habitat, make it yours

I've spent more time at home in November than I did over the past half year. I'm a 'summer person' and I love playing in my garden and being outside. Inside the house I'm surrounded by just a few (big) plants and interior is getting more important to me.

Interior is an extension of your personality. That's what makes it so interesting and creative. Your interests, personal stuff collected over the years and being surrounded by things that are important to you. Certainly during the autumn and winter months, your habitat has to be a place where you can relax and really charge.

Well this time of year is fine too and I've been looking forward to spend more time at home, reading, watching movies, netflixing and finally finish the unfinished projects and find time to be creative and start new projects.

While the golden xs woodwoolstool cover is still in progress, I already have ideas about what to make next...

deliplein rotterdam

Rotterdam - 23rd of November

Last Saturday we had a drink in De Volkskeuken of Verhalenhuis Belvédère at the corner of the Deliplein in Katendrecht, hotspot of Rotterdam. We loved the place! Open kitchen in an old-fashioned cafe, racks packed with plates, stunning stained glass windows in the staircase. Authentic, simple, real and pure and a super relaxed atmosphere. People from Rotterdam prepare their favorite dishes and at the same time share their stories with the public.

julia sweater - knitting pattern

The JULIA sweater.

A new knitting pattern designed for the JULIA yarn by Zeeman, a Dutch textile super.
Julia yarn is available in 10 different colors; off-white, gray, green, lilac, yellow, red, pink, bordeaux, ocher, blue, baby blue and black. I chose lilac.

When you are a beginning knitter and you would like to knit something else than just a scarf, this is the perfect project for you!

I'm sure you are able to complete this easy-level project.
The sweater is reversible, knitted in one piece, so there are no seems on the shoulder. Both sides have a different look.

It's a great pattern for advanced knitters too, because the tricky part of putting your knitted sweater together, is a lot easier.

You can download the Julia sweater pattern in my ETSY SHOP.

coffee & vitamin d

Friday morning in November.

Coffee & vitamin D in the frontyard.

The entire garden, including furniture, is covered by golden ginkgo leaves. What splendor! Nature does the best designs of all.

Cheers to the weekend.

joost swarte & thierry mugler

Rotterdam, Wednesday 20th of November.

Today we went to Rotterdam to visit the exhibitions of Joost Swarte & Thierry Mugler in the Kunsthal.

The exhibition ‘Thierry Mugler - Couturissime’ brings together more than 150 outfits, most of them on display for the first time, created between 1977 and 2014, as well as many never-before seen accessories and stage costumes, clips and videos, archival documents and sketches.

The exhibition ‘Joost Swarte - Everywhere’ pays homage to fifty years of drawing by presenting a cross section of Swarte’s body of work – from his first cartoons, original drawings, sketches, designs and objects to his most recent work. Swarte’s search for the most surprising and iconic illustrations is also shown on the basis of sketches that have never been exhibited before.

ginkgo love

This time of year the ginkgo tree is at its most beautiful!

Every year in november I'm stunned by the beauty and the golden glow and brightness.

I enjoy the ginkgo leaves carpet in the frontyard each time when I look outside through the kitchen window.

We planted the ginkgo tree in our frontyard when we moved in 15 years ago.

The Ginkgo Biloba or Japanese walnut tree is my favorite tree. In Japan they honor the tree as a god; it symbolizes hope, love, magic, timelessness and longevity and is nicknamed temple tree.

Even on a rainy Monday the frontyard looks wonderful. The beech hedge turns brown and the hellebore is ready to flower again. Change of seasons remains spectacular!

the slaak

Rotterdam, Saturday 16th of November.

The Slaak. A brandnew hotel in Rotterdam, which is housed in the former pressroom of newspaper ‘Het Vrije Volk’.

Today we had a coffee in the lobby and visited the Pantone Pantry by Tribute Portfolio to celebrate the opening of The Slaak Rotterdam, the newest addition to Tribute Portfolio's family of indie-spirited and characterful hotels.

We got a free tote bag in the pop-up printshop (freshly screen-printed while we had coffee), to honor The Slaak Rotterdam heritage as a former newspaper pressroom.