The heck with it, I still love the outfits!)

All visuals via Style.com

Guilty pleasures.

What is your guilty (online) pleasure? I’m sure you have one! Come on! Mine? Apart from browsing through hundreds of bookmarked fashion blogs, Bloglovin and twitter I secretly love checking funny dog and cat websites. They are so cheesy and bad taste, but sometimes I can’t stop laughing about them. My other guilty pleasure: the homepages of pet shelters, where I check the “home found” area, which has photos of happy pets in their new homes. I just love it. I used to check the adoption galleries, too, but since Alex and I both decided that we can’t adopt another cat (let alone dog) I skip those pages, because they make me sad.

So, what’s your guilty (online) pleasure?

Source of the images? I wish I’d remember. They’ve been on my desktop for too long. In case you know, please write me!

In my closet or: The Pradas.

I’ve never actually worn it as a dress, that Prada shirt thing, which Michiko convinced me to buy in Tokyo (hey Michiko, I love it so much, you were absolutely right, sis!). Here I wear it over some jeans shorts, which I bought during my first months in Dubai. (Then I gained almost 10 kilos (yep, it’s sad but true – Dubai expats know what I’m talking about, don’t you?), and the shorts didn’t fit anymore (not – at – all). Recently I’ve lost some kilos (oh my god, it took me so long, and it was/still is so hard to follow my regime), the shorts fit again (still a bit tight in some places, but OK). I like that they only show when I (and with me the shirt) move.) But the sensation is further down, almost at the bottom of the pic. Yayyyy, on my feet. I was lucky that Jenn from Le Fashion tweeted a link to Saks, who carried them – right on time. One day later Prada’s fabulous runway brogues were all sold out. And even though I really have more than enough shoes (is that actually possible?), I ordered them (oh, I did feel guilty, but now I can’t take my eyes off them). What is it that makes these shoes look so damn cool?

P.S. And yes, I like blurred pictures of me. I’m so camera-shy, and on the other hand: Doesn’t the flashlight “effect” look like it’s been created on purpose? Oh, and the Prada brogues are dark brown with a green stripe in the sole. Will post a better “shoe-only” picture in one of my next posts.

P.P.S. I don’t know why my right eyelid looks like it’s hanging lower than the left. But don’t worry, in real life both eyes look OK.

Thierry Who?

No sun in Dubai. For at least one week now – rain, sandstorms, thunderstorms. Hello? This is supposed to be the best time of the year! I should be enjoying my Friday at the beach instead of sitting at home, sipping my tea and lighting a candle. At least it’s very warm outside, so all the tourists get an idea what Dubai in April could be like.

In a country where the sun (almost) always shines, sun shades are a vitally important accessory. I recently discovered a manufacturer I had never heard of before: Thierry Lasry. Take a look a these shades, aren’t they heavenly?

OK sun, were art thou? (Btw: the last model is mine 🙂 )

In my closet or: Oh Ann…

… how the hell do you do that? Your clothes are fantastic. And your shoes…

The first time I noticed that your creations are something special was 1990. In Tokyo, Japan. My Japanese friend Akiko introduced me to all the complicated names – Comme des Garcons, Dries van Noten, Yohji Yamamoto, and Ann Demeulemeester. Akiko was searching for something she could wear on her graduation ball, and I was wondering what she thought she would find among all those black, long, raw-edged, layered stuff? She went for a black, long, raw-edged, layered dress, black brogues and a black delicate scarf – all from Comme des Garcons. And when she presented the whole combination I remember that I thought (to my surprise): “Wow, I wanna look so damn cool on my graduation ball, too.” OK, but back to Ann Demeulemeester. From that vacation on I kept watching out for Rei, Yohji, Dries or Ann. But apart from a few boutiques in my home town that sold the designers’ simple T-shirts for a fortune I could never get hold of any of my design icons.

More than one year ago, I saw Ann Demeulemeester’s laced-up open booties – on a blog. (And I blame my Brazilian friend Kelly for introducing me to that drug! 🙂 ) They looked fabulous, and I remembered Ann and her designer friends. I had to have them – but no chance to get hold of them. Another friend of mine, Felix, who lived in Seoul back then, got the last pair for me (and I’ll be forever grateful that he overcame the shock of paying so much money for a pair of shoes – I mean, of course I paid him back). I’m absolutely in love with my Ann D. booties, and I’ve slowly started to add other Ann D. items to my “collection”.

Here you can see me with (my booties, some Current/Elliot pants and) my latest score – a (at first glance) rather simple sleeveless black top by Ann Demeulemeester. I’ve attached some pictures, which show the same top in white on a model, so you can see all the details. It feels amazing and it is so versatile. I’m totally in love, and I keep on asking myself: How did you do that, Ann?

(pic 2, 3 via Saks)