Appropriated Edge

Summer's a long time coming here in Amsterdam. It's still quite cool and windy, and we've had some apocalyptic rainstorms, so not quite into the warm weather wardrobe yet. 

I'm venturing into 90's territory with acid brights today, pairing the Bad Boyfriend with a chambray skirt by House of Holland. This is what I bought when I went shopping for a loose fitting black blazer and a denim midi. No, really. That's how both these pieces came to be in my closet. The shirt is by Uniqlo SPRZ NY, and features a work by LA artist Daniel Martinez. It always makes me think of Terminator. 

This ensemble has a high happy quotient and I feel properly Bright Winter. It's been pulling a lot of side eye today, but that's maybe more to do with the colour contrast than the execution.

I put on this fantasy outfit and left the house without bothering to change out of it because I liked it so much. The whole thing feels like a fantasy rendition of my ideal closet - unique statement pieces teamed with no-nonsense well made essentials. Please forgive my disheveled appearance. It was a windy day and I couldn't get my hair to lie flat.

The jacket is my ultimate fantasy piece. It's silk velvet by Ann Demeulemeester, bought by Mr Edge for my birthday (it had a zero in it and it was a few years ago now - go figure :P) I don't wear it as much as I'd like, mostly because this is Holland and I'm afraid of getting rained on, but I've found myself reaching for it a fair bit this spring.

The necklace is a new acquisition, from a small atelier in Amsterdam's red light district. I'd been walking past the window and admiring the jewellery for ages, and finally went in with the objective of buying my mother a birthday present. The designer, it turns out, is wonderful lady named Josephine Colsen. She is a veteran of Yves Saint Laurent's atelier in Paris, now retired. We ended up talking for over an hour. She had some stories to tell.

I left with two pieces, one for me, and one for Mum. I found it hard to choose one for myself, so in the end I let Josephine choose for me. She picked out this piece made of found chandelier crystal, which she thought suited me best. I think she was right.

Underneath, a navy shirt from Uniqlo +J (best women's shirts ever on sale again, so I bought two) and a favourite pair of navy pants from Acne, now ancient.

In reality, the combination of trophy jacket, dress shirt and statement necklace felt a bit too dressy, so later on I swapped out the shirt for a blue/grey draped tunic and the shoes for a pair of white Birkenstocks. Still complex but less dressy. Unfortunately I didn't get a chance to photograph it. Fail.