The woman behind the Amsterdam Fashion Week 2014

Do you recognize this banner from the Mercedes Benz Fashion Week 2014 (Amsterdam)?? What do you think about the model's clothes? I am really proud (and I hope I don't act like a bragging snob right now) to introduce you to a lovely friend of mine who is the designer behind the campaign. She is a really (and that is not put mildly), really talented fashion designer, dreamer and source of inspiration. 
Like Joris Suk and Hans Hutting (from Maison the Faux) Anneleen Bertels - that's her name, remember it! - graduated with Fashion Design at Artez Institution of Arts in Arnhem last year. 

In an interview at the website of the fashion week, she explains that with her graduation collection she searched 'for the influence of the interaction between human beings and personal space. She questioned how we will play with luxury in the future and thinks that it is a clash, resulting in a luxurious utility'.

Her collection is layerd (both literally and figurative), poetic, authentic, stubborn/closed and futuristic. I think it kind of reflects her character, in my opinion, if you would know Anneleen you would understand the collection even better.
Do you want to get to know her better? I'm sure you won't regret it ;) Visit this week (Wednesday, Thursday or Friday), during the fashion week, Het Ketelhuis in Amsterdam and watch her movie, which will lead you into her dream world, literally. 
Buy tickets here (AMFI Presents Fashion Films, 17:00u)

Below a short impression of her collection Inside the dreammachine 
Curious? Find out more on her website

Bertels designed glasses in collaboration with Theo Eyewear

Maison the Faux: like no one has ever seen before

Hans Hutting and Joris Suk

Let me introduce you: Maison the Faux

Maison the Faux is a young label under the creative direction of Joris Suk and Hans Hutting. They met each other at Artez Institute of the Arts in Arnhem and graduated last year in Fashion Design. They describe themselves as 'creative, strange, openminded individuals' and they (as well as the people they work with at Maison the Faux) are to 'take fashion, couture and trash to a next level and create a Couture Fashion House like no one has ever seen before'. - do I need to say more? 

One more thing, if you are not already curious about them, they show their first collection at the fashion week in Amsterdam this week, this thursday to be exactly

You want an impression? Watch the video below and click on this link

P.S. They are also members of the MUCH,MUCH collective, do you remember?

Last minute Christmas gift/wish!

Nothing to wear? Just SPRAY your outfit!

Designing and creating your own outfit was never that simple! Thanks to the Spanish designer Manel Torres you don't have to search for that perfectly fitting top any more. The answer: don't pray just spray! See here how the spray works and get inspired by Torres' collection in this movie: 

Sometimes you ask yourself: Why?!

The first time it's too weird to laugh about it, the second time

you can't stop laughing

And for the other curious people who want to know why, just click

My dress is made in Bangladesh, should I feel guilty?

Does Doutzen know about the working
conditions of the people who produce the
clothes for H&M?

I just posted a tweet to @AsicsAmsterdam to ask them about the working conditions and an endurable wage for people in Colombia who make their products, like my pink running shoes? Mirjam Sterk made me do this. I saw her documentary (at Uitzendinggemist)about Sophea, who works at a garment factory in Colombia, because, since the collapse of the Rana Plaza factory in Bangladesh in April this year (which killed more than 1000 workers), I don't dare to buy anything at the H&M or ZARA anymore. 

Okay, to be honest, I bought one long grey dress for a colour festival last summer at the H&M (even when I saw it was 'made in Bangladesh', so the person who made it could be dead!). But I didn't had any 'fashionable' clothes that could get dirty, and - as you may understand - I didn't want to spend too much money on a dress I could probably only wear once (yeah right, I hear myself think right now). But, the dress came - unexpectedly  - CLEAN(!) out the washer... hmmmm, so knowing that people gave their lives while making the dress,... this sounds really ridiculous, but it's the truth... So my idea was, and still is, to make a statement (with that dress). I want to write a question on the dress like: 'This dress is made in Bangladesh, should I feel guilty?'. 

After seeing the documentary I think I should, but that docu is saying only one 'half' of the story. And although that half story is saying a lot abouth the truth, I want to hear the truth and the other half of the story from the big (fat of dirty money?) companies like H&M, Mango, ZARA, Esprit, Asics, Vero Moda etc. What do they know about the working conditions in 'their' fabrics, and do they care about it? And knowing that a country like Colombia is not comparable to a Western, prosperous country like the Netherlands, what are 'good' working conditions and an 'endurable' wage like? And what are the consequences of this improvement?

pfff okay, a lot of questions, but I think this is important to think about. And maybe you are wondering where you can buy a lovely 'Fair' dress? Well, at fairwear you can make your own shopping list with brands that are fair or at least take the necessary steps to get there. Or download the talking dress app. 

Hmmm... a lot of dresses included in this text, but this message is also for the lovely men! 

Ps. I will keep you posted about the possible answer of AsicsAmsterdam. I hope so, because I really like to keep on buying Asics running shoes...

500 Dollar Dreamhouse

Located in the mountains of West Virginia you find the most wonderful house/cabin I’ve ever seen (on screen). This one-of-a-kind glass cabin made of discarded windows is what I see as the realization of today’s tendency of romanticism, back to nature, ecologism, greenism, beardism, consciousism, having-less-is-having-moreism, slow-living and creative-with-less-moneyism.

Check the video below and visit My Modern Met for the story behind...