Diesel VIP Event

I love to live in my jeans. Even if I adore the classic denim pair, ones that have been restyled such as ones pictured below make an unforgettable statement.

The AvantGarde magazine asked 10 Dutch designers to let loose their creativity; to use a simple pair of jeans as their canvas. The participating designers Jeroen van Tuyl, Filiz Akcakal, Gerrit Uittenboogaard, Tessa M. De Graaf, Hans Ubbink, Claes Iversen, Emily Hermans, Ilja Visser, Marga Weimans and Antoine Peters will be showing their creations from the 20th - 27th (during Fashion week) of July at the Diesel flagship store in Amsterdam.

Come say hello (I will be there too greeting you with a makeup in hand) and to check out the new jeans creations. This VIP Evening gives you the chance to win one of those special jeans, meet & greet the designers, a fashion prediction from Bastiaan van Schaik (Fashion Director of AvantGarde), beauty makeovers (hair from the L'Oreal team and makeup from the Maybelline team) and of course, the Goodiebag (yeah!).

Details:
Date - July 20th, 2009
Time - 19:30 - 22:00
Location - Diesel flagship store Amterdam Heiligeweg (close to the MAC store)


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The Sweetest

The sweetest item to sit in my purse lately is an Oilily lip balm. Granted it isn't the only lipcare product in my purse but it is the one that gets the ooohs and ahhhs whenever it makes an appearance out of the purse. It is all because of its waxed paper encasing printed with the designs from their "Flowers" collection.

The strawberry scented balm feels good on the lips too and doesn't get mucky or dry out around the edges of my lips after hours of wearing like some balms can get. The texture is smooth and since the balm is colorless, it makes a great base/primer for whatever lipstick to come!

...and incase you were wondering, this is not a fake. This tube came from one of the gift bags I got at the Oilily show when I attended the AIFW in January.


Website: oilily-world.com
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More H&M Spring Makeup Inspiration - TRUE COLOURS Collection

H&M creates some pretty inspirational ad campaigns and for their Spring 2009 cosmetics range, they have gone all soft and pink!

I went to have a look at the Spring range as I really do like some of their products and it is always fun to look at. This time around there are 2 new single Wet/Dry Eyeshadow (domed shape) in "Tokyo Treasures" (a medium lavender/blue with silver shimmer), or "Paris Avec Moi" (light pink with silver shimmer). These 2 new shadows applies smooth with decent pigmentation. The range also came out with 2 new 3-pan eyeshadow palettes in "Lustrous Life" as seen above (a medium-dark orange, a slate gray, a dark gray) and "Risky Business" (a rich black, a purple, and a paradise blue). The lip glosses, though depending on color, tend towards sheer and are slightly tacky. As you can see, the luxe-looking gold eyelash curler almost has center stage in the campaign image but has a price tag of only 2,90 eur!

Website: H&M
Credit: Grayburn (Terms of Use), hm.com

Pretty In Spring

Spring is about happy soft colors. This is the time when major brands such as Estee Lauder, Chanel and Lancome have lots of powdery pinks and peaches for us to choose from. Shimmer or none, this is the time to play with pretty pastels.

The H&M blush compact in Pink is a budget-friendly version that doesn't make you feel like you are stingy. Texture-wise, it is right up there with some department brands I have compared to. It has aloe vera amongst its list of ingredients and the color hasn't failed me yet when it comes to its staying power. The fine shimmer creates a slight glowy effect sans chunky glittery pieces.
What makes even greater is that one can adjust the desired look by either picking up more of the pink in the center with a brush, or the sand or pale peach/pink on its sides.


Price: 4,90 euros
Website: shop.hm.com/nl/shoppingwindow?dept=KOSM_MAKE&shoptype=S
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Celebration Sale @ Joline Jolink

One of my favorite Dutch designer Joline Jolink is having a celebration to mark the 1-year anniversary of their webshop (one that is open to international customers by the way). The sale is good for this weekend only and there is 20% off of their current and their "Hall of Fame" collection. Orders over 200 euros will receive a 6-month free subscription to Elle or Red magazine (for customers living in the Netherlands).

Hurry before her Sun Max dress is sold out!


Website: jolinejolink.com
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Cozy Nights

The good thing about having rotten cold weather (even if Spring is already upon us) is that it feels incredibly cozy indoors. Rather than complaining about the weather like I have been doing, I thought I should just make the best of it and take advantage while we've still got it!

Trying to find a scent that both me and BFOG find likable is an incredibly difficult task. His taste for scents waver from day to day and even depend on the way it is presented to him. As for me, I can love either sweet, spicy, fruity or citrus but the one group of scents that make me absolutely nauseous are 'oceanic' or 'breezy' ones.

So we set off to Lush for something that can agree with both of our noses and that embraces the cozy spirit of the cold weather that we are still having in March.

We had a light lunch and were good to visit the loo beforehand. We were all set to embark on the "Massage Bars" section of the store. To give you an idea, massage bars are these little wonderful massage oil-in-a-bar solid slices that double as body moisturizers. Since all of them are rich in different nourishing butters, they are particularly good for chapped/dry skins. There are over 15 different massage bars to choose from on Lush's website but at the store where we were, there were about 10. We sniffed through the flowery, the chocolatey, and the fruity and used every inch of our arms to swatch. And we repeated the process. After about the third round and twenty buttered-up fingers later, we finally picked our winner! Behold, the Lush Mange Too Massage Bar!

Now this huge bar of white chocolate scented cocoa butter bar laced with honey, mango butter and peppermint isn't for the timid. I mean you can smell it from far away and believe me that once you have used it, you will smell like it the next day as well. A quick sniff and observation of it you'll immediately notice the lingering sweet scent of honey and the adorable honey comb design on top of the bar. Upon further inspection, you might pick up some chocolate or the mint that kind of suggest After Eight mints (I find the dash of mint works well to keep the chocolate and honey 'fresh'). Take that a slight bit further and a few more deep breaths in and you might realize that there is still that extra something you are picking up with your nose. That is indeed the mango butter, that tiny 'kick' in the melange.

Instructions on using a Lush Massage Bar:

enlarge

Having played with the bar on a cold night I can say that this one is less ready to melt upon contact than the other bars I have tried. Because of what must be a higher content of butters and its thick consistency, it also creates less of a greasy mess than the other bars. Rather than having that yucky greased out feeling, you get instead a well nourished and protected feeling on your skin.

Tip: Keeping your bar safe - the Lush Mange Too will not fit into the Lush tins. If you have any empty The Body Shop body butter containers lying around, the Mange Too fits perfectly in there!

I am curious to find out how you create a cozy feeling on a cold wintry evening?


Credit: Grayburn (Terms of Use), lush.com

Hello Hydration

I couldn't not share this with you. Herbal Essence is offering a free sample of their haircare products from their Hello Hydration line to anyone who live in the Netherlands. Just follow this link there to fill in your details.....I've already signed up and waiting for my own samples!



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Daite by Tessa - Knight In Shining Armor

Tessa Koops of Daite brought us colorful, eye-popping coats with her Winter 2009/2010 collection at the AIFW.

Here are only a few looks from the show. The collection surrounds itself around the idea "Knight in shining armor" and dreams of King Arthur and the round table. Perhaps what Guinevere would herself wear in modern times.

With so many colorful choices in coats and sports wear, we are left to dream of our knight in shining armor.....

Website: Daite
Credit: Grayburn (Terms of Use)

All In The Details: C'est Brillant AIFW 2009

It was fantastic to see 5 groups of designers given the honor to create clothing to complement C'est Brillant's 2009 eyeglasses collection. I love the focus of using eyeglasses as an accessory rather than an ordinary visual-aid piece.

p.s. the name of the eyeglasses designer is not misspelled, "brillen" is the Dutch word for eyeglasses... a play on the English word "brill-i-ant"...you get the idea...!

I love details and personally I either buy something for its details or the very lack thereof - if you know what I mean. Here are the details that caught my eye and had me snapping crazily away with my camera ...

Olive Peoples and Malou Sebastian

Anne Et Valentin & Cross Colours

Sama Summum

Carrera & Ray-Ban, Nieuw Jurk

André Courrèges

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Daryl van Wouw A/W '09-10

The Daryl van Wouw catwalk show is always packed full. A part of the audience had to even watch the show from the entrance, trying to get a glimpse over heads and between gaps.

Van Wouw's A/W 2009-10 collection, inspired by the vibrant colors used in Chinese opera, was one that had something for every occasion. The Chinese opera mask printed shirts modernized the ancient art form into something fun and wearable today. What was most exciting were the beautifully shaped off-shoulder dresses with that gorgeous bustline which sloped downwards around and towards the back (see the dress with green leaves below).

However, the bonus for me at one of Van Wouw's shows is always the makeup and hair. There is always something interesting and fresh to look at and this time was no different. The girls walked out with the most exotic multi-tonal braids that were just so striking seen from the back. While the face was kept pure and simple, gold was painted on the the neck which extended towards the bustline. The glimmering gold paint brought out beautiful skin textures and accentuated a beautiful part of a woman's body. Kind of reminiscent of the gold rings worn around the necks in 'longneck' tribes.

Chinese opera mask-esque prints

Gorgeous. Want!

Dress made more formal with tuxedo elements.

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Dressed In Night - Mada van Gaans At The AIFW

During the 10th edition of the AIFW, Mada van Gaans showed her collection for A/W 2009-10. Those of us who love to dress in black were spoiled for choices. Mada van Gaans has taken the ordinary to interesting proportions and her use of metallic fabrics fired up under those stage lights. The pieces were comfortable yet glamorous to look at. I simply adore the shimmery russet colored off-shoulder number whose longer length makes it absolutely stunning.

Shimmery accents that play up a natural face, complimenting the feel of the collection.

Designer Mada van Gaans (in the middle), greeted the crowd after the show.

Mada van Gaans' S/S 09 collection (Enchanting Memories) presented at the Dutch Fashion.Awards

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Iris van Herpen A/W 2009-10 - AIFW

Iris van Herpen Mummification F/W 09-10 - AIFW
A chilly breeze filled the room and the crowd went silent. Music started and the models performed their slow majestic stride in bare feet. Warrior goddesses. Wows were heard echoing around the room at the show's end.

Every piece in the collection was a show-stopper. The array of immaculate details were so amazing to look at and the muted gold played contrast with carbon black.


Iris van Herpen's S/S 2009 Show at the AIFW


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