What I was wearing this week: summer outfits

It was hot hot hot this week, so I could finally get my summer outfits out of the closet. And get some new ones ofcourse. This is the result.Zara pants, We top and Zara cardigan. The shoes are from Geox and the belt is H&M.Zara summer dress, which I had to cut because it was really long.Dress by Yes or No, Zara legging, and the fedora I got at a market in Spain.Zara pants, zara top and Mango cardigan.Denim skirt and top from H&M. The flipflops are from Spain.

Yummie: Velvet Lounge (Antwerp, Belgium)

I love a good meal. And if I have to travel across borders for a great meal then I will. So when my sister and her husband asked me if I wanted to join them for a trip to this fabulous restaurant, Velvet Lounge, in Antwerp, I ofcourse said YES immediately.

After a relatively short drive we arrived in Antwerp on a rainy, lazy, saturday evening. The restaurant is located in the Antwerp harbour. When entering the Velvet Lounge you immediately feel relaxed and very welcome. The decor is one of luxury, dim lights, and soft chill music. The beautiful wooden floor caught my eye, and the round tables and seating booths make group seatings very cosy, comfortable and conversations easy.

Love these lamps.

OK now comes the really fun part: The cocktail card! It has the most delicious drinks on it. It'll make you want to taste every drink on it. (but you shouldn't ofcourse) As a non-drinker, I was tempted to try the Absolut Mango Mojito. A wonderful mix of Absolut Mango Wodka, crushed ice, sugar and fresh mint leaves. It was hmmmmmyummie. And after the drink I was a bundle of joy, my sister told me. (aren't I always?)

Varsha's Pina colada and Shiraz's mojito.

Let's talk food: as always I didn't order a starter because then I can't have dessert, and that is just not an option. I can recommend the scallops, which were beautifully served with buttery soft mashed potatoes, a more than yummie lobster ravioli and the most wonderful if-heaven-had-a-taste-it-would-taste-like-this-sauce. Every taste came with sounds of joy out of my mouth, the uhms and the aahs and the yummies were not spared.

Heavenly scallops, with the most tongue tingling you-just-want-to-have-more-sauce.

For dessert I had the chocolate explosion, which is exactly that: a true explosion of chocolate. A chocolate creme brulee, a chocolate mousse (which actually looked and tasted more like a brownie), some sort of chocolate pudding (which had a bubbly sauce on top, which was not so yummie), and the most tasty piece of chocolate cake served with fresh strawberries. This dessert was simply too much too handle, unfortunately I didn't have the courage to ask for the dessert to be put in a doggy bag. Yes I was shy.

Chocolate explosion for dessert. Big like. The colour of this table, not so much.

As for the service it was TOP class! We were really taken care of. We felt warmly welcomed after we were treated to a complementary amuse soupe. Our waiter was very attentive and even posed for a picture. When we asked for some extra sauce during dinner, we got it, no trouble at all. He did his absolute best with a big smile (and you know how important that is to me).

There was just one thing that I did not like: the colour of the tables. The round tables, which are conveniently removed after dinner for some dancing, had the most unflattering colour. That is the only bad thing I can say about this establishment. For a restaurant that is definitely not a crime.

So a big thumbs up for the Velvet Lounge: www.velvetlounge.be ENJOY!

Happy Father's Day!

Some favourites of mine

It's been a hectic week so far, Diya came down with some kind of virus, so I am taking care of her right now. Good news: Diya's school, the Dr. Willem Drees school, was named the most Healthy School of The Hague this week, and they were awarded 5000 euros for organising so many free sports activities. I am so proud, because I went to this school myself when I was Diya's age. Furthermore I have met some great inspiring people this week and I am very lucky to have so many lovely people around, that I can call my friends. Today I just want to share some beautiful things with you, which I found on the web.

A whole closet full of beautiful dresses: Lily's closet

Habitually chic reporting on the launch of Chloe's new perfume LOVE.

My favourite shoes:

My new everyday favourite, a great find at the local Market:


Great looks this week:
Cameron Diaz at the premiere of Knight and Day in Spain.Naomi Watts covered up sexy at the Tony Awards.
Sexy mum Jennifer Lopez. Her face looks different, as if she had something done. Did she? The look is sexy, just too bad the shoes don't match this dress.
The lovely America Ferrera nothing ugly about her.

What I was wearing this week.

This jacket is from Theme, and I've had it for more than 15 years. It's a great tailored English jacket. Today I tried it on again, and it actually still looks great. Shirt from Vero Moda, legging from Pieces, and shoes from Geox.This is actually a Zara summer dress (bought it in Spain years ago), which I always wear as a shirt. The leggings are from Pieces and the shoes from Sasha.I had a party on Saturday, I decided to wear my new Mango dress. The shoes are from the Cinderella Otazu limited edition collection (2009).Mango dress with a Zara summer blazer.This is what I wore for my meeting at Jackie Magazine. I forgot to ask them if they liked my outfit (argh). Zara jacket, Vero Moda shirt, Zara legging, and shoes from a little store in Spain.Leather jacket from Zara, H&M summer top, Zara jeans, shoes from Sasha.I wore this outfit on my mother's birthday. Happy Birthday mum!! Zara cardigan, black comfortable summer one piece from Spain, and Gold coloured sandals from Grendha.

Ashton's sixpack delivers, the movie does not.

This week I went to see the new Ashton Kutcher movie "Killers", also starring Katherine Heigl and Tom Selleck as her father. Katherine meets Ashton while vacationing in Nice with her parents. They quickly fall in love and get married. Tom Selleck is the protective dad who clearly doesn't trust Ashton. And he shouldn't as his son in law turns out to be a retired spy/killer, who has to come out of retirement unexpectedly.

So there you have it, the storyline in just 5 sentences. It takes the movie 55 long minutes to get this far. I love movies, but I have never looked at my watch during one so often. It just went on and on and on. The only thing of any interest in this movie was Ashton's sixpack (yeah baby), and Tom Selleck's mustache.

Mr. Selleck actually had the most interesting role, and was most believeable as the overprotective dad. Katherine Heigl's performance was absolutely forgettable, and downright annoying. I mean haven't we already seen her play the naive pretty blond enough?

An hour into the movie, Ashton and Katherine's suburban neighbours all turn out to be killers as well, at that point I was ready to get up and leave the theatre. This storyline was ridiculous. But since I have made a commitment to myself to always sit a movie out, no matter how bad or simply annoying it is (you never know what'll happen in the end), I didn´t. I wish I had walked out, the end was actually no surprise. And all I could think of was: Ashton, Why? Why?

Best dressed!

These women have made it to my best-dressed list this month:Sarah Jessica Parker styling up her casual outfit with a Louis Vuitton scarf. I love love love how she is wearing bootcut jeans in her ankle boots.Tinsley Mortimer in Requiem, and Versace shoes.Sarah Jessica Parker in Raven Kauffmann couture.SJP taking SATC2 on the road with her blue Nicholas Kirkwood "Kasia" sandals.SJP in Ellie Saab haute couture.
SJP in Alexander McQueen.
Salma Hayek in Gucci (ofcourse).

Great food: Dauphine

Cafe-Restaurant Dauphine, (+31) 020 462 16 46, www.caferestaurantdauphine.nl

Yesterday I had dinner at this wonderful restaurant called Dauphine in Amsterdam. The food was excellent and the service was great (which is quite unexpected in the Netherlands). I had the lobster (very attractively priced at 20 euro's), my friend Milena had the Lamsrack. Though Milena warned me about the battle I was about to face with my lobster, my appetite for lobster was even greater. So when our plates arrived I was ready and waiting with my about-to-crack-you-open-lobster tools.

The plates looked superb, the garlic Lobster was served with freshly cooked sandless spinach, and what seemed like a mix of mashed chickpeas baked with a little crunchy skin (yummie). All of this came with some melted butter on the side (even more yummie). It all tasted even better than it looked, though most of it ended on my neighbours plate, in my lap, my hair and even on my knees (didn't notice that one until I was in my car). That is what you get when you ignore Milena's warning.

For dessert we both ordered the Chocolatetruffelterrine with a raspberry sauce, it was over-the-top-delicious-had-to-open-up-my-belt so good!

Other delish orders on the menu were the hamburger with fries (I don't eat beef, but the looks of this one almost won me over) and the plateau de Fruits de Mer (seafood display). I recommend you try this restaurant yourself next time your in our capital city.

And this is what I was wearing (pictures were taken before the lobster attacked me):
Zara Jacket
Dress by Mango, shoes from Sasha

My favourite things: flowers

One of my favourite things to do is buying flowers. Nothing better than having a little spring sunshine in your home.

Great read! The Teen Vogue Handbook

For everyone aspiring a job in fashion, meet your new Bible: The Teen Vogue Handbook. Everything you need to know about fashion, and those working in fashion, with great tips from the experts. Meet the designers, the editors, the bloggers, the make-up artists, the stylists and the photographers and let them give you some great advice.

It is a great read and a must-have for I-want-a-job-in-fashion-wannabees.

Let's Kiss! (Keep It Simple Sugar)

H&M top, Bershka pants and H&M shoes.Zara blazer, Vero Moda white tee, legging from Pieces and short grey boots which I got in Spain.

When I dress in the morning I go for effortless chic (and ofcourse it takes a lot of effort to look so effortless, as we all know). I love putting together off-the-rack pieces from H&M, Zara and Mango, and combining it with other items or accessories creating new and fresh looks. Looks that are distinct and different. To me this is personal style. I think most women go for safe and familiar looks. When we find something that looks good on us we tend to stick with it. There's nothing wrong with that ofcourse. But let me share a secret with you. Stepping out of your comfort zone, will bring you much JOY!

How? you ask, well let me tell you: You probably have some great pieces in your closet, now take your favourite shirt, and (hear me out now) instead of getting the jeans that you usually wear it with, try those great baggy pants that you have, or that skirt that you bought ages ago, which fits so nicely at the waist. Spice it all up with a belt (try a big or a small one and see which one looks better). Wear a nice jacket, or cardigan with it. And instead of wearing does flats (because there so damn comfortable), get your high heels out (even when you are just picking up your kids from school). You never know who might notice you. The result is a fresh new look, that will make some heads turn your way.

Just try combining the things you would never have thought of combining, and save yourself the money you would spend on a personal stylist. You can do it yourself!

But remember Keep It Simple Sugar! Don´t overhang yourself with necklaces, bangles and other pieces of juwelery, thinking it will make you look fashionable. Oh no, no, noooo: it will only make you look like a rundown Christmas tree. The key is to choose some great accessories like a good bag, belt, nailpolish and shoes. These can be colourful. But keep the juwelry to a minimum.

For example. For the past month I haven´t worn any earings, I mean I love them and I own a lot of them (really a LOT). But it just felt like too much. The only jewelry I wear nowadays is my watch and my ring. Both of which were presents from my parents, well actually the watch is still my mums. But I love it so much, she let´s me wear it everyday.