i dressed like rachel green from friends

Like probably 73% of the inhabitants of Earth, I have recently been obsessed with Friends again. My brother is watching it at the moment and I saw it popping up on my Netflix as well, speaking to me like an inner voice, saying: Watch me, watch me!  I remember, the first time I watched season 1, being even more obsessed with Rachel’s outfits. And Monica’s. Now I fell back into that pattern again and ended up pinning all her outfits on Pinterest. I also came across this post from Avewill. She dressed like Rachel Green for a week and I thought, well that is a great challenge.

a teacup of life - week 23

I swear, this week felt like a whole month. When I look at the pictures of the beach I took I can’t believe that was past Sunday. For a minute I thought my phone had it wrong. I think it’s because of the weather: it was really hot and sunny in the beginning of the week, but the sun has swapped for wind and rain in the last few days.

a guide to: calligraphy

Hi all! I hope you’re doing well. In this post I want to share some tips and tricks to get calligraphy-ing! I have been loving it for years now and doing it whenever I feel like I need a new quote on my wall. But when I started out I got frustrated by the not-getting-it-right-right-away feeling. It took me some practice and helpful tips to get where I am now and my hands are just aching to share it with you!

may

a little overview of my month in quarantine…

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printable planets

kisses from mars!

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a letter to my insecurity

posting this wishing no-one reads it or that everyone does, hoping to find kindness, which i know all of you are all the time

Dear Insecurity,
Writing this down I find it hard to start. I guess I’ll start by telling you how much I hate you. I’m sorry if that hurt your feelings, but it’s the truth. I hate how you make me feel when I’m in a new situation. Telling me that it is probably not even going to work, to not even try. Even before failing, before gaining lessons. For putting doubts in my head that weigh me down, even when I most need you not to. You make me doubt my every move, whispering your silent, empty words, gnawing at my good thoughts. Eating away Carelessness and Confidence. “Will you ever have enough?” I sometimes ask you. No is your reply. “No and you couldn’t stop me even if you tried.” Because it’s not that I don’t try to get rid of you. I’ve read my share of books and quotes. When will it be enough?

another six o'clock adventure

 

27 April '20

At the break of dawn. On King's Day 2020. A memory forever cherished. 

The soft gushing of the wind, which left the leaves bristling. The cool air that brushed against our cheeks as we raced to see the sun come up. The sweet chittering of birds in the morning sky, still waking up from a night's sleep, but so alive. My mother and I, quietly in awe of nature's beating heart. In the early morning everything is different. Everything is bright. Everything is sleepy and okay and calm. 

How I love that calmness.

oh april

Gather ye rosebuds while ye may,
Old Time is still a-flying;
And this same flower that smiles to-day,
To-morrow will be dying.

Oh April, how you made it feel like summer.

✧  ✦  ✧

a list of great movies everyone should watch

Last Sunday I cried my eyes out watching Dead Poets Society. It made me want to live my life to the fullest, read poetry, go to classes, go to a dark cave with my friends, study literature... Isn't it beautiful that movies can have this effect on humans? How we laugh and cry and feel for these characters as they go through an adventure or life-changing experience? How we empathize and think about these moving images on a screen? For school I've done a lot of research in emotions and the movies and the connection between the two. I find it fascinating how this works and how we,  as spectators, can feel what characters feel, whilst we're just sitting in a cinema or at home. I just love it. I just love movies.

And my love for movies just gets bigger and bigger. And that is mainly thanks to the movies on this list.

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my graduation art project

A few years ago I showed you one of my art class projects in high school in this post. I never actually shared my graduation art project on this blog and I still really want to. 

And so, I will share the story of how I made an empty shoebox slightly more interesting... 

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a guide to: make stamps!

First of all: Happy Easter to those who celebrate!
And second... Welcome to a new series on this blog: A Guide To!

Quarantine really brings the creativity craft monster in me to the surface. I feel like this lady over here. I've been drawing more, experimenting with watercolors and now I even made my own stamps, something I've wanted to do for ages. 

I will give you some tips and tricks to make your own stamp, if you read the above and thought: well, I want to make my own stamps too now. It's a proper do it yourself! And a fun and simple way to decorate pages, cards and maybe even cloth (if you're really getting into it)!

prologue

De Muren van Dironve

Proloog

Een flits verlicht de kamer. De kleine kamer. Met een klein bureautje. Aangevreten door de tijd. Een spiegel, waarvan de randen zijn verroest en hier en daar een stukje uit is, waardoor de houten wand erachter zichtbaar is. Een nachtkastje, met enkel een kaarshouder erop en een boek. "Wonderen van de Oude Wereld" leest de voorkant onder een laagje vers stof. Uit het boek steekt een krantenknipsel, dienend als boekenlegger. Een donderslag. Naast het kastje staat een krakend oud bed, dat al ruim 19 jaar zijn werk doet. En op dat bed zit een meisje. In kleermakerszit. Met haar dunne deken opgetrokken tot aan haar kin. Haar witte nachtjapon lijkt op te lichten in het woeste natuurgeweld dat zich buiten afspeelt. Bijna net zo woest als haar haren. Klaarwakker. Het gezicht van het meisje straalt... Een paar verdwaalde sproetjes en gebruinde huid onthullen dat ze veel uren in de zon doorbrengt. Haar mondhoeken krullen om zodra de hemel openbreekt. Als deze buien niet zo zeldzaam waren geweest, had ze nooit rechtop in bed gezeten. Maar dat waren ze wel. Grote spetters water vallen uit de lucht. Ze vallen op de korstige, droge grond. Je kunt de aarde bijna horen zuchten van de dorst die nu zo plots wordt gelest. De bomen bedanken de hemel en laten zich lachend kietelen door het water. De uitgedroogde gewassen knisperen onder het gewicht van de druppels en de wind. 

march • sunshine & quarantaine

maart

2 0 2 0

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Het is een onwijs gek idee dat ik aan het begin van de maand nog in Keulen zat. Gek hoe alles in een maand tijd zo kan veranderen. Maar wat hier wel het mooie van is, is dat ik de tripjes en vakanties die ik heb kunnen maken nu meer begin te waarderen. Nu alles wordt afgelast zie ik in hoe bijzonder het is om wel die uitstapjes te kunnen doen.

Thuisblijven is voor een huismus zoals ik geen grote opgave. Wel vind ik het eng en schokkend en bijzonder hoe veel impact dit alles uitoefent op de wereld en op mijn wereldje. Ik kan het niet goed onder woorden brengen. Maar vooralsnog was maart een maand om op terug te blikken. En daarom een kleine notitie over mijn maart in deze post :)

my disney forever favourites

Did someone say Disney?

If you are spending a lot of time at home these days, maybe binging a few Disney movies may bring joy to your daily routine! And since I'm baffled with all the options every time I open up the app, I thought I'd make a list of disney movies I'd definitely watch again. To make my life easier, and to give you some tips on what movies to maybe add to your own list!

I also had a little too much fun pasting my head on all of these images. I hope it doesn't freak you out. It certainly has that effect on me.

three days in cologne

walking along the rhein, catching a few sunrays in the park, cheesecake at schmitz, the starry ceilings in the dom, hiding from the rain, eating the biggest schnitzel, the feeling of vacation... 

And all of this just 3 hours away from home! 

My mom & I took a trip to Köln (Cologne) in Germany! It may sound really random, which it kind of was, but I really wanted to go to the OneRepublic concert & we decided to add a few extra days to explore the city. This felt like the best mini-vacation to just get out of my normal routine. 

If you ever decide to visit Cologne, maybe this post will give you some ideas on what to see and what to do whilst you’re there!

february

f e b r u a r y

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every cloud has a silver lining

this past month was a nice month. but if you had asked me that at the start, i would have sighed at the prospect of this busy february. i really struggled to find a good routine and felt insecure about my abilities. i was a little down, but didn't want to be down. now i'm glad i felt sad, because it made me appreciate the small, good moments more and i became aware of my feelings and why i was feeling them. moreover, february gave me a lot of those happy moments.

an ode to audrey

"For beautiful eyes, look for the good in others; for beautiful lips, speak only words of kindness; and for poise, walk with the knowledge that you are never alone."

audrey hepburn

january

although some stories tell us to 'never look back', i find it quite nice to take a step back once in a while. and so, with the first days of february slowly dawning upon this new year, i wanted to look back at my january. the things i loved, read, felt and did. i collected a few pictures from my camera roll that perfectly captured the first month of 2020. will you tag along?

a day in the hague & voorlinden museum

v o o r l i n d e n 

&

t h e  h a g u e 

a little outing to the big political centre

the hague is beautiful. with it's streets and vintage shops. laughter-filled bars and restaurants. the fairy-lights twinkling in the treetops. magic. i should visit more often, is what i thought to myself as we were walking on the cobbled street. towards the beautiful binnenhof.

what i did on christmas break

First of all, happy new year! I hope you all had a lovely first two weeks (already!) of the year 2020. I certainly did, but last monday the uni-life kind of exploded in my face and I was reminded of the fact how much I still needed to do before the end of the week. But everything went well and I'm feeling this great energy to start this new year!

Over the two weeks of my holiday I took a few snaps of what I was doing & loving. I always love to read weeklogs, but if I were to do them they wouldn't be very interesting. ("So... I went to school. Again.") That's why this recap could be a bit more interesting, since I had the time to do some things else than school ;)