OPINION | LaLa Berlin

Light blue boxy leather motorcycle jackets just arrived in Acne stores, similar monochromatic light pink ensembles have been in American Apparel window displays for years, the flowy long skirts with a dove print are a downright Ann Demeulemeester rip off and the metal cuffs have already been exploited by H&M and ASOS ever since they appeared on a Damir Doma runway a year ago. Lala Berlin isn't really what you would call a pioneer in fashion.

The collection was very aimed at the now, it was a cohesive mixture of today's trends. Trends that will get bigger and will be fully accepted by the mainstream by the time that these pieces hit stores. Not trying anything new and sticking with what's already popular is a safe and smart thing to do in this economy if you want to make money. But is it necessary and relevant to build a fashion show around these already available styles?

My first answer to that question was NO. But after giving it a second thought I realized that this style of dressing has been around
for a few seasons. Perhaps this age will be remembered for it like the 80's were remembered for their shoulder pads. Perhaps fashion is finally slowing down a bit.

Vanessa Friedman from the Financial Times came with some facts in a recent column that support these thoughts: "Indeed, the last major aesthetic change I can think of was more than a year ago, when Phoebe Philo’s rigorous minimalism at Céline sent her audience gasping and running to fill their wardrobes with men’s trousers and tailored cloth coats. As a colleague said the other day, “Indeed, the last major aesthetic change I can think of was more than a year ago, when Phoebe Philo’s rigorous minimalism at Céline sent her audience gasping and running to fill their wardrobes with men’s trousers and tailored cloth coats. As a colleague said the other day, “There’s nothing I feel like I need to buy in order to feel current, no ankle boot will fix all my problems.” Put another way: Polyvore, the do-it-yourself “fashion inspiration” website wherein members create and widely share their own collages built around specific items, just released its Year in Review report, which analyses user behaviour over the past 12 months, and the top five trends were: “prints, minimalism, monochrome, florals, men’s wear-inspired.” The sixth was ... trousers."

Conclusion: A collection that I would be happy to wear today, but which didn't contain much originality. It gave some food for thought and discussion about more long term trends. It was beautiful, styled impeccably, nonetheless for an independent designer to present Ann Demeulemeester skirts with another name on it is just not done.(sorry had to be said)

LIFE | Time For Change

Yes, the visuals have changed!
It felt like it was time to pour more time and thought into Love Aesthetics. I´ve disliked my header for a long time but wanted to come up with something good and more permanent before changing it. I finally came up with a concept that is less digital; inspired on forms and product manuals. So instead of running to the usual Photoshop and trying out a million fonts I pulled out my scissors, copying machine and a pen instead. There will be a few more adjustments during the time coming.

I once started this blog to be a part of the online rebels that were democratizing fashion, I had no readers, was embarrassed to tell my friends about what I was up to online and had little idea of what I was doing. But in three years this online space called Love Aesthetics has evolved into something that reflects my view on fashion better and of which I can even say I´m a bit proud of.

Over the past years the character of the blogosphere has also gone through some big changes. Shortly said it went from bloggers taking pictures of themselves with tiny digital cameras in a mirror and reporting about
the local vintage boutique to making Vogue-worthy images and reporting about the Paris shows from front row seats.

Seeing what a valuable addition all the collective voices of blogs have become to the fashion industry is inspiring to pour more time and thought into what one throws online. Not only have I put a bit more effort into the visual aspects of Love Aesthetics but also plan to place blogging higher on my priority list and take more time to produce content.

Though the appearance, the execution and quality have changed and developed over the years, my blog is still the same in spirit. I blog because of my hyper enthusiasm and obsession with fashion. Love Aesthetics is about my love for aesthetics and my interest in what lies beneath the appearance of things. Thank you all for staying tuned, it has been the best reward and motivation to keep the updates coming!

* Small note to those who share my aversion towards commerce. Yes I've decided to take advertisements. But have no fear, no content will be compromised. If you want to know more about my approach to sponsors read the 'ethics' section.

OPINION | White And Rose Gold, Skipping A Season

shirt-dress with transparent sleeves Simone Rocha for Topshop / Knit sweater T by Alexander Wang / Rose gold eagle claw earrings Pamela Love / Rose gold metallic loafer pumps Alexander Wang / Tailored wool pants Calvin Klein


Skipping a season
The real cold hasn't even started but I'm already focussed on getting my wardrobe ready for spring. Fashion has become so fast and access is so easy that we're already bored of the collections before we can even try them on in a store. (Acne's spring/summer collection will hit stores in December, isn't that insane?)

Images from the runways are hyped on every website and in every magazine 6 months before we can even buy them. Bloggers and press have already had the chance to see, touch and try on the summer garments two weeks ago during the press days. Right now is when these pieces are still coveted, by the time that we can actually purchase them they will be old news. Smart move from Acne to strike while the iron is still hot and start selling their white leather jackets and thin pastel jumpers next month.

It's going way too fast for me, the clothes hanging in stores right now seem outdated, so I've decided to skip a season and will look for items that I can wear both in winter and spring. Like this loosely knitted T by Alexander Wang jumper, a perfect winter staple but I'd also wear it with a pair of cycling shorts, bare legs and high heels.

OPINION | 20 Euro Leather Jacket

On the wall: The two Violettas by Helmut Newton, Look from Land Lookbook, YSL lipstick packaging folded open


Just above the hip, boxy shape, no additional zippers or frills, thick leather. And only 20 Euros. I found it at a seconhand market last weekend. Besides the fantastic bargains here's another reason(this is me being moralistic) to get vintage or secondhand clothes; I came accross an astonishing bit of data the other day; in the UK an average person disposes 55 kilo's of clothing and textiles each year. 1 kilo of cotton textile requires 11000 litres of water. Can you do the math? (source: imf)

LIFE | School & Writing For The Fashion Business

Briefcase: Vintage

Notebooks, Agenda: Bijenkorf

Book: Writing for the fashion business by Kristen K. Swanson and Judith C. Everett





Today was a day of shopping, not for the new fall arrivals but for school supplies. Summer has ended and it is time to get back into those school benches. I study journalism but have aspired to specialize in fashion journalism long before I even started studying. I've been trying to built an archive of fashion magazines and books that will serve me as references. A book that gets picked up so often that I do not even bother to put it back on the shelf is; Writing for the fashion business by Kristen K. Swanson and Judith C. Everett.



For everyone who has ambitions like mine I recommend you to buy this book. Whether you want to work in public relations, become a magazine editor, write critical pieces for newspapers or make scripts for videos. This is a guide full of all the basics that you will need to know. The content of the journalistic chapters is very much like the book we use at school(Basisboek Journalistiek) Basic book for journalistic writing. It provides writing techniques that are tuned to the fashion industry. The PR and marketing chapters provide a good insight on how the opposite side of fashion works. How advertisers work to get brands out there and what their strategies are to manipulate the media.



The book explaines practical things like how to do an interview, how to review a fashion show and even has a few pages on how to avoid sexist writing. It also shows how to write letters if you want to borrow clothes from a brand or get seats at fashionweek. It is an immensly handy book to have on the bookshelf in case you are in doubt about anything during your writing process. The content on these 604 pages is too diverse to give a proper review on. But I can almost assure you that whatever question about fashion and media that pops into your mind right now; Yes the answer is in this book.

EXPERIMENT | DONE Wearing The Same Dress For 30 Days

30 days, 15 washes later...

How does it feel like to have a fixed look, a uniform, an outfit planned ahead?
This was probably the best part. It was liberating to not have had one 'clothing-crisis' during this month, not once have I pulled all my clothes out of my closet in an hysterical nothing-to-wear-moment, not once did getting dressed take more than 20 minutes. Because of the limited options you have with one garment you automatically make a quick decision about what suits the occasion best. My typical everyday outfit consisted of cut off leggings, the dress + 1 piece outerwear, usually a light sweater.

Practical question: What about washing?
I washed the dress every other day by hand, in lukewarm water. It never went into the washing machine or dryer. It was handled with more care than the washing perscription instructed.

How is the quality of this COS dress?
After two weeks I started to hate the rag that was once a structured dress which I was obliged to wear every day. Putting it on made me feel like a mess, not put together, sloppy. It became harder to make an acceptable outfit with it as the quality continued to deteriorate.

After two weeks, the fabric was completely stretched out, had lost it's heaviness and the initial shape and design of the dress were completely ruined by this. On the 16th day, one of the seems came loose and the bottom had started to fray. By this time the garment was in such bad shape that it was (already) ready for disposal.

One positive feature about the fabric was that it seemed to be imune for stains. Just to name a few things that happened to it during the past 30 days; spaghetti with red sauce, green grass marks from a picknick without blanket, a drunk spilled half a glass of beer on it, accidental pen tripes and even some blood stains from a guy that was sitting next to me who got the most insane nose bleed I've ever seen. And it is still white as snow.

How important is a large wardrobe?
Halfway the experiment I came to the sad conclusion that a large wardrobe was important to me. But later I realized that the clothes I had been missing were only a few pieces: a button up shirt and trousers. Looking back, a basic white dress was versatile enough to be worn every day to any given occasion; it accompanied me to a few gallery openings, to school, on the couch on lazy sundays, during nights out aswel as to quick trips to the supermarket.



Personal conclusion
I love clothes and honestly speaking I want to have a big collection of them. There is a but; quality wins it over quantity every time. I want to keep all my garments for life and am sad that the great design of this COS dress only lasted for two weeks. This experiment made me realize even more that I don't actually need as much clothes as I initially thought. With this in mind I can be even more critical about what I am adding to my collection. Because that is what I'd like to built: a collection of great quality, beautifully designed items.

The idea of a fixed look, a uniform that doesn't change every season but is a reflection of ones personality is very interesting, though a close to impossible thing to put together. Perhaps by the time I'm 50 I'll be done dressing up and I'll know myself good enough to be able to find an outfit that perfectly resembles my personality that I could wear every day for the rest of my life.

EVENT | Iris van Herpen in Central Museum, Utrecht

The exposition about the work of Iris van Herpen and her inspirations opens today at Central Museum in my hometown Utrecht; 'The new craftsmanship'. Yesterday night I got a chance to join the press opening, talk to Iris and take a few snapshots of the collection. The idea of the exposition is to put the sources of inspiration that Iris gets from art next to the final finished designs.

A curious thing was that all of her inspirations coincidentally happened to be in the main collection of the Central Museum. Therefor it didn't feel like an authentic set up, but rather like an exposition to show how great the museum's newly purchased pieces from Iris van Herpen fit in their collection.

Also it was interesting to hear that in the speech of the curators, they didn't refer to her work as art but explicitly named it fashion. While the fashionworld likes to put the art-tag on her designs. However, the exposition was mainly focussed on fashion. The old artworks from the museum served a decorative purpose, nothing more than a nice background setting for her designs. Like for example the leather gold shoes were presented on a shiny pillar with a seventeenth century Dutch heritage gold printed leather wallpapewith hanging behind them.

Nonetheless it is always a joy to see the craftmanship, detailing and great dedication Iris van Herpen puts in her designs from up close. If you happen to be in Utrecht before October 29, save some time to pay a visit to the Central Museum.

Opinion | Francis Lane

Dear Francis,
I have a crush on your hair.
The kind of crush that makes me want to run my fingers through it late at night but at the same time a jealous kind of crush.
One that makes me hate the fact that your hair would probably look better than mine in the morning.
Yours truly,
Ivania

INTERIOR | Minimalistic Living

clothing rack IKEA €29,95



All you need is a mattress, something to hang your clothes on and something to plant your ass on. Minimalism is about the essence of things, stripping away everything until only the necessary remains. This concept not only applies on the all white structured Calvin Klein ensembles, the basic Jil Sander aesthetic or the nude almost-not-there Céline pieces but on every aspect of life.

When decorating (or not decorating) your surroundings with the bare essentials and tossing away everything you don't absolutely love, the only thing remaining will be your personality. Getting rid of clutter means getting rid of visual distraction and visual stress. No need for a closet for your books; align them, pile them, place them in sight! And a simple clothing rack is all you need to showcase your beloved clothes and become inspired. Arrange a home as if it were an art gallery, where you can enjoy every chair, lamp, book or jacket you own(or your kid's best drawings).



The idea of living with the bare essentials is something that appeals to me very much. (The thought behind it even more that its aesthetic) As I believe it is a durable alternative and the antidote to over-consuming. I'm good on my way of creating a somewhat minimalistic home. But I would not call myself a minimalist because of my constant urge to collect things, old things and of course clothes.

NOVELTY | Damir Doma FW11

Close up of a sweater knitted out of suede strings
image source: style.com, damir doma

A runway review from behind-the-computer-screen-perspective
Before I knew it I was hypnotized by Doma’s first girl who looked right at me through the screen with her blue eyes, hair pulled back and black lips. After anxiously opening a new style.com window and seeng the arrow of my mouse quickly find the name Damir Doma amongst the othe designers. She was wearing a cape-like yet structured short jacked over a long wide, white frock and legging-shorts. Underneath these somewhat heavy layers her
knees and calves were showing and her bare feet had slipped into the most beautifully shaped creepers. (My dominating thought: This is what I want to wear.
This is what I want to wear today, tomorrow and the rest of the year.)

Again my little white arrow rushed to the ‘next look’ button and started to click away. Long dresses shaped like tabards and fragile silhouettes
flew across the screen while I stared at it without blinking. The tabard skirts were long and had openings at the sides revealing the thigh high suede
creeper boots in a subtle way as they were black worn on black tights.

All of a sudden, halfway the collection leopard printed pony skin and Mongolian lambskin took over the runway in a way that is not the usual
slow blending in. But at the same time, all in one outfit. Though there is no clash wth the rest of the collection. The full length leopard dress is
as structured and well cut as its previously seen sisters in black. The show continues with monochromatic looks in shades that lie very close to each other.
Black/ white variants aswel as Rusty browns and coppers combined with gold lamé.

Apart from the use of color, material and print, large cuffs added to the slight tribal feeling of the collection. Doma’s models wore them in
creative ways; over long-sleeved jackets on the upper arm accentuating the biceps and on both arms at the wrist.

NOVELTY | Classic in Jersey, nudes and neons

wide tops €6,95 | longsleeves €9,95 | leggings €9,95 | dresses 9,95

This is the only page worthwhile from the latest H&M spring/summer catalogue.
Although it strongly reminds of the standard jersey American Apparel basics,
it does inspire to make combinations with colors and fits. From monochromatic to strong contrasts.

These basics are being presented in a figure-it-out-for-yourself-way that isn’t dictating
fashion and leaves plenty of room for different interpretations.
I hope the quality will be as good as this ad
(though I ask myself how it is possible with those prices without abusing some children in the production progress)
and if so, I will definitely be purchasing those nude and neon items.

OPINION | This New Era

jacket ss11 Land, Lara Stone wearing Calvin Klein via Dead Fleurette

The 2000’s, the noughties, the zeroes or whatever you want to call the previous decade wasn’t nearly as iconic fashion wise as any other decade. But what has been a unique development is the speed fashion has gained, one that is almost impossible to keep up with. I question myself if it is also society going through those changes or that this speed of changing trends is driven by commerce.

Purchasing an entire new wardrobe every season has become the mentality for many ‘fashionistas’. People become bored with the designs before they even hit stores because there will already be something new. The time between the design table and the worldwide racks is 14 days for some companies. Tom Ford is also fed up with the fact that fashion has lost its freshness. He hasn’t lent any clothes of his ss11 collection to stylists until December and didn’t release any official images until this month. I expect many more designers are going to follow his attitude.

“The way the system works now, you see the clothes, within an hour they’re online, the world sees them. They don’t get to a store for six months. The next week, young celebrity girls are wearing them on red carpets. They’re in every magazine. The customer is bored with those clothes by the time they get to the store. They’re overexposed, you’re tired of them, they’ve lost their freshness, you see somebody wearing it and you say, ‘Oh, that’s that jacket that was in blah, blah, blah. blah, blah’. Or a customer doesn’t want to wear that jacket that was in blah,blah,blah,blah,blah. In addition, all of the fast-fashion companies that do a great job, by the way, knock everything off. So it’s everywhere all over the streets in three months and by the time you get it to the store, what’s the point?”- Tom Ford

A reaction as a 180 degree turn around to fast fashion is inevitable and the tendency towards slower fashion and appreciating well-made clothes has already started to become visible. Among the thousands of fashion blogs that can’t do anything else than share their shopping addiction and H&M purchases, there are also the ones like Dead Fleurette that commend the concept of French dressing and buying clothes as if you were collecting art.

I look forward to this new era. One with so little limits and so many possibilities. Modern thoughts, touristic moon-tours and designers that will inspire us with their refreshing ideas and will make clothes that will last a decade. Like Linda Erkens, head designer of Land, each of her collections is a sequel of the previous one. All the clothes she has ever made are part of a bigger whole and could all be worn together. A perfect thought to apply to your own collection of clothes.

INTERVIEW | Carine Quit

After being editor in chief for ten years, Carine Roitfeld resigned from her accomplished position at French Vogue yesterday.
She said she decided that a decade in a job that ultimately might have limited her creativity was enough.

In an interview earlier this year by The New York Times she talks about censure and the restriuctions at Vogue:


How do you feel about the magazine at 90?

In 90 years, we haven’t changed the mood of the magazine. It’s still very audacious. It’s still about beauty. It’s still about excess. It’s still very avant-garde. When we started to do the research, we discovered the same mood in the past, so we are very happy to feel that we are still looking like the iconic Vogue of Newton and Guy Bourdin. We try to be sophisticated, while a little on the edge all the time. But what I can see is that now, the censoring is bigger than it was 20, 30 or 40 years ago. I think we have less freedom. Today some pictures would not even be publishable. It’s not just about the nudity, but when you talk about things politically, the military, kids, it would all be politically incorrect and not publishable today.

How does that make you feel as an editor?

That we have to fight to keep this un-politically correct attitude of French Vogue, but it’s more and more difficult to be able do that. You cannot smoke, you cannot show arms, you cannot show little girls, because everyone now is very anxious not to have problems with the law. Everything we do now is like walking in high heels on the ice, but we keep trying to do it.

How do you remain personally engaged with fashion when everyone else can see it online?

It’s still exciting to me, because when I am going to a fashion show, I’m not just looking at the clothes. I’m looking at the mood, I’m listening to the music, so sometimes, I can be a bit disappointed in one, two or three shows, and then I see a great one and my energy goes up again. There were some big fashion moments last week in Italy, like when you go to Prada, and wonder what’s she going to do this time, or at Dolce & Gabbana, and you are almost ready to cry. Maybe I still like the clothes. I don’t see them just to wear them, I see them as a piece of art sometimes.

OPINION | Underdressing and a note on minimalist fashion

me trying to underdress instead of overdressing
cropped front longsleeve: DIY
1990s high waisted legging: thrifted

Over the past days I have been studying and obsessing about developments in fashion during the 1990's. Somehow it is similar to what is happening now. The internet is giving everyone a voice in fashion, making it more democratic and giving room for different interpretations.

The 1990's is also the first era I consiously lived through but was too little to be aware of complex fashions and tendancies in society. I would listened to Ace of Base and think: when I grow up I'll dance to this in a disco. So yeh, in case you were wondering; I've been listening to Ace of base (and collecting images of Jessie Spano) while reading articles to get in the mood.

In the 1990s it was no longer the done thing to follow fashion slavishly, a sharp contrast to the highly á la mode '70s and '80s. The phobia of being underdressed was finally completely displaced by the fear of overdressing. Fashion in the '90s united around a new standard, minimalism, and styles of stark simplicity became the vogue. Despite the best efforts of a few designers to keep the flag for pretty dresses flying, by the end of the decade the notion of ostentatious finery had virtually disappeared. -source Wikipedia





The best description of what minimalist fashion is

Much Ado About (Nearly) Nothing
By Amy M. Spindler
New York Times, June 13, 1993

Minimalism is as noncommittal as fashion gets without leaving a body naked.
At its best, minimalist fashion is like Mission-style oak furniture: inviting, architectural, sturdy, elegant. At worst, it's plain. It can put demands on the wearer. It won't inspire your friends to apply adjectives to you that you couldn't inspire alone. A minimalist dress is the only $2,000 one that you might wear to meet the Dalai Lama without feeling obscene.

What sets the minimalists on this page above the rest is their deceit and their conceit. Deceit because these clothes look so simple but can in fact be the most difficult: many are cut on the bias (diagonlly, across the grain of the fabric). The bias cut makes them drape. The conceit is the richness of the fabric. There is nothing plain about chiffon backed with silk, or cashmere woven into the rib knit of a sweater.

Minimalism is best described not by what it is, but by what it lacks. There's no lace. No tulle. No fringe. No flouncy tiers. No rows of pleats. For those who subscribe, it is defined the way obscenity ofter is: they know it when they see it.

OPINION | Filippa K Silk Pocket Shirt

I found myself washing this shirt by hand and carefully hanging it to dry on a hanger this morning. It made me think..Did I actually, sincerely LOVE this shirt? (the meaning of the word love has quite diminished by using it as: “I love your [insert whatever item]”) But yes, I love this shirt and luckily I love most of my clothes. I lovingly take care of them, never throw them in the dryer, never abuse them, wear bibs during meals, keep my shoes in their original box, and take all of them out of my wardrobe frequently. But it hasn’t always been like this.

I used to find myself for a quick 30 euro fix at H&M, buying items that I’d never wear more than once. Piles and piles of clothes that I absolutely hated clogged up my closet, making it hard for me to see the real gems that I owned. Everything has been thrown out.( but as I am writing this with disdain I can think of at least 20 more items that I will stuff into a trash bag after I finish this blog post)

This season I haven’t bough any new shoes yet. A year ago this would have been unthinkable. I was trapped in the never ending cycle of consumerism. Buying multiple pieces that needed replacement quickly while being left with no money to invest in longer lasting items. Within only 3 months I was left with a bunch of outdated(yes. within 3 months.), washed out clothes that I was absolutely sick of seeing on everyone else. Clothes that completely go against my individualistic as well as environmental and humanistic ideals.

To some it can become an addiction they (sadly)embrace. They proudly call themselves fashion victims or fashion addicts or whatever the latest term is. Bad clothes are like drugs, cigarettes or fast food. They are disposable, they are cheap and they only satisfy for a minute.

OPINION | Real Blog Love

Faux tattoo: Luxirare, Dead Fleurette, Eli Presentacion, Jak&Jil

Blogroll has changed! I get so excited when I find a discover a new interesting blog.
Just recently I stumbled upon Eli Presentacion and Dead Fleurette which are absolute unique gems amongst the thousands of blogs which have all become so simillar to each other. As much as I also enjoy looking at nicely put together ensembles, I will keep following personal style blogs on my own bloglovin.

*Luxirare
If you want to be blown off your chair by amazement just visit Luxirare. Her interesting ideas and superb execution make me enthousiastic about fashion again. And at Luxirare.com it is about fashion, not personal showcasing.

*Dead Fleurette
Fleurette takes you with her on the long way to the perfect wardrobe. Doesn't change her wardrobe every season, doesn't need the entire H&M collection, but is of the opinion that fashion doesn't equal consumerism.
'Think of building your wardrobe as collecting art'

*Eli Presentacion
Next to the beautifully designed blog, and wonderful outfits Kristine actually has something to say. In between the margiela dresses, deadly high wedges and reviews of lipstick she shares articles and opinion pieces about politics and feminism.
'Fuck yes jimmy carter'

*Jak and Jil
Jak and Jill, almost a cliché to be amongst the blogroll.
But whose photographs have almost become iconic, and who's style and compositions are copied by so many. Inspiring.

GUIDE | How To Thrift

Thrifted 70's jacket worn as dress
Thrifted belt
Thrifted 90's platforms
Thrifted leather briefcase
Thrifted earrings


A musty smell of mold and dirty old laundry. Stained , weathered and worn down clothes. No friendly store girl offering her help. All the bad things from the 90’s; synthetic neon track jackets and tacky stretch jeans that gave who knows who a camel toe. For many, this is what comes to mind when thinking about charity or thrift stores.

To me it is paradise, a goldmine. High quality goodies for almost no money. There are still millions of unique garments out there in need of a new home. And my closet always has room for another fur coat, pair of 90s platforms or silk blouses from stylish grandma’s. Soon you’ll associate that stench of gym clothes and molded basement with gorgeous clothes. You’re going to like it so much that you won’t even bother to wash your finds before wearing them.

So how to find these garments, separate the trash from treasures and find that ‘lucky’ find? Every thrift store is packed with great finds. The key is to recognize and find beauty, it is everywhere.

1.Look for fabrics.
Those fugly neon track jackets might grab your attention so much that you overlook the black blouse in fine silk hanging right beside it. Try to discard everything you are not looking for from your view. Now, go through the racks or piles and look for prints, good quality denims, nice worn down leather, silk blouses or wool blazers. Ignore the fits and sizing. Start off by only looking at fabrics.

2.Fits
You now have a pile of garments in the right colors and materials. To make a selection on which clothes you are taking with you try to estimate the size and fit by viewing it. (Keep ignoring those size labels!) A ‘too small’ blazer for little boys could be a nice short and fitted blazer on you. A huge ‘too big’ grandpa blazer could be your next wool winter coat á la Yamamoto and Comme des Garçons. Vintage and secondhand clothes rarely fit according to their labels because they often come from another era or region.

3. Select
Try some things on, think of how they will look belted, look for stains and damages and make a selection. Keep in mind that the garment will look more polished after washing and ironing it. Also hit up accessory section, where for sizing applies one size fits(almost) all. Belts, bold 80s and 90s jewelry, antique jewelry, leather purses, silk scarves, brooches etcetera.
Alterations that could be made
-Too big trousers can be worn highwaisted and paperbaged at the top. Or cut short and then be worn like a highwaisted paperbag short.
-Too big dresses can be cut short, or easily be turned into a jumpsuit.
-Too short(or big) dresses can be cut in two so you’ll be left with a skirt + blouse.


The British clothing and textiles sector on its own currently produces around 3.1 million tons of CO2 per year, 70 million tons of waste water per year with 1.5 million tons of unwanted rest clothing per year. An average Japanese woman buys around 10 kilo’s of clothes and disposes around 9 kilo’s of clothes every year. 2.1 million tons of textile are disposed of in landfills every year. Fashions are becoming faster and the amount of clothes produced is out of proportions. There are enough clothes on the world already. Invest in well designed, high quality garments that will last or go thrifting and recycle. Allright enough with environmental activism, I guess its a result of watching too much Captain Planet back in the days.

The truth about Jeffrey Cambell

Jeffrey Campbell... I am going to be dead honest. My Jeffrey Cambell shoes aren’t as great as so many reviews claim.

Am I the only one on earth who thinks his Acne rip offs are just unacceptable?! I mean, you can be inspired by another label but I think stealing a design shouldn’t be paid off with the kind of praising and credits that he gets. Specially if this ‘Alexa wedge’ turned out like a Frankenstein version of Acne’s Atacomba wedges. Let’s not start about the Ann Demeulemeester, Chloe, Alexander Wang, Ashis and even Givenchy they have tried to impersonate. Although I don’t appreciate the brand anymore thanks to these kinds of bad rip offs, Jeffrey’s square wedges did grab my attention. They looked like a brick tied to a shoe, so simple and interesting.

Today the package was delivered. I calmly sign the paperwork that the mailman needs from me and wish him a good day. It takes only seconds but it feels like hours. I feel anxious to shut the door, run inside, slice open the box with the first sharp object I can get my hands on. I see some keys lying on the kitchen table and start poking the box with them. Effects are minimal. I need something better, I go for the biggest kitchen knife we own and slice through the tape that is holding the box together like butter.

Ahhh Another wonderful, fancier box in sight. It says Jeffery Campbell. I open it. A plastic stench comes out. I can smell (and see!) the glue that is keeping the wedges together. Oh the horror! Plastic.. Synthetic.. An image of a huge chinese factory with underpayed employees producing cheap shoes goes through my mind. I go back to the website I ordered them from and find out that it did specifically says “with leather insole”. Are you kidding me Mr. Jeffrey Cambell?! Only the insole is leather? I wish I had saved my 150 Euro’s for Acne wedges I am having sleepless nights over.

My lesson is learned. Cheap always turns out to be expensive. These won’t last long.

Impressions of Guatemala

silver ring with triangular jade stone, from the market in Guatemala












The image I had of my cousins as babies have now changed as they are almost in high school. My own perspective has changed. I now recognize things that I have never seen before. But my Spanish skills are still those of an 11 year old, my father still looks the same and my grandma's house still smells familiar. Here are my impressions of three weeks Guatemala.

Driving home from the airport I notice how charming Guatemala city is. I can appreciate the beauty of the cracks in the houses, the peeling paint and patched concrete streets. From under every bridge and from every little improvised home, wires come and connect in enormous knotted bundles that hang at the top of electricity poles.

The volcano ‘Pacaya’ erupted on our third day In town only 40km from my grandmother’s home where we were staying. The city was covered in black volcanic sand and the streets looked like black sand beaches. At the same time tropical storm Agatha crossed over the country causing mud streams, overfilling rivers and destroying bridges. Despite the little facilities, people rapidly started to clean their streets, rooftops and gardens from all the fallen ashes. Impressive.

Something that was just as impressive and shocking as the hazards that were occurring was to see the contrast of poverty next to decadence. American lifestyle and commerce dominates and has changed Guatemala. Huge advertisements and lighted billboards are new face of Guatemala-city. Fast food chains have invaded the country and every imaginable luxury product thinkable is available in shopping malls on every other block. Humongous deep fried or sugarcoated food portions are the norm. Everything American is automatically seen as good and is not questioned whatsoever. What people don’t realize is that what they see of the US is brought to them by companies whose only interest is money. People trade in their own culture, lifestyle and customs for what is dictated to them by big American companies.

The ways that companies advertise their products in Guatemala is forcing it upon everybody. And it is done in a shameless and aggressive way. For Example, they approach people living in improvised unpainted (due to their economic position) homes and offer them to paint it for them; with their logo’s, company names and advertising images all over it off course. The result is that the poorest houses become advertisement places. Most of them are already 'taken' by an advertiser. Sometimes we'd drive through entire red/white/blue 'Pepsi' villages or entire navy/white 'Tigo' slum.

Being back in The Netherlands I notice that the opposite of what I just described is what I missed the most. Not having the feeling that someone constantly wants to make me buy something. To compensate my (yet another)rant about how evil I think commerce can be, I've chosen not to upload any pictures with a company name in it. Just unexpected impressions of beautiful Guatemala.

Loveblogs / hateblogs

The reason why I used to love fashion blogs so much was because they were independent, it was nice and reassuring to read about fashion without having the urge to run to the store to buy something, reading about fashion without having to consume anything. Fashion is not all about buying the newest shoes, it's not about buying anything at all. Something that I rarely find in most magazines. I loved to read personal opinions, see creative projects, daily outfits from all different parts of the world, discover new thrifting finds, wonderful self shot images or inspiring photo shoots by big photographers. Still I can't wait to snuggle up behind my laptop and read the posts of my favorite bloggers.

But it’s such a disappointment when all the daily outfits from all over the world are the same head to toe Zara ensemble. Or that the newest ‘must have’ was suggested to 1000 bloggers at a time through a mass email sent by a press agency. Many of the blogs I’m coming across are so alike. Something that almost crushes idealistic thoughts of democratic fashion. 'Internet is taking over fashion, there used to be a certain hierarchy, an elite group in fashion that always got front seats at shows and were regarded as very important. But all that is changing now, fashion is democratizing.'-Aynouk Tan interview A few months ago I saved this comment on a Luxirare blogpost. I couldn’t agree more and I couldn't have said it better. Thank you Rose! whoever you are!

Dear Ms Luxirare,
As always, very interesting idea, very meticulous, artful and well-photographed execution.
Did anyone actually eat the lunch and forthwith declared undying love/tripled allowance/actually give your own magazine?
I am not at all amazed.

To the people that are toppling over eachother and go OTT with all these OMG's and other expletives: Hey, wake up, it's not rocket science!
She's using regular food preparing (and tailoring) techniques, only slightly odd (if not so easy to come by in some places) materials, crafted/bought packaging, a decent printer/camera and a roll of white background paper in heaven knows what room.
BUT what makes Luxirare extraordinary is the amount of THINKING that goes in her work, the amount of love, patience and dedication in her preparation and execution (documenting it all is just good science imho), and her utter refusal to give in to mediocrity, popularity, or the desperate, breathless search for the next newest thing.For which I commend her.

So guys 'n' girls, it's not so much about Godgiven creativity – you too can be extremely creative. Just stop craving for the latest, hardest to find, dearest goods; stop fooling yourselves with celebrity/designer/money cult; and start thinking outside your (bento)box. Get off your butts, leave all your opinions and prejudices at the doorstep, question everything, be curious; observe, truly look into the nature of things; learn a trade (or at least a proper skill like cooking, sewing, knitting, visiting a library to read actual books or mending your own shoes); but most of all: try to see the humor in life; the beauty in oddness; and the sublime in even the humblest carrot. It is out there! All you need to do is open your eyes and allow your senses and your brain to wander free. To give you some inspiration, Google "play with your food" and enjoy Joost Elffers work. This particular book was made in 1997, and the calendar made its way into 100thousands of households because it was sold for a mere 5$ (equiv) in the biggest grocery store chain in Holland. Now that's truly 'art for the masses'.
And now wipe that grin of your face – whether it's from enjoyment or contempt.
Rose