I live on Avenue Louise, which for Brussels standards means something like Bond Str. (London) or the 5th Avenue (New York). So the other night I was just coming home and thought it would be interesting to get some pics at night of all the lovely clothes in display.
Spending the weekend with my favourite friends in the whole world,I hope you’re having the best time too.
A few weeks ago, a blue pencil appeared on the wall of my building.
And then, I noticed a yellow one and a green one on two more walls in my neighbourhood.
And then, I went for a walk at a completely different part part of Brussels and there they were, the light blue one and the orange one.
I don’t know who the artist is or what the pencils signify for that matter, but I like this form of street art, where the image is both the work and the artist’s signature!
It would be so cool if we could all have one on our walls, so no addresses necessary any more – you’d just be leaving at the “house with the blue pencil”.
What if the only clothes you owned were a white tee and a pair of black jeans?
This is a thought that crossed my mind yesterday, at the beginning as a canvas for showing accessories, but as I started working on it, it took a more “personal” shape.
Going through some hard times lately made me think that that’s how life is sometimes: black or white. You’re lucky if you’re on the white side, otherwise…tough! But no, with a few changes here and other (changes=colours), things can always get more interesting.
So,some jewelry, shoes, nail polish, a bright red clutch or red lips. With a smile. And the conviction that things can always get more interesting.
(The dresses edition)
I still remember fondly the first time I saw an Urban Outfitters store. It was my first year in London, I was 23 years old and I had never heard of Urban Outfitters before in my life (I know, I know and I claim to have a “fashion blog”..well, you know!)
And then, one day, strolling down Oxford Street, there it was. A very catchy window, great layout, fun stuff for the house and ridiculously hilarious board games and of course…the clothes.
I was mesmerised to the point I would order pieces online, while I was living only 30 minutes away from the store (that is walking time, which, for London, means something like “I could be there in the blink of an eye”). I have to confess one of these fashion sins, when you spend your money irrationally and then regret it (or not): I still have a dress bought in spring 2009 that I have never worn… (#epicfail). Oh no, wait, there are two such dresses and I think the one does not even fit me any more!!!
During the years, my fascination has grown a little less warm, but I still enjoy taking a look at the Brussels store every now and then. Clothes are more affordable to me now than 3 years ago (professional life and all), but somehow I seem to have over-grown Urban Outfitters age-wise. But from time to time, I find these super-cool pieces, especially edgy sexy dresses with a certain kind of boho allure that are really not my style, therefore always make a statement when I put them on…
….Just like this one
Amazing shades of grey
Boho classics (the second one with a Missoni twist)
Midi – you gotta love them
I can be your American Girl
LBD (L for Long)
Not much to say today, just a few shots of my favourite bags for spring time..The second one usually also serving as decoration in the house 
….Rihanna’s summer collection for River Island.
Actually, I won’t need anything, I didn’t like her previous line anyway, everything looks a little bit too trashy for my style (sorry bad girl RiRi). It really amazes me how she can be so stylish in her personal life (at least what we see in pics) and yet, the River Island collections were a little bit disappointing…
EXCEPT for these two swimsuits!
I’d by them both – the red one to revive this and the tie dye because it’s a huge trend this year
Angelina Jolie took a brave step in bringing awareness to the fight against cancer with a revealing and very personal op-ed piece in today’s New York Times titled “My Medical Choice.” The article chronicles her decision to undergo a preventive double mastectomy after genetic tests showed that she carries the BRCA1 gene, which increases her risk of developing breast cancer by 87 percent and ovarian cancer by 50 percent.
These past few days we’ve gone back to black in terms of weather here in the village (aka Brussels). Everyone seems to be back to autumn mode with darker colours making again their appearance in the streets… Everyone??? Well…almost!! This brave young gentleman chose to ignore the signs and go out in this magnificent fuchsia pair of trousers that really made my day! Just look at the impact it has on the grey feeling of the pictures!
Today, I’m starting a new category, called “What I need from…”. It will feature a different company each time. Not that I will always post stuff that I can afford, but still! This will also be a way to keep track of all the nice things I see online and then save some time when I do my actual shopping. Time is an issue, almost as much as money in my case, there never seems to be enough…Sometimes, I really miss living in London and being able to do some decent shopping on Sunday..ah! So, for today, see my current wishlisht from Zara – many nice pieces as usual, Zara is always a safe bet when it comes to style.
Amazing trousers in an amazing colour
Nothing more comfortable than these bermuda shorts on a hot summer day 
These wide stripe trousers come with a similar jacket to form a great summer suit 
A great kimono adding flavour to any simple outfit – to be worn preferably exactly like in this picture
Not really necessary to describe what I like so much about this version of the LBD 
The perfect casual outift for a walk in the sun 
Tomboy-ish and fabulous
The perfect white
They’re bermuda shorts, but look like a skirt, and the colour is just to die for 
Colour-blocking (this also comes in a dress) 
A great, bold green in a great shape 
Sexy and professional at the same time 
Nice and dreamy
This top would look great with a little bit of tanning 
Cuteness you can’t escape
The perfect sandal (also available in white and beige) 
Cinderella
Pure elegance (also available in black)
Party time
Luxurious flat sandals
Fetish
It’s mother’s day today, and while we never celebrate it back home, I feel the need to write a few words for the person I love and admire the most in my life – my mother.
She is my role model, she wasn’t always, but as I grow older, I understand and appreciate her more and more. Unfortunately, we don’t see each other very much, as we live in different countries. And the older she gets, the more worried I feel that we don’t spend as much time together as we should.
My mother is the best person on earth, a very modern and open-minded woman, who’s not perfect, but who has always the best of intentions in heart for her children. She never deprived us of anything, she always put our needs first and she taught me to be independednt, strong, proud of myself, understanding and forgiving.
But next to important values and life lessons, she also taught me a handful of beauty tips that have been with me since my childhood:
Lesson 1 – never comb your hair
As you’ve probably seen, my hair is curly. It’s also long and A LOT.
When I was in elementary school, I had the wildest hair of all the little girls in the classroom. Straight hair was all I wanted to have, so every morning I would take a big brush and try to make them look normal. The result???? No wonder they were calling me the “cloud”. My hair was so short and curly, not in a cool Boney M kind of way, but more like Sheena Queen of the Jungle.
My mother insisted – “Stop combing your hair!! Let it grow naturally”. And that is what I did eventually. And now? This:
Lesson 2 – never pluck your eyebrows too much
At some point in the crazy ’90s, it was in fashion to have small and thin eyebrows, and preferably not too dark. I don’t know about you, but where I come from, TV and magazines were full of women with a couple of hair above her eyes, while strong eyebrows were a nightmare of the 80′s past.
But again, my mom was ahead her (fashion) time. All women in my father’s family have had strong dark eyebrows, even darker than our hair, and this is something I’ve (luckily) inherited.
But I was 16! Everyone was plucking their eyebrows and I had not even started! So, I asked my beloved classmate to do it for me . And my mom went bananas…. Looking at old pictures from those times, I realise it wasn’t such a disaster, but it’s my mom’s technique to exaggerate over everything just to make a point!! So now, after having taken her advice and with a little help from fashion, this is how my eyebrows look:
Lesson 3 – Don’t worry you’re tall, heels, heels heels!
Growing up as a tall girl is not the easiest thing (even being a grown up tall girl is not ideal!). I’ve been 1.75 since I was 14 years old, which means that most girls were shorter than me, most cute boys were also shorter than me, and that was a pity because the remaining tall boys did not really know what to do with their body changing so fast and looked awkard, and of course I would never day a shorter guy! However, my mom always tried to talk me into wearing heels and feel comfortable with myself. It is impressive to see a woman of 1.85cm (that’s me walking in my heels) going down the street, and I know that sometimes I have to live with this, but overall, it makes me confident and a little bit more self-conscious knowing that people’s attention is on me.
