Happy Outfit: Fairytale

I get questions all the time about why I dress like I do. I always give the same answer: because it makes me happy. Which is true, and it is indeed the only reason why I dress like this. 

However, I started asking myself the question lately; why does it make me happy? 

What do I want to convey?

I feel that todays outfit really reflects what I like and why it makes me happy. I have been obsessed with fairytales, myths and legends for as long as I could remember, and I love to put some of that obsession into what I wear. In short; I like to look as if I stepped out of a story.

Todays outfit consists of a dress by Hell Bunny that I got for my birthday from the lovely ladies at my work. I saw it in the autumn-winter catalogue and I fell in love with it, but I had no intentions of buying it as I felt I'd spent enough money on clothing the past few months. I was so happy when I got this though! It's perfect and I love the print, the neckline and the sleeves.

The flower crown is by Claire's. I used Lime Crime Red Velvet on my lips.

My eyes are MAC Gleam on my browbone and eyelid and Lime Crime Incantation blended in the crease.

I am so happy with the shoes too! I found them at Vintage per Kilo (which is exactly as the name suggests a massive vintage sale for a fixed price per kilo). I only paid a few euros for them and they remind me of Cinderella's glass slippers. They go surprisingly well with nearly every outfit!

Love,

Jopie

Happy Outfit: Midnight Blossom

I'm already having the best week ever! Despite my anxieties and other problems I managed to pass this university year! I've started 4 different studies and this is the first one in which I actually manage to complete the first year, hehe. It's a good sign!
And I've got a new job and it's going to be awesome. Starting tomorrow! I will post more about that once I've had my first day.

Anyway - time for a new outfit post!

My mom sometimes gives me a bag of old clothing and other stuff that she got from friends . I got this blouse yesterday and I love it! I thought I'd make an outfit with it right away. 

I really like the bell sleeves and the print on it! It has so much detail!

The skirt is actually a dress and is 70s vintage. The petticoat underneath (though not visible here) is by Starline Lingerie. The belt is vintage too (I think 80s) and the shoes are LE replicas of the Ruby Slippers in the Wizard of Oz.

I love the dress too, it has so much flounce in the skirt!

My makeup is all Lime Crime today. The lips are My Beautiful Rocket patted on and the eyeshadows are Lotus Noir, Jade-o-Lade and Parasol from the Chinadoll Palette and Spellbound from the Alchemy Palette.

I hope you like it as much as I do!

Love,

Jopie

Happy Outfit: Esmeralda

One of the most awesome festivals of the year is coming up: Castlefest!
Castlefest is a pagan, hippy and fantasy festival held every first weekend of August in Kasteel de Keukenhof in Lisse, the Netherlands. I've been going there since the first one was held when I was 13 and I've never skipped one. It's customary to make or buy some kind of costume; be it pagan or fantasy related. I really like making costumes and I've been making them for Castlefest and other festivals for years and years.
 My costumes are usually elaborate, featuring hoopskirts or wings, or both. They're not very easy to move in so I'm mostly just posing for the photographers (there are a LOT!).

However, Castlefest is a festival with such an amazing ambiance that after last year I've really wanted something to be able to move and breathe in, and something that would allow me to dance to the music played there by the numerous folk bands and to walk around, eat delicious organic food and just celebrate.

However, I still wanted a special outfit of some kind. My boyfriend asked me a couple of times if I could cosplay Esmeralda from the Hunchback of the Notre Dame (I did a cosplay of Cinderella and Prince Charming with him in April), and I thought Esmeralda's outfit to be perfect for a festival like Castlefest.

Today I went out to hunt for second hand clothing that I might be able to use for the costume and boy, did I find loads!

At the Waterlooplein-market in Amsterdam there's stands with just heaps of secondhand clothing for only €1,- each. 90% of it is utter crap. I was searching for a white gypsy crop top with big puff sleeves and a light purple maxi skirt or something to turn into a maxi skirt - I found a maxi dress in a suitable colour so I didn't really think or look at it carefully - just took it out of the heap and paid for it.
I found a crop top too. It just needs a wider neckline and buttons at the front!

However, when I took out the maxi dress when I got home and tried it on to see how the fit was like, I saw this when I looked into the mirror:

Oh my god! Look at that fit and colour! Stunning!

 

No way I'm going to cut that into pieces! Absolutely beautiful, and that only for 1 euro! I'll just have to find a way to hide the rest of the dress under the crop top and corset then.. ;)

I tried to make a quick Esmeralda-inspired and wearable outfit. I used the crop top I bought too - I still have to adapt it but it looks nice like this too doesn't it? I have a wig too but it needs styling so I'm not wearing it here.

I added the green scarf to incorporate a bit of the green of the corset she is wearing. I ordered a corset but it hasn't arrived yet so I could not wear it either. However, I still think this looks nice and I'll probably wear it out some time soon!

I'll post pictures when the costume is done!

Love,

Jopie

Happy Outfit: Sunflower

Happy outfits make me happy. I've filled my closet with them. My most important rule is that everything I wear must make me happy!

This dress is one of my prized possessions. It's a beautiful vintage cotton swing dress from the 1950s with a swishy full circle skirt! I bought it at my favorite Amsterdam vintage shop: Tut & Hola. If you visit Amsterdam and like vintage clothing, I would really recommend! I've never ever left there without succeeding in finding a pretty dress. I don't really wear it that often because it used to be a little bit too small for me. However,  have lost some weight recently so now it fits quite well! I really love the print too. I wish I could find a similar fabric nowadays.

The shoes are a LE by Harrods (I wore them in my Little Red Riding Hood post as well). They are official replicas of the Ruby Slippers of the wizard of Oz. I bought them off a friend and I've worn them so many times that they started to fall apart. However, they're still wearable so that's what I'm going to do!

It was too cold to walk around in the dress alone so I added a jacket. The jacket is vintage as well, I think from the 70s. It's handmade and I found it at Vintage Per Kilo for a few euros. I think it's beautiful.

This is the first time this year that I'm going out with bare legs. This is simply because I ripped my last flesh-colored tights yesterday and didn't have any others in a matching colour. It feels awesome and you can see my ankle tattoo better. I hope summer is coming soon!

My headscarf is a leftover of the fabric that I used to make my curtains. Found a use for it after all!

On my eyes I'm wearing a combination of Lime Crime, Sugarpill and Coastal Scents eyeshadows. The lipstick is Lime Crime Centrifuchsia and My Beautiful Rocket. If you mix them they make the most gorgeous coral red.

If you feel down, look in your closet and put something on that makes you smile. It will help to brighten your day!

Love,

Jopie

Happy Outfit: Thrifted with upgrades

Hello!!

I wore this yesterday but didn't have the time to post it. So here it is!

This outfit was thrifted! I bought the blouse at Vintage Per Kilo, which is, as the name suggests, a second-hand shopping market that's often held around the block with vintage/thrift clothing for €15,- per kilo. They have large scales to help you stay within your budget and it's awesome! It's often a search through all the crap but I've bought some really beautiful things there.

I made the hair band myself. I originally made it to fit another dress but it gives a nice touch here too, don't you think?

The skirt was bought at a flea market for 2 euros. My mom made the pretty flowers on it with felt and beads! I sometimes bring boring clothing to my mom or my grandma to embroider. I can do it myself but they have more time on their hands :) it's a great way to upcycle clothing that you are bored with!

I dyed my hair again yesterday so it's all shiney and purple again!

I used 2AM by Sugarpill for my crease and eyebrows and I used Tako on my browbone. It broke yesterday and I'm so sad! It's the best white ever. I must buy a new one when I have money. To highlight my eyelids I used a cute little eyeshadow by Mon Ennui Cosmetics called Cyclon Dream Girl. I requested a pink highlighter with a green shift on her facebook page and she made it! It's subtle but very gorgeous. The lips are Matte Me liquid lipstick by Sleek in Party Pink.

And here a pic of me with my cat trying to photo bomb!

Love,

Jopie

Happy Outfit: Little Red Riding Hood

Fairytales, myths, legends, and well, stories have always been one of my biggest inspirations. I have read so many pages that you could fill a whole house with them. I live for stories and my favorite subjects to paint are myths and legends as well. I like to incorporate a bit of storytelling in my outfits too!


I made a flatlay picture for a contest on Facebook a couple of months ago but I still wanted a picture of me wearing it.. So when I heard about another contest, with the theme 'out and about', this was my chance!
This is the original flatlay:

And this is my recreation! I asked my boyfriend to take a picture of me. I changed the hat because I found the other to have a better fitting colour (it's a slightly more brownish red). I wanted to make the picture cute but add a little bit of sassiness :) The contest is currently closed and the winners are announced tomorrow! I'm so curious!

Breakdown of the outfit:

The hat is vintage (the hat on the flatlay is vintage too!). The dress is by Black Milk Clothing and the petticoat is vintage as well. The shoes are LE Wizard of Oz collection by Harrods (I bought them off a friend last year), and the blouse is a hand-me-down from my mom. I believe she bought it in Italy somewhere. The knife was gifted to me years ago by my aunt and the basket is from a thrift shop.

The wig is by Gothic Lolita Wigs.

Now if you'll excuse me, I need to bring some cookies to granny!

Love,

Jopie

Happy Outfit: The Ultimate Floral Dress

I woke up this morning by the bell. The postman!
I had been performing (fire breathing to be exact) the night before, and I rolled in bed at 1:30 AM without taking off my makeup. He must've gotten quite a shock seeing me like that!

The postman brought me this beautiful dress. It's vintage and from the 80s. I already have one that looks similar but it doesn't fit me that well so I simply could not resist when I found this at Intrigue You Forever Vintage on Etsy for a steal. I really love the quality and it fits me so well!

Once, I have made myself the promise that every morning after I get dressed, I have to look in the mirror and get happy. This is probably one of the most important decisions I've made in getting better. Wearing brightly coloured, beautiful things make me happy, so my closet is filled with them.

Every time I find something like this dress I think it's the Ultimate Floral Dress. However, a few months later I'll usually find another Ultimate Floral Dress. I have quite a few Ultimate Floral Dresses in my closet by now!

I made the hair flowers myself. The shoes are from Ebay and were used in my Cinderella costume. The necklace was my mother's!

I kind of had the feeling that I had to cover my face in makeup as it looked so horrible this morning. Glad I didn't! I really like this soft look.

The eyeshadows I used on this look are Spellbound and Love Potion no. 9 by Lime Crime and a teensy bit of Dollipop by Sugarpill. I used Sleek Matte Me matte gloss in Party Pink on my lips.

Love,

Jopie