New in: The best find ever (IJHALLEN Haul)

It was quite some time ago since I last visited the Ijhallen in Amsterdam. As a matter of fact, it was *researches* September 2011 we went there and came back home hugely disappointed. Last weekend, friends of ours made their way to the old Amsterdam harbor where the Ijhallen are located and asked us to join. We figured we would give it another go and off we went..... this time however we came back thrilled and happy. It was fan-tas-tic! We enjoyed the sunshine, hamburgers, poffertjes (Dutch delicacy), each others company and some healthy competition. All while scavenging through piles of.... anything and everything, looking to call someone else's trash our treasures.

Our men started of by challenging each other to find to most ridiculous, offensive, disgusting and/or off putting beer glass they could find. This turned out to be a hilarious competition, having to dig through boxes of old glass work and even worse... ask the sales person how much they wanted for it. I am proud to say my husband managed to find one of the most offensive pieces of glass work I have ever seen..... why would people even make this.... or want this in their house!? (Seriously, anyone.... any takers?)

Not being a participant in this competition gave me all the time I needed to find those hidden gems. I started off pretty good with finding a gorgeous eggshell colored linen blazer. I had been craving a linen blazer to go on top of circle skirts (ergo; with that New Look fit) for the spring/summer season. I own a lot of woolen winter-y blazers but not too many lighter versions. So this was a great find for 3 euros. I will be showing the blazer later on... The second lovely treasure I took home was this amazing fifties hat in a old rose color. I love the way it fits my head and the simplicity of the design. The hat was being sold by two adorable gents who probably witnessed this hat actually being worn in the 1950s. I thought they were too cute to be true, they were happy to see the hat prolong it's life... a great deal for 5 euros I'd say!

So my last, but definitely not least find of the day literally came to me. As the market was reaching it's end, we were in a bit of a hurry to finish of seeing all the stalls. Tip: The market at the Ijhallen is HUGE, so be there early enough if you want to see everything! While fast pacing through the last of the market, I spotted a gorgeous magenta piece of 'something' on the side of a clothing booth. When I walked towards it, I must have bumped into the booth because the 'something' fell into my hands. When I grabbed the piece of cloth to check out what it was, I gasped. Here I was, standing with a GORGEOUS ankle length 1930s dress in perfect (never worn) condition. I couldn't believe my eyes.... finding cute vintage, mostly from the 60s-80s, at these markets does occasionally happen. But stumbling upon the most stunning thirties dress in the most impeccable condition is a dream come true! The divine color made this find even more amazing.... and the fact that I estimated it to be my size (which it is YES).... well do I even need to elaborate on the thrill I felt haha. I'm pretty sure you darlings can imagine the excitement. Which leads me to the part; 'How much do you want for this dress?'

"Ehmmmmm for you.... 4 euros."

And this is where I died.

Hihi I'm kidding of course, but I am pretty sure my heart skipped a beat of two. I didn't know how fast I could reach for my coins and I quickly handed them over to the seller. I swiftly rolled up the dress and prepared to make a run for it, in case the seller was temporarily struck with insanity and he would all of a sudden realize he bestowed a treasure upon me for a fraction of its worth.... *run Forrest RUN - Fly you Fools - Going going GONE* When we got home, the first thing I did was try this gorgeousness on and she fits me perfectly. The button closure on the back is a bit short, so getting into the dress is a bit of a challenge but I couldn't care less. This is LOVE!

Thrifted: Let's do an 80s look

I have told you guys about my favorite thrift store many times before. And I have to say, discovering that little shop in Maarssen has been the gift that keeps on giving. The other day I went for a quicky-thrift and found myself a lovely set for less than 10 euros! I love the colors in this eighties dress so much! Instead of going for a 'save' colored belt, I figured a pop of yellow would be even more fun! I can't wait to take this outfit out and about.

Gold necklace € 1.95

Belt € 1.50

Dress € 6.50

In total: € 9.95

Outfit: Spring-y feeling

Being Dutch and all... it was kind of a shame I had never seen Paleis Het Loo. So we went there the other day.... and although the outside was gorgeous, the inside was quite.... kitsch. Comming from someone who usually loves kitsch, this wasn't a good thing haha. And there were chairs everywhere... how much chairs can one need? But we had fun anyways! I wore a spring inspired outfit, since the sun was finally out!

Dress: vintage (FrouFrous)

Jacket: vintage Escada

Sunglasses: H&M

Belt: thrifted

Watch: thrifted

Necklace: H&M

Shoes: River Island

Bag: vintage (Giensch)

Scarf: vintage (ILV market)
Tights: Oroblu (after a year of loyal service, they are now slowly dying)

Thrifted: Linnen and leather

So here is what I thrifted at thrift store De Kringloper in Naarden!

This lovely linnen blazer from GAP. It fit's very well, although it looks a bit shabby on the picture (the manequin is only a size 6 haha and I am a 10/12 at least.) I like the boyfriend-ish look and the lovely shade of yellow in this jacket. I'm going to have so much fun wearing it for only € 6,50

Just a lovely cotton skirt. I wear this stuff al the time... € 3,50

Tips&trics: Kringloper Naarden

Let me start of with my first response when entering this thrift store: wow.... WOW! I had not been to De Kringloper Naarden before and I was blown away after my first visit. This thrift store is amazing! Of each category I can think of (clothes, books, housewares etc.), this store has at least section and each area is very elaborate. The sections are divided over two huge floors and everything is neatly organized. The clothing section was like a little boutique, with four fitting rooms and a huge selection of accessories. This thrift store is able to provide an entire family with hours of treasure hunting and the prices are very reasonable. Books for a few euros, glasses for 10 cents, great furniture for less than 50 euros, gorgeous leather suitcases for 6 euros... very reasonable indeed! In between you can enjoy a nice little snack in the cozy lunchroom... let me run you through the store with these pictures.

Need some wall decoration? The place was packed with frames, paintings, photographs
and what not.... I took this embroidered scene with me (50% off)

There were a lot of vintage baking goodies present... loved this old cake tin!

Of course there was no lack of awesome furniture....

..... or gorgeous crockery....

(just ask Marnix hahaha)

In every corner I stumbled upon interesting novelties

Loved this 'Hansel & Gretel' scene....

I also made a new friend. I call her 'Mona'

Mona is very stylish

The clothing area is elaborate and so much fun!

I even tried on some eighties violence

And cried when I couldn't take these babies home (size 8)

Much to choose from in the cozy lunchroom!

Yes, I would definitely recommend visiting De Kringloper Naarden. You can find everything you can think of and more... along side with the regular sections, this thrift store is expanded with a big hardware and garden section, bike area, sporting goods and so on... to much to be true hihi. We had loads of fun there and of course I will be showing my purchases later....

Outfit: Deer and Diva

This weekend is one of the coldest March weekends in history, so we knew we needed to dress properly. And hey, when life gives you lemons.... you make lemonade! So I took this freezing opportunity to finally take my white darling with me. Oehlalaaaa... I feel like such a Golden Era diva when wearing this gorgeous coat hihi. We went to check out what turned to be an amazing thrift store in Naarden (which I'll be writing about) and visited some deer afterwards. I can't believe how incredibly warm, soft and comfortable I felt all day. Warm outside, cool inside.... just the way I like it... What about you?

Strike a pose!

Coat: 50s vintage (Episode)

Blouse: vintage (Episode)

Trousers: vintage (Wini)

Belt: vintage

Gloves: Primark

Sunglasses: H&M

Scarfs: vintage/thrifted

Handbag: vintage (Giensch)

Shoes (old loafers): Zara

Jewelry: thrifted/antique