The Ginger Diaries

Happy birthday, my love!

2012-03-08T17:02:00.000+01:00

Tomorrow this pretty face turns 21! I think I've found the perfect gift for him and he's been asking me what I got him for days now, but my lips are sealed. Sometimes I wonder if he will ever grow up! The one thing I never wonder about is how much I love him. I love this kiddo with all my heart and will do, for a loooong, long time. Happy birthday sweetheart ♥

To celebrate we are going to see one of his favorite stand-up comedians, Alex Agnew, on Friday and on Saturday we have planned a family dinner. It'll be a weekend full of fun, cheek squeezes and too wet kisses!

Smooches!

xo Nikki

Who said that redheads can't wear red?

2012-03-05T13:36:00.004+01:00

Wearing: Zara dress, H&M Cardigan, Springfield necklace, SIX ring, Footwork boots

Our weeked in Germany ended in a minor key. Yesterday, both Kenneth and I woke up with the flu. I can't remember the last time I felt this terrible! As soon as we got home I snuggled up in bed and slept for 18 hours on end. I already feel a lot better this morning, my bloodpressure is back up and I can eat a little too. I hope I get better soon so I won't have to miss to many classes and I'll be back with a new post on Thursday! I hope your week has started of better than mine!

xo Nikki

Bad Hair

2012-03-01T16:27:00.001+01:00

Dry, frizzy, split ends and no real "do". Oh boy, oh boy. I seriously need to get to the hairdresses ASAP! I can always feel when it's time for a new cut. I'm not sure what to do with my bangs though... They are pretty long at the moment. I've had them sideways for years and I was thinking about trying something totally different this time. But I am SO scared! Do you guys have any ideas? What sort of bangs do you think would look good on me?

Wearing: GAP jeans and tee || Zara vest || gifted ring || H&M shoes and belt

These are the new GAP jeans and striped tee I bought in Lille last week. Someone commented that it is totally legit to buy a striped tee in France (eventhough you already have 4) and I couldn't agree more! Talking about trips, I'm going to Germany for the weekend! I have no idea where exactly we're going nor what there is to see but my mom said something about a river valley, little towns and an old fortress, so it sounds good to me! This is what I love about living in Europe. There are so many different and pretty places to discover and you only have to drive for "a few" hours. On top of my bucketlist is a roadtrip in the USA... . We always want what we can't ~~have~~ afford, don't we?

I'll see you guys after the weekend!

Happy March!

xo Nikki

A day in: Lille (France)

2012-02-27T20:21:00.003+01:00

On Thursday we drove down to Lille for some shopping! Well, actually my sister shopped, my mom paid and I was just beeing annoying and snapping a million photos of them. I had a pretty exhausting two days in the city. So much shops to do in so little time! I've found a perfect replacement for my trusty old levis and I may or may not have bought another striped tee.

On arrive sur le sixième étage! This would make a lovely backdrop for outfit photos, no?

Rue de Béthune, home to my dear GAP and the Galeries de Lafayette

At the end of our shoppingspree we had to go find our hotel. We had our GPS up to date! Little did our GPS know, all the streets were blocked by creepy men with big guns in military suits and those tiny one direction streets and the hectic French traffic (I swear, almost as bad as the Italians!) didn't help much either.Once we got to our room I ran for the twin bed (VICTORY!) and laid my head to rest. Just as I'll do now. Getting up at 5am is just horrible!

xo Nikki

Friends who are good photographers

2012-02-23T16:13:00.000+01:00

As you are reading this I'm enjoying a hot cuppa coffee in a sweet little café in Lille, France with my mom and sister. We're here for the day to shop the new collections and enjoy some time away from our hectic home. If I have to believe my mom, living with 4 teenagers can be hard... Wait, what does she mean by that?

Since the boyfriend doesn't really like to be my photographer all the time, and I'm still not used to the whole tripod thing I asked my friend Jolien if she wanted to help me out. We had a great time during this shoot in a muddy field. You should have seen her, jumping around and trying new angles. So fun!

Wearing: GAP jeggings, Springfield blouse, Zara cardigan & flower brooch, Jonak boots

I spotted this purple cardigan at the bottom of a large pile of clothing at Zara when they were having a sale. If you know how Zara looks during the sales you'll know that this is quite impressive. I have been living in this thing since. I suggest you all get one, it's amazing with how much it goes!

XO Nikki

Comfy knits

2012-02-20T09:24:00.000+01:00

I bought this cosy sweaterdress long before winter hit. I fell in love with the big cowl and pretty tan colour. I meant to wear it during those horribly cold days when the temperatures would not even reach -10°C, but honstely, I had totally forgotten about it! I rediscovered it at the bottom of my closet a few days ago and decided to style it up and give it a chance on the blog. I sweat my ass off that morning.

Wearing: H&M sweaterdress, F21 Ring, Footwork Boots

Oh look, It's my face! Someone asked me why I always "hide" my face in my photos (I think he didn't check out my About page yet, it has been there the whole time...) so I decided I'd work on some close-ups. I'm still a bit impressed by having a camera that close to my face but I'll get used to it eventually.

Also, I would like to say welcome to my new readers! I noticed that my traffic has been going down lately and I honestly don't feel so good about it. I'm starting up a blogging schedule where I'll try to post (at least) two times a week. It's a start! Thank you for those who stuck through my random posting period, I heart you!

XO Nikki

Happy weekend!

2012-02-17T19:47:00.000+01:00

I'm spending this evening watching episodes of The Daily Show and enjoying the box of chocolates the boyfriend gave me as a late Valentines day gift. He sure knows how to make this girl happy!

Enjoy your weekends!

XO Nikki

Spring favorites

2012-02-15T19:08:00.002+01:00

I skipped the (almost) obligated Valentines day post yesterday. I didn't do anything romantic anyway, so you missed nothing! I spent the day alone in my study trying to figure out how those 4 big books about our Belgian social security system should be used. I also tried to find a place to stock siad books, but no luck on that. They're on the floor as you read this. These books came in a big, heavy box and so I wasn't able to go visit the boyfriend at his college yesterday. We'll see each other agian this weekend though, yay!

Peplum. How cute is this H&M top? It's avalaible in almost every colour of the rainbow! Paired with a pencil skirt they create that pretty peplum shape.

Pencilskirts. I want them in every colour! I am currenlty obsessing over this pretty (expensive) purple one from Jcrew. Does anyone know where I could find some cheaper ones?

Easy dresses. This grey mango dress is on top of my wishlist. Easy, comfy, soft material. Perfect for when I don't know what to wear this summer. And this grey colour would go so well with neon accessoiries!

Toms. These lace Toms don't look comfortable at all, but those mint ones will be mine!

XO Nikki

Friends who know about them places

2012-02-12T20:09:00.009+01:00

I'm talking about my friend Susan here, who knows about all the places to be in Antwerp. We went shopping on Saturday (outfit post coming asap) and then we went for a walk around town to find a good spot for a quick photoshoot. It was freeeeeeeeezing and so Susan took us to Bartilia for a cup of hot chocolate to warm up. The bar was decorated with the most tacky 70s decorations you'll ever see but I loved it. And the whipped cream.. devine! How was your weekend?

Bartilia

Falconplein 43

Antwerp

XO Nikki

Oh look, my camera has video function

2012-02-08T21:19:00.002+01:00

I PASSED ALL MY EXAMS!
Yay! And that means I am halfway through college without any resits, this feels good. Thank you to the sweet boy in class that lend me his laptop so I could check if my grades had been uploaded yet! We always get this email with a link to our report cards, and we all we're way to excited to pay attention. When I saw I had the mail I passed the laptop on to my neigbour and asked him how bad it was. There was one exam where I had a really bad feeling about but I somehow managed to score an 11/20. Phew!

I know this text has absolutely nothing to do with the video.
Also, promise I'll try not to be too scared to talk in my next one.
And yes, that is the Cold Case tune!

XO Nikki

-20°C

2012-02-05T16:09:00.060+01:00

Wearing: Zara coat, Mango dress, Veritas tights, Ollie and Nic bag

This weekend I found out that -20°C is no laugh. 2 warm duvets in flannel covers, a flannel PJ and a bunch of fleece blankets could not keep me warm last night. Where's that boyfriend when you need him?

About the outfit. This is my absolute fave dress that I own! You've seen it one the blog once before, last April. I bought it in London, with the rusty orange vest that I am also wearing but you can't see. I got the bag on that same trip from a little boutique on Carnabystreet. It was way too expensive (about €75 I think...) but also way too pretty not to buy. The zipper broke last year after I stuffed in way too much stuff one to many times, that always happens! And this is my other coat! My dad had put it in a musty bag and put it in the attick. It smelled afwul when we found it but after a quick visit to the drycleaners my beloved coat is as good as new.

Did everyone survive this cold monday?

XO Nikki

Hey, is that a coat?

2012-02-03T17:12:00.001+01:00

Wearing: Zara coat and dress, H&M scarf (really old), Old Navy purse, Footwork boots

Now that the temperatures have dropped far below zero and the snow keeps falling I thought it would be the perfect moment to take out my warmer winter coat. BUT my dad has put it somewhere and he doesn't remember where. So basically he lost my $160 super cosy Zara coat... So I had to go with this one. I was totally freezing!

In other (and better) news, my boyfriends dad bought me this mini neon stachel from Old Navy last week! Can I just say that I LOVE it? It's just big enough to fit my wallet, cellphone and a napkin. I really needed to learn to bring less stuff with me when I go somewhere because my shoulder always hurts so bad at the end of the day!

Happy Friday Y'all!

Have a great weekend!

XO Nikki

Living in a winter wonderland

2012-02-01T19:27:00.001+01:00

This past weekend we got our first snow of the winter! The woods around my house seriously looked SO pretty and I just had to go for little walk and ofcourse I brought my camera! At one of the fish ponds I passed by the same man that came up to me when I was recently out taking outfit photos. Turns out he is very much into photography and he liked what I was doing, haha. His dog seemed to have a different opinion on that since he was absolutely frightend by the sound of my camera's shutter. After an hour I was completely frozen and decided to return home and study for my last exam which I had today. It went okay, and now I'm anxiously awaiting my results! I have a pretty bad feeling about one oral exam...

Hope you are having a lovely week thus far!

XO Nikki

Over the weekend: I am the real pancake stacker

2012-01-30T16:46:00.003+01:00

he always makes me do goofy things in public...

This weekend Kenneth took me to one of my favorite "restaurants": The Pancake Factory! On the menu: pancakes, pancakes and more pancakes (and fruit salades too)! Pancakes with lots of fruits, raisins, cheese, bacon, onions, bell pepers, ... you name it, they serve it.

One more exam to go! People and Organisation isn't my fave class but the teacher is really cool! I am going to check on my paper once more and print it out so I can prepare my oral exam. I like written exams more actually, they make me less nervous.

And oh my, it's snowing outside!

XO Nikki

A weekendpost

2012-01-27T18:21:00.000+01:00

A photo from a time when days were longer and the temps were higher. I haven't really made any weekend plans since the boyfriend wants to play Skyrim all day and I still have 2 more exams to go. What are you guys up to this weekend? :)

Nikki

Why I would spend all my pocket money in Old Navy

2012-01-25T14:48:00.001+01:00

Just because they have a lot of stuff I like! ♥

Tulip dress - $34.95
Polka dot dress - 34.95
Floral scarf - $14.95
Yellow bag - $17.00

Brand new

2012-01-22T13:13:00.000+01:00

It's a new day and I am wearing new things on my newly designed blog. How do you like it? I felt like my previous lay-out was a little too busy for me and I wanted to create one that looked more fresh, clean and neat. Mission accomplished I'd say! Friday after school I took a train to Antwerp to stay with the boyfriend. We both have exams and it's really hard to see each other during this period. I hate it! On Saturday morning he got up early to study and I went into town for some quick shopping. The sales are in town and dang it, I scored the loveliest things!

Wearing: Springfield blouse, bag & necklace, Massimo Dutti skirt, BOO shoes

By the way, have you ever noticed how rad the sales are in Spanish chainstores? Massimo Dutti and Springfield are my favorite shops to score at during the sales! Hence this outfit, haha!

XO Nikki

Busy bee Nikki

2012-01-20T18:53:00.003+01:00

Source: weheartit.com via Patricia on Pinterest

Hi there! Just another quick update today. Life has been a little hectic the past two weeks. I had a dozen or so deadlines this week and I kinda got behind on all of those papers. Yesterday I spend 7 hours in the library to finish them all in time. I handed in the last paper for the semester today! What a relief.
On Monday I have my first exam: Methodical Dialogue. A course that learns us all the steps you need to go through when you are helping someone with a psychological-social problem. It's something that becomes a second nature for a social worker after some time and so I don't really have to study a lot.

If the weather wants to co-operate, I'll be back on sunday with a new photo post!

*Pinky promise*

XO Nikki

The camera was freezing

2012-01-16T09:47:00.002+01:00

Happy Monday! How was everyones weekend? I spent mine sleeping, watching Glee, studying and making assignments. Between all that I found an hour of time to snap some outfit photos. Don't let my outfit fool you. It was only 3°C outside! So cold, that after half an hour my camera stopped working and made all my photos come out dark and blurred. Hence the over edited photos. How many things can I do wrong? Seriously, haha.

Wearing: WE cardigan, Levis Jeans, Footwear boots, America Today top, F21 earrings, C&A scarf

PS: Only the camera was freezing. I wasn't *pinky swear*

Much Love,

Nikki

It's all a blur to me!

2012-01-12T18:57:00.001+01:00

Just stopping by for a quick little update on my new camera! Today I gathered all my courage and ventured outside the safety zone that is my house with my tripod. I thought this part of the woods was a safe place to get over my fear since you have to climb over a little brook to get here and the trail ends just a little behind where I stand in these photos. Wrong thinking. Two men came by walking their dogs. That one puppy almost killed my camera...

Wearing: Vero Moda skirt, Zara Cardigan, H&M dress, C&A scarf, Footwear boots

Apart from the first photo all my photos came out blurry. I can make such stupid mistakes sometimes! I left my camera in the wrong mode and forgot to check the focus. I could slap myself! I sometimes think it's true what they say, gingers descend from blondes, haha.

XO Nikki

I've been tagged and it wasn't on Facebook

2012-01-08T16:56:00.001+01:00

...For once! Don't you hate it when you wake up after a party and there are tons of pictures of you dancing the Macarena on facebook? Or did that only ever happen to me? Anwhoo, I got tagged by the lovely miss behind Elephant is l♥ve and she asked me these 11 questions!

1. Is there a significance behind your name?

My name, Nikki, comes from Nicole which is a derivative of Nicholas. Saint Nicholas was my favorite when I was young. You can compare him with Santa but he brings new toys and Santa brings new jammes. And as a child I liked rock'n'roll Barbie better than flannel jammies you see...

2. Your favorite colour and colour combinations?

Purple! No doubt. And my favorite combinations are mustard, navy and grey, and fushia and carcoal grey.

3. Your favorite past time?

Going out for a walk, take and edit photos for the blog and well, I guess I can better admit this right away, playing the Sims, haha! But since I am on Twitter I know I am not the only blogger out there playing this game!

4. What is your motto in life, or your strongest belief / value?
I never really think about questions like this one. Is that weird? Values that are important to me are love, friendship and respect. Quite a basic and predictable answer, no? And also giving everyone a chance, because I've been that girl that didn't get a chance and certainly no respect. I've learned to stand up for myself more but that used to be different.

5. What is your next upcoming (exciting) project?

Well, it's not actually something I'd call exciting but my next project has to do with school. I want to pass all my exams so I can enjoy a relaxing 3 month long vacation in summer and travel around a bit! We are debating Austria, France and America as this years destinations!

6. Discribe your fashion style? Post a picture if you have one!
I wouldn't say I have one style. One day you can see me frolicking around in a floral dress, the next day you may spot me rocking my black faux leather jacket and a gray knit sweater. It depends on my mood really. And I actually don't wear that jacket that much...

7. Coffee, tea, or choice of morning beverage?

In the mornings I drink apple juice. But If I have to choose between coffee and tea, I choose coffee. But at Starbucks I always order a hot chocolate.

8. All time favorite book and/or movie?

I am not much of a reader, shame on me! The last books I read were the Twilight and The Hunger Games. I am looking foward to see the The Hunger Games movies! I also don't really have a favorite movie. I liked While You were Sleeping and Crash. And maybe Coyote Ugly too. But I haven't seen either of those in years.

9. What music do you listen too?

I mostely listen too more mainstream music. The Lostprophets are my favorite, but I am also guilty of loving Bon Jovi and Roxette. And I even own a CD by Jesse McCartney... #sowrong haha.

10. Do you prefer living in a house or an apartment?
A house! It has more space and most of all a garden. Not that I have ever lived in an apartment though, but a house seems nicer to me.

11. What is your dream vacation?
A world trip! And if that doesn't work out I'll take a roadtrip through all the 50 states of America or Australia too.

Wearing: Zara jeans, H&M cardigan & shoes, F21 blouse, vintage clutch, my moms belt

You see that? Short sleeves and open shoes and I wasn't freezing! I can't believe I haven't seen a single snowflake yet this year. Only lots of rain and wind, as you can see in the photos, haha. We are almost half way through January but it feels mpre like early October outside. Crazy!
My Christmasbreak is almost over! Just one more day left. I'm going to dust off my books and pack my bag. And I'll prepare a new post somewhere in between.

XO Nikki

It the mix: My favorite skirt

2012-01-06T10:39:00.003+01:00

I bought this skirt on a whim 2 years ago just because I needed something quick, easy and comfy to wear for my schooltrip to Italy. When I returned I threw it in the back of my closet and it didn't come out again until I started this blog. It suddenly proved to be very versatile and it quickly became one the most worn pieces in my wardrobe... as you may have figured since it was featured in 5/41 outfits so far!

Wearing, Zara skirt and cardigan, H&M top

Wearing: Zara Skirt, Pull and Bear top

Wearing: Zara skirt, H&M top, necklace & shoes, Only Cardigan, Invito bag

Wearing: Zara skirt, H&M dress, F21 blazer, C&A scarf, Footwear boots

Wearing: Zara skirt & cardigan, F21 blouse, H&M belt, Twice as Nice Earrings, Footwear boots

Which one is your favorite?

Have a splendid weekend!

XO Nikki

PS: I got mentioned here and here today!

I wish they were real Missoni

2012-01-04T15:22:00.001+01:00

Thank you for all the sweet blog birthday wishes on my last post. I really enjoyed reading them all. I hope I can soon find the time to reply to some comments cause I feel like I have been neglecting you all for too long. I can be such a bad blogger at times. Anywhoo, today I wanted to show you guys these awesome tights I bought at H&M a while ago. They are very Missoni looking if you ask me.

I won these earrings and the cute purse/wallet a while back when Madeline organized a giveaway. Aren't they cute? Now I can totally get my geek on! Speaking of Madeline, she saved my adress and send me a pretty Christmascard. How sweet is that?

H&M dress & tights, Zeeman scarf and legwarmers, Swatch watch, Gifted purse and earrings

Knock Knock... Who's there? Homework... In three weeks I have to hand in a 'few' papers of a 'few' pages long and then meet with up my professors to discuss them. I also have three exams and I still have quite some study work to do. So please excuse me while I go and dive into the world of Human Resource Management.

Much Love,

Nikki

One

2012-01-02T11:54:00.003+01:00

You do not want to know how hysterical I was when I logged in a few weeks ago and found out that Google had disabled my account. Thank goodness boyfriend came to the rescue and solved the problem in no time. Apparently my blog means a lot to me. And I sometimes even call "her" my baby. My one year old baby. On January 2nd 2011 I was probably bored and inspired at the same time and The Ginger Diaries was born. In this past year I met so many wonderfull people, read so many amazing stories and saw the most inspirational things. To be honest, I am pretty proud of myself for sticking around this long because all my previous attempts at blogging were never succesful. I wouldn't have stayed around if it weren't for you guys. THANK YOU ♥

My favorite Outfits
(Click on the images to read the original post)

You can find all the outfits that passed along my blogway on my facebookpage.

(A few of) The best moments

January: I recieved my first award! #POST
February: The one and only recipe on this blog #POST
March: The very first outfit post #POST
April: I went to Disneyland Paris! #POST
May: How you can be more like me #POST
June: I got new glasses! #POST
July: I went to Barcelona. #POST
August: A hurricane ruined our vacation... #POST
September: ... So we went to Paris instead! #POST
October: I met up with Siel #POST
November: My new favorite spot #POST
December: I finally got myself a decent camera #POST

Let us toast the new year!

Cheers!

Much Love,

Nikki

Tripod Troubles

2011-12-29T11:43:00.009+01:00

Yay! The first outfit photos taken with my new camera. They are not too special as I just used an auto setting and our house as a background. I took these when I was testing out my new tripod this morning. I think I still need to figure out the right height for taking blog photos, haha.

Wearing: Zara dress, H&M top, drugstore tights, Accessorize necklace, Kinto glasses, Promod bag

Only two more days untill New Year and I can't wait! We have planned a gourmet dinner with friends and it is going to be so much fun. We kinda went the potluck way and I am in for the snacks! 2011 has been a wonderful year for me, and I hope 2012 will bring even more joy my way. See you guys in the next year!

Happy New Year everyone!

Much love,
Nikki

Nikon D3100

2011-12-26T12:48:00.000+01:00

Spikey, Christmas deco and our laudry line

These are just a few photos I took testing out the presets on the camera. I am in love! I can't believe how bright the pictures I take inside (without a flash!) are nor how amazing this camera captures the light of candles and christmasdecorations. I don't have to worry about grainy, dark pictures anymore and I now finally can start beeing the real bad ass amateur photographer I have always wanted to be. Please excuse me now while I take my baby out for a walk in the woods and maybe shoot some outfit photos with my super awesome new tripod. Thanks Mom, dad, boyfriend and parents in law for supporting my camera fund and finally making this crazy wish of mine come true. ♥

XO Nikki

Weekend post: Happy holidays

2011-12-23T15:56:00.005+01:00

Source

It's almost the most magical day of the year again! I am waiting for my ultimate xmas movie "While You Were Sleeping" to start and the snow to fall. It's 10°C out here so the latter won't be happening anytime soon. We are celebrating tomorrow as it's also my moms birthday and I am so excited to see my family (and mostely my boyfriend) reunited at the table. I can't wait!

I also have a little request for you guys. Last week I recieved the travel log from an American boy named Nathan. It's an assignment for his Georaphy class. They ask you to write about the climate in your country, the industries and landmarks all on 1/2 page. I wrote a little piece about Antwerp/Belgium and now I'm looking for a new person to mail it to. The travel log has already made it's way from Robinson, Iowa to Wyoming, the Czech Republic, Hungary and now it is here in Belgium. It's really just a few papers that are bundled together with a stitch and it can be mailed in a standard way. Apart from the tavel log you may always mail Nathan a postcard from the place you live. Let's make this kids travel log the best, okay? Shoot me an email if you are interested!

I wish you all a jolly good time!

Much Love,
Nikki

A quick note...

2011-12-19T17:35:00.004+01:00

I'm not a big fan of Youtube. Since I think the annoying orange is seriously annoying and I can't keep up with iJustines rattle I tend to avoid the videosite. The only exeptance beeing Nicepeters Epic Rap Battles and this awesome video.

When I logged in this morning I saw I had reached 400 followers! ~~I think~~ I almost fainted. I am so thankful for all of you guys and the sweet comments and supporting messages you leave for me here every day.
Since this is the last and real hectic week of school before my Christmasbreak I only have little time to blog. I can promise you I'll be a better blogger after the next weekend.

I hope you guys all have a great week!

Much Love,
Nikki

Weekendpost: AS Adventure

2011-12-16T08:00:00.001+01:00

wearing: Zara dress, Mango cardigan, Footwear boots

I sometimes work a studentjob in a store called AS Adventure. And it sure makes me feel adventurous. I've chatted with a woman who's son is in Norway on an expedition. With dogs and a not so fancy tent. She needed warm fleeces and lots of thermo-underwear to send to him. And this man, who came to me and said he was going to climb the Grand Canyon and needed a new backpack. Or the French man with his three young kids who was going to drive all the way up to Finland to visit his family. You hear the most wonderful travel stories here, and they always tickle my fantasy. Currently I am fantasizing about taking a trip to America, on my own. And afterwards I can join my boyfriend who'll be taking a summer class in DC. What if...

Have a great weekend you guys!

Much Love,

Nikki

Gift wrapping practical

2011-12-12T18:55:00.004+01:00

wearing: Zara jeans, H&M tee and cardigan, Jonak Boots, Sfera Necklace, Vintage clutch

Happy Monday everyone! Noticed my little dissapearance of the internets? I had to work all weekend and met up with friends every night. I think the holiday spirit is coming alive and I love it! Saturday at work the gift wrapping lady was sick and so they asked me to take over her job. I am by far a gift wrapping champion and I sincerely hope the nice lady that bought the Jack Wolfskin fleece wrapped it up again at home. I felt a little ashamed to hand her over my paper creature. Today I went Christmas shopping with my dearest friend Jolien and we had such a great time. I bought a present for the boyfriend and I wrapped it up with a golden glitter bow. Probably the prettiest wrapping I did all weekend!

Much Love,

Nikki

Weekendpost + a Giveaway Winner!

2011-12-09T17:04:00.002+01:00

Last year we visited Khöln in Germany !

We had planned to go to Germany for the weekend to visit the Christmas markets In Düsseldorf, but I am working instead. Which is good, because that means I can earn a little extra! We also put up our Christmastree yesterday and Santa already brought the first round of presents! Mine is the biggest, haha! And I already know what's in it, but I won't tell. In other good news, my internship was succesfull and I passed! I'll have a little more time to blog now and I hope I can roll back into my normal blogstalking routines soon.

And the winner of the $50 The Paraders gift certificate is...

Congratulations to Paris and London from The Mad Twins!

I'll contact you girls ASAP ;)

Thank you all for entering the giveaway!

Have a great weekend folks!

Dear Santa,

2011-12-05T18:18:00.002+01:00

Can you fullfill my wardrobe dreams?

1. This J.Crew glitter Jacket

2. Lace J.Crew dress

3. Shop Ruche amazing sequin dress

4. F21 clutches 1 // 2

My little heart can desire all these things,

But I know Santa will only bring me one gift this year...

And it is going to be an awesome one.

What is on your wishlist? ^^

With Love,

Nikki

Spread a little love

2011-12-01T19:00:00.004+01:00

2 1/2 years.
914 days . Both good, and bad ones.

He handles my sillyness so well

~
He takes me to places I never would have visited on my own

He makes me moody and cranky sometimes

He brings me chocolate muffins

He neglects my cellphone messages

~
He says stupid things
~
He gives me big hugs
~

He takes my blogphotos
~

He gets cranky if he has to take my blogphotos
~
He likes taking my outfitpictures when I wear his favorite items
~

He loves it when I lay my head on his shoulder
~
He likes to warm himself by cuddeling me
~
He treats me with ice creams and pancakes
~
He puts his cold hands on my belly
~
His snores keep me awak at night
~
He puts extra whipped cream in my hot chocolatemilk

~
He thinks my hot pink socks are cute

I love you kiddo.

And also a happy birthday to my little brother!!
Well,, not that little. 15 he is!

The gray days

2011-11-28T19:19:00.001+01:00

Wearing: H&M dress, Zara Belt, Vero Moda cardigan, Veritas tights and Footwear boots

I felt a little country-life like in this outfit. I could have frolicked around in the fields of my hometown all day. I felt a little out of place in this back alley somewhere in Antwerp.

This weekend the boyfriend took me to the ice rink! I hadn't skated in like 4 years... AKA since the day I first met him! I was terrible. I didn't dare to let go of the railing, haha! He hold my hands and made me do it... and then I fell flat on my face. Twice. I had a great time though, and afterwards I got a hot chocolate with extra whipped cream to warm up again.

Much love,

Nikki

Giveaway: The Paraders Vintage

2011-11-25T18:23:00.002+01:00

Win a $50 gift certificate to The Paraders Vintage!

Hello! I'm Rachael, creator of The Paraders - the online vintage shop of Chicago. The Paraders is full of wearable vintage from the 20s through the 80s that makes a girl look lovely and feel lovely too! Our blog compliments the shop style with "dating vintage clothing" posts, vintage buying and styling tips, and my adventures through and aside from the shop. As our shop expands into a full-blown independent website over the next month, please stay in touch with the Paraders to hear all about what it takes to jump from Etsy into a bigger, scarier market. Also, stay tuned for our Paraders s/s 2012 dress collection! Thanks so much for listening and have a wonderful day!

This giveaway is open to all readers, worldwide!

Mandatory entry:
Follow The Paraders Blog

For extra entries (please leave seperate comments):
Follow The Paraders on Twitter
Like The Paraders on Facebook
Join the newsletter
Follow The Ginger Diaries via GFC

Giveaway closes December 9th

My name is Nikki

2011-11-21T18:10:00.006+01:00

Holy cow! Three outfitposts in a row!
I know what you're thinking. I'm awesome. I know.

Just kidding, haha!

Wearing: Zara skirt & cardy, F21 shirt, mom's belt, Footwear boots, Promod purse, Twice as nice earrings, necklace c/o mynamenecklace, Kinto glasses

I spend my weekend walking around, eating and sleeping in Antwerp. I haven't done anything usefull really, but it's nice to do nothing every once in a while. Only three more weeks to go and my internship is done. Quite honestly, it isn't going that well. I had a short evaluation, and I failed on almost all 9 points that will be scored... I am not sure how I feel about all this. I need a 9/9 at the end, or I'll have to redo my internship next year! Eeek!

Nothing can make a girl feel better than some bling bling {and Danielles post!}. I recieved a cute little package in the mail last monday and it contained this pretty silver necklace from mynamenecklace. Now no one has an excuse to spell my name wrong ever again!

Best wishes,

Nikki

That is one interesting colour combination...

2011-11-17T17:52:00.000+01:00

{ F21 blazer, veritas tights, zara dress & belt, jonak booties, C&A scarf, boyfriends socks }

I wore this outfit to the bookfair last friday and some early-teenage kid behind me laughed at my yellow legs. When I was her age, I probably would have laughed too but still... Not nice kiddo! Besides her, I saw many (in)famous Belgians. It is annoying how many of our local actors and reality TV stars are writing books about themselves, their cooking skills or their "tips and tricks". There were huge waiting lines for the 3 most watched TV cooks that signed their cookbooks all at the same moment, in the same room. One of them actually started talking to me last year. I was standing next to him while the boyfriend was picking out a cookbook. There was no one in his line back then and now there was a 45 minute wait line! Crazy what a primetime TV show can do for a man!

I wish you all a great weekend!

Loves,

Nikki

Mini Michigan

2011-11-13T21:39:00.001+01:00

Last weekend we went on a little adventure trip in the woods across my house. I had never really been to this part of the woods but when my little sister said there is a big, BIG pond over there I had to go. So we went on this gloomy sunday morning. Nobody ever really comes in this part of the woods and so the fallen leaves had covered the whole trail and we had to guess which way to go (Hey, the trees are more apart here, I think the trail goes this way!). After stumbeling up and over various trunks I spotted the pond in the distance. Yay! We made it. I swear, It's like my own little lake Michigan, practically in my frontyard!

Wearing: Veritas tights, Vero Moda skirt, H&M top, F21 Necklace, Boo heels and Zara cardigan

No, I did not tackle the woods in these heels. I brought them along in my purse and switched my footwear on the scene. I know, I'm a (blogging!) girl, What can I say? Although they are pretty high heeled they are really comfortable to walk in and I love them.

How was everyones weekend?

Loves,

Nikki

This store called Old Navy

2011-11-10T17:57:00.000+01:00

I don't want no Hollister or A&F or Uggs. If I were an entrepreneur I would put some money in getting Old Navy overseas. Man, I love their items! With these three things my fall wardrobe would be a little closer to the title of "complete". Who am I kidding. A womans closet can never be considered complete.

This whole summer I was saying how I actually didn't like the color block trend that much. These capris are what it took to make me change my mind. Gimme!

With a fun colored pencil skirt and some pretty heels. Anyone?

This one is just cute. Girls need cute things. Perfect on dark wash jeans!

Tomorrow is a holiday in Belgium which means it's weekend for me already! My weekend is jam packed with fun stuff like going to a book fair and shopping in Antwerp. I'm hoping to find a mustard top, a ruby red cardigan and a top with fine stripes. I also found a voucher for some really cute booties in one of my moms housewife magazines so I'm hoping to score those too!

Have a good one ladies!

I'll be back on monday!

I am 100% okay

2011-11-07T16:30:00.001+01:00

{ Bronx boots || F21 blazer || Zara skirt || H&M dress/top || C&A scarf }

Goodmonday everyone! How was your weekend? So, here are my new boots, finally haha! I secretly tweeted them about a week ago too. Following me on twitter has it's benefits *wink wink*.

My weekend went by in a blink of an eye. I had to get a medical check-up for my internship on friday. The good news is that I don't not seem to have tuberculosis, the bad news is that I need to get a bloodtest done to determinate whether or not my hep-B vaccins were succesfull. My low bloodpressure causes me to faint everytime I have to geet a bloodsample taken. I'm a wuss.

Then I had this special drivers lesson on Saturday in which I and a few others practiced parking and other manoeuvres. It was so fun! You get this walkie talkie in your car and while you drive the instructor gives hints through his. I'll be taking one of those lessons again soon, haha.

Have a good one peeps!

I wish you a merry weekend!

2011-11-04T16:15:00.002+01:00

Yummy chocoshakes!

There are an awful lot of Christmas things in the stores already. I can't believe it's almost that time of the year again. And better yet, almost the time I get my new camera. Hopefully.

Can't get enough of me? I'm guestposting On The Hibou this weekend!

Cheers!

How Pinteresting: Boots + socks

2011-11-02T19:01:00.000+01:00

It's probably my favorite trend this fall: wearing socks over my boots.

Source: weheartit.com via Nikki on Pinterest

Source: None via Julie on Pinterest

Source: svpply.com via Nikki on Pinterest

Source: frozenbluberries.tumblr.com via Sarah on Pinterest

I'm starting to get pretty addicted to Pinterest. Especially my style and wardrobe folders are growing by the day! It's getting pretty obviuous what my favorite fall trends are! Colored tights, socks in boots, pretty dark colored dresses and men inspired looks. I Love fall!

Happy November you guys!

Time is flyin' ...

It is a mens world

2011-10-28T16:06:00.002+02:00

H&M Blazer // Gap Jeans // Zara cardigan // Jonak boots // C&A scarf // Vero Moda blouse

TGIF! Well, maybe not that much. Only one more day until my next drivers lesson. I get so, so much stress for those! Did you ever take these lessons?

Remember my fall wishlist? Well, this is pretty much what it looks like in one outfit. the Gap 1969 beige skinny, the plaid blazer, new booties and a pumpkin scarve. I love the slightly manly look of this outfit. A fun outfit to post after my post on menswear right?

I'm off to cuddle up on the sofa and watch some scream queen movies

Have a great Halloween weekend Y'all!

A taste of Halloween (A guestpost)

2011-10-26T15:21:00.000+02:00

Ola Nikki fans! My name's Jazzy Elizabeth (from Hivenn) and i'm going to be your guest blogger for today.

I hate anything remotely scary so i'm not a great candidate for halloween but I do like baking. So today we are going to bake a snake infested lemon cake. I'm gluten free but i'll convert into normal flour.

What you'll need-
-175g margarine -165g light brown sugar -175g self raising flour -3 large eggs -Grated rind of one lemon -As many jelly snakes as you fancy -Icing sugar -Lemon juice - Green food colouring -

20cm round cake tin
Oven at 180c/350f/gas mark 4

How
-Beat marg, sugar, flour, eggs until smooth (I just use a wooden spoon). If a bit dry add milk
-Add lemon rind & snakes & a swirl of green food colouring
-Spoon in to tin
-Cook in middle of oven for 30-35 minutes
-Allow to cool & decorate if wanted

So yes, happy halloween! Whether you enjoy scaring yourself silly or not, have fun.

_____________________________________________

Thank you Jazzy Elisabeth!

And just out of curiousity,

What are you dressing up to be this halloween?

What I hate & love about menswear

2011-10-24T18:22:00.004+02:00

There was a discussion at work today. The 15-year old son of one of my co-workers asked her if she wanted to buy him some neon colored underwear. A strange request she thought, but she went along and bought him a few pairs. Now, this morning the kid came downstairs, his pants hanging half way down his upper legs, neon yellow boxer up to his belly button and a funky belt that had no use at all. I recognized my own 14 year old brother in this story. Everytime I see kids wearing things like this, I just want to grab those pants and pull them up to their chin, don't you?

On the other hand I can appreciate classy/grungy menswear!

Source: None via Gaelyn on Pinterest

Source: Uploaded by user via Lydia on Pinterest

Source: tumblr.com via Chelsey on Pinterest

Source: utterlyauthentic.tumblr.com via elizabeth on Pinterest

Or the boyfriends new coat.
He looks like some fancy CEO when he wears it, haha.

Zara

See? No neon underwear. Still cool.

PS: I recieved a Versatile Blogger Award from Elephantisl♥ve! Thank you sweetie!!

Loves,
Nikki

Looking for me?

2011-10-22T18:41:00.002+02:00

Who wants to go to Europe?

I'm taking a small trip through my continent today over at Angies blog!

10 things that make Tanya happy!

2011-10-21T17:28:00.001+02:00

You guys remember Tanya right? When she saw my 10 things list last week se spontaniously sent me hers!

1. Surprise cuddle sessions in the middle of the night from the hubby

2. Finding long lost money in your pocket

3. The smell of crisp air, right before snow fall

4. Waking up to texts in the morning that say, "I miss you". Because I miss you too!

5. Lunch dates with friends

6. Hearing an old favorite song you haven't heard in a while

7. Eating a meal SO good you get the same thing next time

8. Cheap date nights including a McDonalds dinner, $1 movie theatre, and ice cream cones to go

9. Cozying up on the couch with a blanket, pillow and some hot chocolate, yummmmm

10. Stumbling across good blogs such as these that make going on the Internet that much better

Xo TJ

Down by the riverside

2011-10-18T16:48:00.003+02:00

H&M dress || Footwork boots || F21 necklace || I Am ring

I'm sorry for my absence latey. With all the schoolwork and my internship {which is going great, thank you!} going on inspiration is far away. I spend the weekend in Antwerp with the boyfriend at his college room. While Kenneth had some kind of conference about studying abroad I went shopping! Scored some pretty brown boots that I'll show you soon! :)

So internship. The first week was pretty low-key. This week I'll be starting on the real deal: Intakes, managing files, advising people, et cetera. Tomorrow my teacher from school will come over to see how my internship is going. Fingers crossed for positive remarks!

How was your weekend?

Loves,

Nikki

Dahlia Craze

2011-10-15T18:17:00.001+02:00

One thing we love to do on vacation is taking long walks in local parks. When we were in Paris last month we went to visit Parc Floral and we were pleasantly suprised to find they were having a dahlia exhibition. There were so many beautiful flowers to capture on film! I wanted to share a few of my favorites with you all!

PS: These photos were all taken by me and are watermarked.

You are allowed to use them with the watermark and/or a link to this blog.

I'll add a few more photos soon. Internet is crazy slow at the moment!

Loves,
Nikki

Things that make me happy today

2011-10-11T19:38:00.002+02:00

I had the idea for this post written inside my blog notebook (a musthave!) for a long time. I got the inspiration from Sarah's post over at the blog Silver lining avenue. Since I ran out of outfits to share, it has been raining non-stop for days, I thought this would be a nice alternative. What makes you happy today?

3 (via) 4 (via)

1. Pocket money: Now this H&M dress is hanging in my wardrobe!

2. My iPod: Because I repaired it when the applestore men couldn't. All by myself.

3. Fall: The trees surrounding my house look really pretty at the moment.

4. Chickensoup: My favorite. so good!

5. Roxette: I was born in the wrong era
6. Forever 21: My first black blazer
7. Orange: Clashes with my hair, in a good way
8. Not forgetting my umbrella for a whole day!
9. My cosy Topshop sweater that I never used to wear
10. Antwerp: See you next weekend!

My first two days at the Social Servivce went great. Tomorrow I'll be alone at the office and I'm a bit nervous about that, but I'll be ok. Thanks for all the kind words you sent me!

I'm off to prepare a cup of chickensoup now *giggles*

What makes you happy today?

My weekend

2011-10-09T12:32:00.000+02:00

How was your weekend? Mine consisted of cuddeling the boyfriend while watching the very ugly aliens in Predator. Reminiscence about my wonderfull time in Italy with Eat Pray Love (Hey, ain't that the dude from Planet of the Apes?) and going out for drinks with friends.

Today I'm pretty stressed out because tomorrow is the first day of my internship. I'll be working at the Social Service in an elderly home for the next 9 weeks. I'm excited and scared at the same time. I have never been on an internship before and I'm not sure what to expect. Do you know that feeling? I still have to go through some articles about alzheimers and read about the hospitalisation rules. I'd better get started!

Wishing you all a great week!

A new lady in town

2011-10-06T18:38:00.000+02:00

Zara dress (old) | C&A Bag | Teva sandals

The new lady beeing my new bag and I couldn't be more happy with it! I first saw it on a poster add in the Paris over a month ago, but they didn't have it in store at the time. When I was in town last week I was aimlessly walking through the shops trying to pass time and *poof* there it was! I literally jumped from joy and I hopped to the cash desk! It's chocolate brown, has a shoulderstrap and just enough space for my things. Exactly what I needed!

Guestposting Today!

2011-10-05T18:12:00.001+02:00

Something pretty funny happened the other day.

Apparently emails can get lost in the internetspace! A few moths back I noticed a fun guest series and decided to enter but I never got a reply to the email I send. Untill this Monday. And guess what! Eventhough the series ended a while back, Tanya put up my post today! Ain't she the sweetest?

Hurry your bums over to Mr Taylor and his Lady for my "list of 10 things that make me incredibly happy" !

Happy Wednesday!

Pastel Dreams

2011-10-03T12:04:00.002+02:00

Oh Ruche, You make my heart beat faster...

1 // Falling Braeburn Print Dress

2 // Whispering Lilac Pleated Dress

3// Winchster lace dress

4 // Purple Providence Lace Dress

... and so do cupcakes! I just put my first plate in the oven and now our kitchen is smelling so good! I've got some chocolate chip dough ready for the next load. Seriously, that dough tastes good. Kept some dough apart to mix with some raisins, because I just love those.

Who want's one?

Making New Friends

2011-10-01T13:44:00.000+02:00

Last wednesday I met up with Siel from Shoes Polkdadots And Lots More for the River Island Student Night. I was so nerveous to meet her, but this girl is so much fun! She's so sweet and has the cutest accent ever ^^ We had a great time eventhough I had to leave early. To read more about our little meet-up you should read her full post!

I got to run now!

Tonight a friend is havig a party for her 19th birthday and I still need to bake her present!

Busy Bee Nikki

2011-09-29T20:39:00.000+02:00

Goofballs

How's everybody? I haven't been around a lot lately. I started my second year at college last week and life's been really busy since. Eventhough I've only got 4 classes this semester I have shiploads of work that needs to be done and I still need to vacuum my room tonight... .

Mother nature is having some moodswings lately. It's been 25°C+ all week and I'm sweating my pants off! Can't believe that a week ago I couldn't get outside without a jacket and tights. Phew.
Our Methodical Dialogue class ended 2 hours earlier today because our classroom was more like a sauna and no one could stay focused. We took the opportunity to get to know each other a bit better by going for drinks. aaaah, college life!

Hopefully I can get back into my regular posting habits soon!

Nikki

Through Vintage Eyes

2011-09-26T20:42:00.001+02:00

Zara Dress & cardy | H&M belt | Footwear boots

It's monday evening and for me that means it's time for Bones! Ain't mister Nigel Murrays accent the cutest? I'm not really that into Tv shows but I'm hooked on bones after I saw Dr Sweets appear! Kenneth (the boyfriend) and my friend Karen got me hooked on House every sunday too but besides Bones that all I really watch. There used to be a time though, that I sat by the TV every weeknight at 5pm to watch... Days of Our Lives. Oh no I didn't. And I may or may not have watched The Bold and the Beautiful for 7 years. At least I learned some decent English. Scooby Doo might have helped with that as well. Soinks!

Those of you who follow me on Twitter: my iPod survived the operation, but he's still a bit blurry from the sedation. Thanks to some sweet man on the Apple forum he'll hopefully last a few more years!

PS: Ain't that wood staple a kick ass backdrop? I was so happy when we found it!

Wish you all a happy week!

x Nikki

Sponsor The Ginger Diaries in October!

2011-09-26T11:31:00.000+02:00

In September I welcomed my first sponsors here on the blog and after some thinking and weighing the possibilities I decided to put sponserships open to everyone! Those who are interested can read all about it on my brand new sponsor page. Any questions? Just email me gohomemydear@gmail.com !

That's so pinteresting!

2011-09-22T17:18:00.004+02:00

Hi peeps! Sorry that my posts and other blogging activities have been very sporadic lately. I tried dropping in at least 5 minutes per day to keep up with all the sweet comments you left me. I was so happy with all the positive responses on my yellow legs that I instantly bought a few more. You guys rock! Colored tights were a trend I already wanted to try last year, but I was worried to look like a clown. I feel more comfortable to wear them now and I could not be more excited about our cold Belgian weather!

In other news, I have a €50 shopping budget for this month and here's what I'm hunting for:

1. Textured tights and a soft brown sweater dress

2. Black and white plaid tunic and socks

3. Fun boots and bags

4. some basic long sleeved shirts

5. Warm and cosy sweaters

sources:

1 // 2 // 3 // 4 // 5

What Items are you currently craving?

Follow me on Pinterest!

Colorfall

2011-09-18T18:02:00.003+02:00

Aaiko dress (worn here)| Jonak boots | Veritas tights |Zara cardigan |Vero Moda scarf

Fall has fully landed upon us. You can smell it in the air! It suddenly turned colder, the air is crisp, the wind is blowing and the leaves are starting to color. Fall is my favorite season, certainly when it comes to my wardrobe. I love layering and I'm so excited I finally get to show you my favorite accessoire: scarves!

My camera was having issues again and the photos came out blurry and the colors were faded. I threw over a rather strong effect (CinemaScope by Picnik) to get some life into them. At first I thought I'd just not use them but I know how much Kenneth ~~dislikes~~ hates beeing my photographer and he would use it as an excuse next time I ask him. I should get myself a tripod. It'll save his life.

Tomorrow is my first day of school.

So excited to meet my new classmates!

Loves,

Nikki

Versailles

2011-09-15T20:39:00.000+02:00

A little outside of paris there's a beautiful domain named Versailles. The castle seems like it's made of gold and the gardens are immense! Versailles was my favorite part of our trip (and probably Kenneths too). We had amazing weather, all the flowers were blossoming and the ponds were full of people in little boats. To add to all the magic there was music by Mozart. This year we also had time to visit the Marie Antoinette mansion. We took a nap under a tree, drank fresh orange juice, wandered around the gardens and went for Starbucks afterwards. Oh, how I miss the strawberry cream frappucinos!

I have to get back into the swing of blogging. I have been ignoring my mails and comments for way too long and I haven't read my google reader for ages. I promise to get to it ASAP, but right now I have work and drivers lessons and school starts again this monday.

Loves,

Nikki

An evening stroll with a sparkly suprise

2011-09-13T17:57:00.004+02:00

Our first day in Paris, we payed a quick visit to Château de Vincennes and Parc Floral. It was really sunny outside. A sudden 30°C outburst in September, after a two week monsoon? Cah-raazay! If Kenneth wouldn't have stopped me, I would have jumped into the lily pond to cool off. After we visited Parc Floral, we decided to stop by St-Michel to grab a pancake. St-Michel is the lively area next to the Notre Dame. Out of ideas on what to do in the few hours that were left before bedtime, we decided to walk up to the Eiffeltower. Honsetly, I thought that tower was closer!

Startpoint: The Notre Dame!

Crossing The Seine and looking at boats filled with tourists. Lazy bums!

Crossing the Seine again over Pont Alexandre III. If you stand on the bridge you can see the Eiffel Tower, Hotel Des Invalides and Palais de la decouverte.

Just when we arrived at the foot of the tower the lights went on. It's such an amazing sight! I only really feel like I'm in Paris when I'm near the Eifel Tower. Last time we visited it was a cold november day and there were hardly any tourists, but this time the square was croweded. Since Kenneth and I both dislike crowds we decided to cross the busy streets and walk to the Trocadéro buildings. From here you have an amazing view from a distance. When we were almost at the terrace, The Eifeltower did this:

I had completely forgotten about this event! If you ever are in Paris, make sure to stop by the Eifeltower around 9PM, that's the moment he get's his sparkly groove on! It was kind of funny because at first we thought the building in front of us was sparkling, but then I noticed all the people around us were turning around.

Hope you enjoyed this first post!

There's more to come!

Home sweet home

2011-09-10T14:23:00.006+02:00

Those of you who follow me on twitter already know this, but I did not make it to New York. I'm sure you can guess of the reason: Irene. If I wasn't in the Big Apple, then where have I been? Dans la cité d'amour: Paris! We've spent 7 days up there so get ready for a huge load of photos and stories. I'll post the photos on my blog as soon as I can. Pinky promise. But for those who really can't wait: the unedited ones are already on my brand new facebook page, go ahead and take a little peek!

As you might have noticed, I also changed around the colours and fonts of the blog. How do you like it? These soft, peachy colours are just that tinsy bit more me than the previous colorscheme.

Take a closer look at the sidebar. Notice anything new? Yes, I welcomed my first sponsor: Ravenous creatures. I was so excited when Kimberly sent me a mail saying she loved my blog and wanted to be a part of it. She was so kind to offer all of you a 20% discount on all the great vinatge pieces in the shop, just use the code "Ginger" at the check out. Go ahead and check Ravenous Creatures out!

Coming Soon
- In The Mix
- Sponsor Spotlight
- Blog buttons
- Page Updates

Guestpost: Tongue Tied In Awe

2011-09-08T04:00:00.001+02:00

Hello lovlies! I am honored to be spending some time with you today while Nikki is out exploring this big world. She is has such a sweet spirit, and I love chatting with her. I wish she lived closer so we could actually meet! Maybe one day I'll make the trip over :) I am here today to show you what I love most about Fall - fashion wise that is. Where I go to school, Fall is unbearably cold. You definitely have to bundle up which means it's a great time to pull out those cozy sweaters, thick socks, and big jackets. Truthfully, I am a Summer girl at heart, but Fall is a close second, giving the option of layering and mismatching clothes to your hearts desire.

Sweater: http://pinterest.com/pin/127754825/

Plaid: http://orchidgrey.blogspot.com/

Tights: http://www.intelligent-----clashing.com/?paged=5

Layering: http://pinterest.com/pin/9591349/

Boots: http://middlechildcomplex.tumblr.com/post/8824814374

Fall needs to get here fast, don't you agree? I simply cannot wait any longer! Thanks again to Nikki for having me. Hope you all have a wonderful day! xo, Danielle, Tongue Tied in Awe

Guestpost: Hazel And Mare

2011-09-06T04:00:00.004+02:00

Hi everybody! My name is Katie and I write a little blog called Hazel & Mare. I am so excited to guest post for Nikki because she is one of my favorite bloggers ever, and she is cute as a button! Nikki darling, I hope you are having many fun adventures in America right now!

On my blog, I write little daily haikus about random things. I also feature a cute craft or homemade product from Etsy that is related to the haiku. I enjoy haikus because they’re short and sweet, and it’s fun to shmoosh a whole idea into only 17 syllables. One day, I hope to write crazy, silly poems like Shel Silverstein that make people smile!

Here are some of my favorite haikus. I hope you enjoy them!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“On What I Would Imagine Would Be An Annoying Thing About Parties in Paris, Not That I Have Ever Been To Any Parisian Parties”

There’s always that guy

Who brings an accordion

And thinks he can play

Kind of like American guys and their ukeleles. Cute illustration of a fox who can actually play the accordion by Yevgeniya. Check out her work on Etsy!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“On How I’d Probably Be a Rather Boring Superhero But at Least I Could Make My Own Cape”

If I had powers

I’d make year round fall weather

and knit super fast

Fighting crime with cozy sweaters for everyone and endless apple cider. Illustration by shirae. Check out her work on Etsy!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“On How My Poor Sense of Direction Has Brought Me to Some Bizarre Places, But That’s Where You Get the Best Stories”

I lost the compass

Let’s just head toward that skyline

I’m sure there are signs

How did people ever navigate by the stars? No wonder Columbus got lost. Adorable tote by fifiduvie. Check her out work on Etsy!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Thank you for reading my silly poems, everyone! And thanks to Nikki- we’ll see you soon!

Guestpost: The Mad Twins

2011-09-04T04:00:00.004+02:00

It takes two to make the things go right. There is no line more appropriate to discribe these girls and their amazing blog. Paris and I sat in the same class last year and you can imagine my suprise when I stumbled across her blog.

We were very honorred when Nikki asked us to guestpost for her amazing blog.

We wish you a lot of fun in America!

Surrogate Ginger

2011-09-02T09:00:00.000+02:00

{top: Gap, skirt: F. 21, bag: Urban Outfitters, shoes: Thrifted}

Hey everyone! I'm Megan from Feathers & Freckles and I'm filling in for Nikki today while she's traveling. Maybe she thought by asking another ginger to do a post you guys wouldn't notice she was missing?

I was really excited when Nikki asked me to do this for her. Then my excitement turned into nervousness as I started questioning myself. What am I going to wear? Where I am going to photograph? Will they like me? Am I ginger enough for The Ginger Diaries? Will they throw tomatoes at their screens and tell me to get lost?

I calmed down and started brainstorming what I wanted this post to look like. I had visions of me eating an ice cream cone and walking puppy dogs, flying a kite on a deserted beach, or paddling a canoe on a calm river as my hair gently blows in the breeze. Then I settled on the next best thing; a mosquito-infested park near my apartment. During this high fashion photo shoot, I ended up finding a pair of a homeless man's underwear, an empty bottle of liquor, and a dead armadillo.

Not quite the romantic, whimsical, Parisian-inspired post I was hoping for... but as they say in France, c'est la vie.

Guestpost: Just Take A Bow

2011-08-31T04:50:00.001+02:00

thrifted lace top, black pleated skirt
Hello readers of The Ginger Diaries! My name is Sarah and I'll be taking care of you today--right, we aren't at a restaurant. But, seriously, Nikki asked me to whip up a guest post for your entertainment while she is gallivanting around on holiday. And the topic we landed on? Thrifting.

If you read my blog then you already know that, at last count, my closet is about 70% thrifted. If you don't read my blog, now you know, too. It has gotten to the point that I turn down thrift store items for being too expensive. I know. I'm ridiculous. I fell into the activity by accident (I can't even remember how) and I can't imagine my wardrobe without it, now.

If you aspire to be a ~~cheap~~ frugal as I am, then here are a few tips for how I tackle the activity of thrifting!

vintage red JC Penny cardigan

Picking Where to Go
No matter where you go to thrift, keep in mind that thrift stores run almost exclusively on donations and those donations tend to be from locals. So the Goodwill that is in the suburb of the ritzy town is going to have a different host of clothes than the one at the edge of low-cost living. Thrift stores are businesses, too, and will carry merchandise their customers want.

Goodwill: While I have scored some interesting things at Goodwill, I can honestly say that they are generally quite overpriced. I prefer to shop at thrift stores that go to charity organizations or are smaller-scale. I do like to check out the tag color that is 50% off and it never hurts to look--sometimes I am surprised what I think is fashionable and Goodwill stockers think is fugly.
Outlets/Warehouses: The Goodwill Outlet, however, is kind of one of my best friends. It is basically where unsold Goodwill retail items go to die or be sold for $1.49 BY THE POUND. If you live in the US/Canada you should go check if there's one near you.
Charity Shops: By far my favorite places to shop, they are better priced, the staff are generally nicer, and you know the money is going somewhere deserving. Not only that, but the eclectic mixture of donated items is ALWAYS a blast to look through. Plus they tend to have killer sales!
Garage/Estate Sales: Some of the most unique, history-laden, awesome items I've come across have been from estate and garage sales.
Flea Markets, etc. I don't know what other kind of sales and markets there are out there, but explore! I have often wandered through estate sales or flea markets and only end up snagging one necklace, but the adventure is worth it, too. Be open--you never know what you'll find!

billowy top & cream vintage boots

How to Find the Treasure
For me, a perfect find is something unexpected that makes me look and feel great. Just like shopping at your favorite store, though, the hanger can be deceiving--give things a fighting chance.

Try Things On: I have almost put things back that I thought would be terrible on my body only to be shocked and awed by the perfection they are on my strange shape. You literally never known until you give it a chance. So dooo iiit.

pastel polka dot dress & perfect little black dress

Search Everywhere: Some people only go to one section (ex. Womens' Medium) or are drawn to one color. I literally scour as much as I have time to from childrens' to mens' and from the smallest I could possibly wear on up two sizes or more past mine. Nothing is 100% hung in order and you are thrifting so sizes are not like at the department store. You never know what will fit!

mens' plaid shirt & plus-size sweater

Too Big Isn't Always Bad: Ask Lea, I generally will ponder things are are obviously not my size because there is absolutely a kind of too big that is the "right kind" of too big. Some of 'em have shown up on my blog.

navy and white striped sweater & gorgeous coral shirt

Once Isn't Enough: Your first trip is not guaranteed to be a winner, so don't give up after the first time. Give yourself at least three trips and not all to the same place. I swear there is a way to be successful, and it is called luck.

Deciding What Comes Home

Does Your Closet Need It? I don't care how awesome those $1 pants are--if they are almost the same as three pair you already own, you either have to get rid of the ones you have or let the others go. Cluttering your closet isn't the goal! But if the item is unique or significantly different, I say go for it!

Leopard midi & green embellished waist midi

Cheap Doesn't Mean Buy: Yes, you can probably get eleven items for the price of one jacket at the regular store, but do you NEED those eleven items? Most likely the answer is no. I am incredibly picky when I buy clothes and at this point I only buy things I know will be loved. I occasionally make a mistake and am lured in by something I like at the store and hate at home, but that's much easier to stomach at $2 a mistake.

Cheap IS, however, a good excuse to grab that pink JCrew tee you aren't sure if you'll wear because it is literally going to cost you a quarter. The photos below this tip are all items I wasn't sure about and now can't live without.

silk shirt/cardigan & JCrew tee/Gap cardigan

Will You REALLY Alter It? I sometimes buy things that need a little love, but I will have NO MORE THAN five small project items at a time. Until I actually do the work on the previous ones, I do not allow myself to buy more. If I don't get to the project, the item is useless and I threw that money away. Be realistic with yourself.

Safety-pin embellished blazer & yellow stripe grandma pants

Creativity > Trendiness: The thing about most thrift stores (minus Goodwill) is that the majority of the clothes you are about to encounter are not the clothes that are going to grace the pages of your favorite magazine. I love this because it forces you to be the master of your style and create it by finding what feel like one-of-a-kind pieces that capture the look you want.

So who cares if that jacket you just found is WAY too biker chic and you're way more into the girly, 70s flower child look? If you love the piece there's a way to make it work and it belongs in your wardrobe, ya dig?

Beyond the Thrift Shops
Now you're really thrifty and those skills for singling out a bargain can serve you well ANYWHERE. Because you have an eye for textures, colors, and patterns that catch your attention and you are no longer willing to pay ridiculous prices for things you can get cheaper (and better) elsewhere! I have recently scored some killer deals on jewelry at Claire's--below is a necklace I got for $3.

Psst--this dress was also thrifted.

The most important thing, really, is that you believe your money is being used to get things of value. I am constantly amazed that I can snag genuine silk or hearty cotton vintage clothes for a fraction of the cost that a thin, synthetic fiber would be at Forever 21 or H&M. Am I saying don't shop there? Heavens, no. But do realize that it is true: things used to be made to last.

Sometimes that Target dress feels like the right price at $24.99 but more and more I have found myself imagining the 10+ things I could be getting instead and it requires that I freaking love the dress before I drop twenty-five big ones on it. Maybe you'll come to see what I mean. Whether you do or not, though, everyone's wardrobe can use that one little thrifted treasure.

Thanks for reading, guys!

Guestpost: Madeline Quaint

2011-08-29T04:50:00.000+02:00

Hello Dear Readers of The Ginger Diaries! I’m Madeline blogging over at Madeline Quaint, and I couldn’t have been happier when Nikki asked me to fill in for her while she’s visiting The Big Apple! For one thing, she’s such a lovely, kind, welcoming blogger with great sense of humour and of course, style, she’s also a fellow redhead! Redhead bloggers unite! :)

So you already know my name, but what is my style like? Well, the most important thing is that dressing up is a constant source of inspiration for me. I don’t know about you, but my mood is always influenced by what I wear, so I always try to dress in a way that would make me feel good – happy, romantic, nostalgic, adventurous, creative...

Therefore I’m always on the lookout for strange and original pieces of clothing as well as simple but well cut basics, that can be combined in a comfortable and generally cheerful way. I’m a huge advocate of handmade, locally bought clothes and accessories, as well as second hand shopping, the best places to find treasures for your wardrobe!

This interesting jacket-like garment came with a handmade dress I bought at a market more than 10 years ago. I hardly ever wear it, still I can’t seem to part with it. It has the air of long gone days, and it reminds me of Venice, of light reflected in the canals and echoing cobblestoned streets… I got the simple black dress from H&M, and it’s the perfect blank canvas for making such a quirky piece wearable in the asphalt jungle of a 21st century metropolis. (If you can call Budapest a metropolis!)

Sleeves rolled up and collar tucked in, I felt like a Venetian lady transported in time, and that's a feeling I really like, and not treated to very often. Mission accomplished! I’m definitely not getting rid of this jacket anytime soon!

Thank you for reading my guestpost! Curtsey! :)

Wearing:

Overdress: handmade, bought at a market, Dress: H&M, Sandals: Bata, Bag: second hand,

Necklace: Promod, Leather cuff: handmade from Jojó Art Shop,
Rings: Promod and a handmade one from Jojó Art Shop.

Style Me Pretty #4: Citytripping

2011-08-26T09:58:00.004+02:00

This kind of is what I'll be wearing when I stroll through the cities of New York and DC. I like to wear simple outfits when I travel. A basic dress, a cardy or shirt to keep me from getting cold, comfy flat shoes and a large tote. I always carry around big boys to keep a map, drinks, a snack, my camera etc safe and by hand. The shoulderstrap makes sure I have my hands free. Just perfect.

My plane isn't leaving until sundaymorning (my time) but since it's going to be busy the next few days I thought I'd quickly come in to say goodbye. I have asked some of my blogging friends to take over the wheel while I'm a way and I have no doubt you'll love the guestposts they wrote! Thank you guys for filling in for me!

Loves,

Nikki

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*Update*

Before I go I still need to thank some people!

I, along with some of my favorite other bloggers, recieved an award from Kyla.
She's so sweet, go check out her fancy inspiration blog^^

A huge thank you to Katie from Hazel & Mare for saving my inner shopaholic!
Pentagon mall here I come!

And a bigbigbig hug for Kirsten from Summer Sets In for beeing such a sweetheart.

Okay. I'm ready to go now.

I'll be back around September 8th :)
See you later peeps!

Mustard

2011-08-24T10:07:00.001+02:00

Hilfiger jeans | Vero Moda denim shirt | H&M knitted top & shoes | Pull & Bear ring

Having a feeling of déjà-vu here? That's perfectly possible! I'm pretty much wearing exactly the same in this outfitpost. I guess I wasn't really paying attention when I got dressed, oops.

Today is my lazy day. I'm going to clean my iTunes library, check if everything is ready for sunday, read some magazines and think about a concept for my blog. It's a big mess here isn't it? I'd like your opinions too! What do you guys want to see and read more often? What are you interested in?

Loves,

Nikki

The Floral Noob

2011-08-22T20:24:00.003+02:00

Can you believe it took me this long to jump on the floral trend? While I was shopping in Barcelona I found this long sleeved top on the sales rack at Stradivarius and I was SOLD.

How was everyones weekend? Mine was pretty packed. On Friday night we headed to Antwerp and stayed the night at my boyfriends room. We spend our evening eating chips and watching 'The Shawshank Redemption'. On Saturday morning we walked our way up to Canal for a luxury breakfast (My parents gave us a giftcard last Christmas and we had almost forgotten about it!). It was sunny and warm outside so we ate on the terrace. My camera has broken down so I can't share pictures of the beautiful view we had from there. In the afternoon some friends arrived and we enjoyed dinner and went to an Irish pub (I think I might have found a beer that I actually like). Spent sunday hanging at a friends house and went to Antwerp again today to help my friend Susan pick new shoes.

Hope everyone is having a great monday!

x Nikki

Barcelona Part 2

2011-08-21T13:23:00.001+02:00

1. We just landed!

2. From Gaudis hand

3. Checking our positions on the map

4. A balcony, like there are millions in the city

5. Entrance of a building

6. House in 'our' hood

7. Resting and watching the wild parrots

I'm such a bad blogger at times. I totally forgot to share this post with you! It's been in my concepts for quite a while and I never got around posting it. It's been 1 and a half month since I went to Barcelona. I can't wrap my head around how fast the past two months went. Next sunday, around this time, I'll be wandering around Charles De Gaulle airport waiting for my plane to NYC. Can anyone pinch me? I can still barely believe I'm going for reals.

Loves,

Nikki

I forgot where I put my contacts...

2011-08-19T11:20:00.001+02:00

...So I have to wear my glasses!

You see that bike rider at the end of the street in the first photo? That's my dad! Haha! Today marks the day my parents found out that I blog. My mom now finally understands why there are a kazillion photos of me on her SD-card. My dad thinks it's stupid and my littlest sister voluteerd as photographer.

As for the outfit I'm almost emberassed to say that everything is from H&M, except for the cameo necklace. My friends gave it to me for my 18th birthday. They bought it for me in Venice, the last stop of our Italian tour. In Belgium, a lot of schools give students a chance to visit Italy, mostely by bus. It was so much fun to take on this 10-day trip with my classmates! I'll never forget the horrible 22 hour busdrive to Pisa though!

Remember this post? I was talking about how madly I wanted to go the the Pukkelpop festival. When I saw the news last night, I couldn't have been more relieved NOT to have a ticket.
A sudden, but really intens storm turned the grounds into hell. A monsoon set everything under water, the wind destroyed the whole campsite, Trees where uprooted, two big tents, where hundreds of people had taken shelter in, have collapsed.
I wasn't there. But an awful lot of my friends were. Most of them are ok, but in shock about what happened. One girl has light injuries, but she's home. I thank God that all my friends are safe & my hart goes out to the families who lost their loves ones.

Eve-ry-day I'm Shuf-felin'

2011-08-17T12:24:00.013+02:00

iPod shuffelin' that is. I found a fun little challenge and a part of it was to put your iPod in shuffle mode and write down the first ten songs. I have a love/hate relation with the shuffle mode. I garantee you that my iPod always chooses the worst songs I have on it. iPod was good this time.

Now I'm interested.
What's the worst song you have on your iPod/MP3 ?

Generation Clash

2011-08-15T18:26:00.010+02:00

H&M Dress & cardigan || Zara belt || Teva sandals

I didn't really do much this weekend. I worked on saturday and earned just enough money to buy those boots from my last post! They are from Steve Madden, by the way (the Troopa boots). On sunday we went out to dinner with Kenneths family. His grandfather heard something about a machine called iPad, and he wanted to know what it was for. Than his grandmother got the iPad confused with the iPod. It was quiet hilarious as you can imagine! We decided not to tell them there also are things called iPhone, iTunes, iMac and iWhatnot. Where do we actually need all these things for? His grandparents reminded us that they came from a time where cars were rare and they still had to handwrite letters to their loved ones, where typewriters weren't collactables and where computers were still scary.

When I saw the pricetag from one of those iPads I imagined what other things I could do with that money. Buy 25 dresses, a week off to Paris or London, a year in college, ... . What would you do with €500?

Loves,

Nikki

PS: How do you like my new header? Danielle made it for me ^^ she's so sweet!

The Autumn List

2011-08-11T12:12:00.005+02:00

Summer days are gone. With the weather we've been having it's kinda hard to still hope for some sunny days so I can better prepare for an early fall. This fall I'll join the plaid parade! This modcloth dress had everything I want (and don't want, namely: shippingfees). Add some colorfull tights, long cardigans and these cute steve madden boots and I am sold.

The list of things I really ~~want~~ need in my fall wardrobe:

1. Mustard (dress)

2. Boyfriend jeans

3. Plaid/black blazer

4. Beige skinny

5. Plaid shirt

6. Light wash denim shirt

7. Striped cardigan

8. Oversized sweaters

9. The 'at the peek skirt'

10. colorful tights
11. A pumpkin colored scarf

// Polyvore // Pinterest //

What's on your fall wishlist?

Night At The Museum

2011-08-10T10:16:00.000+02:00

On Saturday Kenneth and I went to the Museum Night in Antwerp. We saw The house of Rubens (yes the painter!), The MAS, which is the newest museum in the city, just around the corner of Kenneths rented room and the Plantyn-Moretus museum, where they had books that were over 600 years old. It was the most amazing evening. And eventhough it was pouring rain we had a lot of fun frolicking around the city. I have some photos to share with you. Most were taken outside because I wasn't always sure if I was allowed to take pictures inside the museums.

The Plantyn-Moretus was certainly the best museum we visited that night. I loved all the colourfull old books in the libraries and the little copper and metal letters they used for printing the books, in the era before typewriters and printers. When we came out of the museum it was a real monsoon outside so we ran to the nearest cafe and Kenneth bought me a cup of hot chocolate milk. What a sweetie!

The view from the top of the MAS. All the things you've heard about the Belgian light-erosion are true. They say you could spot our little country from the universe at night, haha ^^ It had cooled down a lot outside so around 11pm we decided to go home. I can't wait to join this event again next year!

How was your weekend?

Loves,

Nikki

Denim & Lace

2011-08-08T16:58:00.003+02:00

Hilfiger jeans | Zara lace top | Vero Moda denim shirt | H&M shoes

It's been a while since I bought it, but finally here it is: my new denim shirt! It fits perfectly into my wardrobe and I can make a million diffrent combo's with this pretty little thing. And that for €7.50, Don't we all love budget shopping? Be prepared to see this baby more often! What has everyone been up to lately? I haven't been a really good blogger the past few weeks so sorry for that! I had a little blog slump and everyday life wasn't going that good either. But I'm back now, and I have some fun posts lined up ^^

Loves,Nikki

Blog On Fire Award + Giveaway Winner

2011-08-05T12:26:00.000+02:00

The lovely Angie from Lariats and Lavender awarded me the Blog On Fire Award!

I quote her:'Nikki is FAB! Her outfits are the cutest and I love her whole style - both what she portrays on her body and who she is on the inside! '
Ain't she the sweetest gal in the world? Thank you so, so much Angie!
Giveaway Winner

The winner is Jamie Rose from Petite Panoply!

Congratulations ^^

H&M Wanted

2011-08-03T21:19:00.002+02:00

Lace dress | €29.95
Oker dress | €19.95
Blazer | €29.95
Bag | €19.95Brow/blue scarf | €9.95Oker scarf | €3.95Feather scarf | €14.95Total = € 138.65
Autumn always is my 'neutrals' season. Earth tones, wine reds, navy and rusty orange are my go-to colors. The newest items at H&M are serving my needs well. I'm already shopping in autumn mode, although we're actually only half way through summer! The Belgian weather has been really bad the last two weeks, with rain, thunder (and even some hail) and temparatures under 20°C. If you look outside you wouldn't say it's August.
Ps: have you joined my giveaway already?

It's Official!

2011-08-01T14:30:00.005+02:00

I'm am over the top happy about this.

After calling the airline services 10x, booking hotels, planes and trains, getting an international passport, doing a test, checking my bankaccount over and over again and finding a summerjob. I can now officially tell you that I booked a holiday for the end of this summer! aaaaah, teenage life can be so good!

On the programme are:New York City and Washington DC!
The 9 hours long flight ~~might~~ will cause me a serious jetlag, haha.
I have read through some tourist guides already and I have made a little list of things I can't miss out on! Maybe some of you still have ideas on what I must see/do/hear/eat/shop? All tips are welcome!
I depart in Paris, August 28th and I'll be back on September 8th.I am on the hunt for some guestbloggers to keep things movin' around here whilest I'm gone ^^
EDIT: Due to Irene and safety reasons our flights got cancelled. Oh well, better luck next year!

Red Love

2011-07-30T15:57:00.002+02:00

{ Massimo Dutti skirt || Jutka & Riska dress (worn as top) || Zara cardigan || H&M flats || Sfera necklace and ring}

Whilest cleaning up my room I found an old folder that contained some of my old artworks and drawings. I used to be in artschool, as a hobby. It was a school out of school, and we had to go two evenings a week. I had a lot of fun those days, together with my two best friends from elementary school. Yes, we're talking about that long ago. Seeing these drawings made me wonder why I ever quit. I guess the transition to highschool and the load of homework that came with it made me loose interest/time. A friend that I made in artschool, and that suprisingly went to the same highschool and daily took the same bus I did, just got accepted into the academy of art. She's still a bit mad at me for quitting, haha. I posted about her local exhibition once #here. I'm so proud of her! I asked her if she was willing to make a banner for my blog and we have just arranged a cupcake party! I sucked in drawing and painting and stuff, but artschool did give me a very dear friend!

On another note: I'm finished painting! Now we still need to put in a new floor, buy a new wardrobe and TV cabinet and ofcourse: the decoration! So excited! And I have even more exciting news coming up tomorrow, so stay tuned ^^

CLOSED - Celebration time: Giveaway

2011-07-28T17:26:00.004+02:00

CLOI'm a bit late with this one, but I reached 250 followers :D
And I think we should celebrate this golden number!And how do we do that in Blogland? That's right, with G-G-G-GIVEAWAYS!

Win this lovely pair of vintage earrings!

To Enter- Be a follower on Google Friend Connect / Bloglovin' and leave a comment
Extra entries (comment again)- Mention this giveaway + link in a blogpost/sidebar- Tweet: Celebration #giveaway : Win a pair of vintage earrings! http://chroniclesofagingergirl.blogspot.com/2011/07/celebration-time-giveaway.html @gingerdiaries
This giveaway is open to everyone, worldwide ^^The winner will be drawn on August 5th with a random generator :)

Construction worker

2011-07-27T18:00:00.002+02:00

anyone wondering where my arms are?
This is not what I currently look like.I currently look like a construction worker.Really.I'm painting my room and I wipe my hands off on my shirt. No shoes today, my feet are covered with mustard yellow paint.& my hair has all these little charcoal grey sparks in it.How's that for a style blogger?
Shall I do a room tour when I'm finished?

It are the littlest things...

2011-07-26T06:33:00.005+02:00

...Like...

♥ Making weird faces at the camera♥ Waking up next to my boyfriend
♥ Eating a bar of milkchocolate♥ Reading and responding to comments
♥ Shopping on a quiet, non crowded day
♥ Reading a chapter in my new book
♥ Getting a textmessage from my best friend
♥ A latenight stop at Pizzahut
♥ Listening to my favorite Song
♥ Driving on the highway
♥ Put on a flowy dress and than twirl in front of the mirror
♥ Watching chickflicks on wednesday evening
♥ Making vanillapudding with cookies
♥ Buying an icecream from the ice cream truck
♥ Wearing my lilac flower brooch
♥ Putting clean sheets on the bed
...that make life so beautiful.

Not my usual kind of dress

2011-07-23T04:40:00.001+02:00

{Vero Moda dress || Only Cardigan || H&M shoes || Acessoirize necklace }

If you follow me on Twitter you might already know this, but last week Kenneth's cousin got married! It was my first ever wedding and I was super excited to see the newly weds. Her weddingdress was classic and beautiful: white with lace detailing and it even had a small train! I recreated my outfit of the night so I could share it with you. This dress is far from what I'd usually wear, but my mom insisted on buying this one. It's a good thing she payes when we go shopping, but she only pays for the things she likes, and we often have very, very different tastes! This cardigan is actually the same one I wore in my last outfit post. Here you can see that it is khaki and not brown. The necklace is one of my purchases from Barcelona. I totally love it!

Enjoy your weekend!

Hey! Introduce yourself: Line-Up 2

2011-07-22T04:40:00.004+02:00

This is already the second, and last edition of my July series. Basically I wanted to give (young) bloggers a chance to introduce themselves to my readers. It's fun, but I have to much trouble with the images. I can see them... But apparently I'm the only one. Maybe it's the browers, I use Chrome... . Anyways. This is the reason why there are 5 girls in this line-up. I'm calling it quits :) but I still wanted to give these fabulous girls a chance to introduce themwelves.
Enjoy this XL line-up of fashionable ladies!
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The House of Shoes

My blog style is about fashion and photography. I've always had a love for anything whimsy, magical, and vintage!!! My personal style is a slightly modern twist on vintage, and so was my wedding. You can see both my weekly fashion and photography on my blog. I love anything aqua colored, sparkly, Paris-related, highly adorable at a low low price, floral, or high heel-ed. Oh and Audrey Hepburn is my idol. I want to be her. :)
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Take Only Memories

Hi everybody, my name is Vanessa and my blog is Take only Memories (http://www.takeonlymemories.com). Take only Memories is a style blog where I post my outfits and write about what inspires me. I love films, art and photography and I try to take interesting pictures that might even tell a little story. My personal style varies a lot depending on my mood. Usually it is a mix of modern and vintage, heavily influenced by movies and paintings. Come on over and introduce yourself, I'd love to "meet" you! xoxo
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The Sweetest Escape

My name is Stevia. I will be 22 year old this September. I love peter pan collar, puppies, and anything vintage (yes that yellow beetle car is indeed vintage. can't you see all those rusts?). Amongst all, I love life :)
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Simply Tatiana

Like my little blurb says (www.simplytatiana.tumblr.com), I'm a musician. Here's a bit more about me. I started the violin when I was 5 for fun, and switched to viola when I was 15. I'm trying my dream of being a musician, and currently I'm a grad student trying to finish up my schooling so I can start auditioning for things. I stumbled upon fashion blogs about a year and a half ago, and seeing other girls as into fashion as myself, I thought, I can do that too! To keep myself sane as a person I have interests outside of music and they basically consist of the girliest things like fashion, shoes, decorating homes, astrology, numerology, animals, and the list goes on. My style is usually pretty classic, clean and simple (hence the name, "simply tatiana"). I don't usually follow trends, and I go for what I like. What you see is what you get, Simply me, no one else. I have a hard time explaining myself to other people, so I'm just Simply Me. As I continue to blog, I will incorporate more musicians, because frankly, I know a lot of musicians with great style. I'm so tired of hearing about the "starving artist," so my blog is on the internet to show people that we're real people too!
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------Hi there
I'm a Business Management student from Switzerland, blogging about my "other passion" for style and design. Apparel and tailoring, art and drawing, design and creativity have been part of my life since forever. I see so many beautiful, lovely and inspiring things everyday that I felt the urge to collect and share them… So that's why I started my blog about 6 months ago and it became an important creative outlet for me. And of course the interaction with other bloggers is a great source of inspiration for me too!
So visit me on nina-oliva.blogspot.com ;-).

xox, Nina
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Happy Friday!

Style Me Pretty: Nautical Denim

2011-07-19T09:02:00.001+02:00

A new favorite combination: striped tees under denim shirts.

Thank god the sales are in town and the racks are filled with the cutest denim shirts!
I scored one at Vero Moda, i'll show it to you soon! ^^

As seen on The Daybook

// Polyvore //

By The Water

2011-07-17T11:24:00.004+02:00

My blog is now officially called The Ginger Diaries again.

And whilest we were changing things, why not change the lay-out again too?

How'd'ya like it?

We went to see "Harry Potter And The Deathly Hollows Pt 2" the other night. Since the age of 8, Daniel Radcliffe and his mates have been around in my life and I have to admit I almost had to blink out a tear when the subtitles came on screen knowing that the magic was over. No more nervous waiting for the next book or movie to be released. A little nuance: I've only read books 1-5, cause then I hit puberty and suddenly reading Harry Potter And The Half Blood Prince was the least of my concers {Oh hello real life magical boys and malls!}. I don't even own the seventh book. One day I'll read them again. But right now the sight of book 5 (I tried reading 6, but I could not remember anything about book 5!) is still a bit terrifying. I've set my mind on reading what our local teenage magazine said would be the new "Twilight".

Let "The Hunger Games" begin.

{ Cardigan Vero Moda | Tank & Necklace H&M | Skirt Zara | Bag Invito }

Hey! Introduce Yourself: Line-up 1

2011-07-15T04:00:00.000+02:00

This is the first edition of my summer feature called "Hey! introduce yourself". I wanted to give new, young bloggers a chance to introduce themselves to my readers, it's free advertising space {I just heard Robbie Williams, did you?} ! Every week there is room for three bloggers and I still have open spots... don't hesitate to get involved! ^^
You can read more about the feature #here
Enjoy this amazing line-up of personalities!
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Bisous Mon Amour
Hello! My name is Cassidy and I own the fashion/lifestyle/art blog Bisous Mon Amour; cupcakes for petit déjeuner (http://bisousmonamourrevised.blogspot.com/). It's hard to place a label on my blog since I post about a variety of things including my photography, inspiration, fashion, as well as personal thoughts and anecdotes. I have been blogging for over three years now but I still love meeting other bloggers. Without my blog, my life would be completely different. It has allowed me to connect with so many amazing people around the world, given me exposure for my photography, and given me the opportunity to share my thoughts with the world.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Little Gold Pocket Watch

I'm Miranda, a 16-year-old fashion lunatic. My love of fashion started a few years ago. I've always adored vintage style, and I especially love the 1930s and 40s. My style changes with my mood - whatever is inspiring me at the moment translates into my outfits. But even if my style changes, I think I'll always love bows, polka dots, buttons and anything vintage. My blog, Little Gold Pocket Watch, is my little way of showing my style to the world and getting tons of wonderful inspiration from other bloggers!
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Lariats and Lavender

Hiya everyone! I'm Angie and I'm a fairly new follower of Nikki's blog, and oh, I LOVE IT! When I read about her Summer feature idea, I thought of how much fun it'd be to get to know everyone and for everyone to get to know me, so here goes! Like I said, my name is Angie, I'm 21 (almost 22 - as of July 28th!) and am in love with my beautiful best friend, wife and soul mate Jen. Jen and I are celebrating our fourth year of marriage on September 13th and this is our eighth year together! ^_^

We live with Jen's parents at the moment, as we hit a bit of a low point as far as employment goes. However, that low point really isn't that low. Jen suffers from BiPolar Depression, Anxiety and Social Anxiety and Separation Anxiety. I suffer from severe OCD, some anxiety and severe Separation Anxiety, as well. Basically, neither of us like being apart from one another - due to the Separation Anxiety and to the fact that we just love being together! Because of the low point we hit with employment, we found a wondrous world filled with very understanding people. In the blogosphere and in real life. We're getting a lot of moral support to get everything back on track and it's wonderful.

We have two fur babies, Wedge and Mau and a feather baby, Jango. They are our "children"! I myself am a gamer, geek, artist, shopaholic and an outdoorsy girly-girl. I like to say that I am half tomboy, half girly-girl. Jen is very much like me, actually we're a lot alike! My blog is a mish mash of everything I love. I have personal posts about my little family, marriage, my hobbies, my religion; fashion posts and tutorials, picture posts from pictures I've taken and ones I have found on the web and so much more. I also do lots of weekly series', but I mix them in with the personal posts as I like for everyone to have something to read when they stop by and I know not everyone enjoys those weekly series'. Even if I love them. ;)

I also really love featuring other bloggers on my blog - whether that's an interview, a Blogger of The Month (something I started in June!), a link to a fun post they made, etc. So if you come stop by my blog, check out some of those posts and get to know the lovely people who I follow, too!

And finally, I'll describe my little blog in a few words: It's like a personal diary, reads like an e-mail to a close friend and is a soap box where I can talk about my beliefs and what is important to me. ^_^

Hope you stop by and enjoy! TTFN ~ Angie.
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And Finally, I have a little announcement to make myself :)My blog will go through a name change soon!My long time readers might remember this one: The Ginger Diaries!It's just way more me, as I felt my blog was starting to get a bit unpersonal. The URL will remain the same, so there won't be a major hinderance for my readers :)

A little Wishlist

2011-07-13T12:17:00.000+02:00

Its' starting to look like my obsession for earrings is converting to rings.

Everything is from forever 21 :)

My personal favorites are the rusty red rings and the mint green one in the bottom corner.
I can't ait until the F21 shops is Belgium finally open their doors!

What's your favorite piece of Jewelry? ^^

Wearing Lace

2011-07-10T12:22:00.000+02:00

Before you start looking at the photos:

Please don't mind my shoes too much, they are made for hiking. Wich I was doing at the time these photos were taken :) I bought them with the memory of my "10 days on H&M ballet flats in London" in mind. I was in pain. Never again! So I was prepared for Barcelona with these Teva's.

{ H&M dress | Zara cardy | Mango belt | teva sandals }

Goodness, Look how tanned my legs look in these photos! haha, I wish it was reality. It's not. My legs are as white as snow and that's why wearing this white dress probably wasn't such a good idea. I look this tanned because I forgot to put off the shadow function from my camra when we came to this open spot in the woods. It's nice to see how I'd look with a bit more color though, haha ^^

After my obsession for earrings and rings, I now have a big thing for necklaces. This one is actually pretty old. I bought it at accessorize during the sales, cause that's the only time of the year I can afford them. Who pays €25 for a plastic necklace? I sure don't. The pretty colored stones and floral beads give me a happy feeling when I wear it and it gave the white lace dress an extra touch :)

Enjoy your Sunday! ^^

Barcelona Sight Seeing

2011-07-08T15:16:00.005+02:00

May I present to you the first load of pictures from Barcelona. Prepare, cause there are many more to come! I became a real shutterbug, snappin' everything I saw. I just didn't trust my memory enough, so I had to capture everything on ~~film~~ SD-card. Barcelona was my first ever flight experience. I had never been in a plane before, so imagine me beeing pretty scared. Now I can tell you that flying is so much fun! I especially loved it when we landed in Brussels around midnight, you could see al the citylights! So pretty.

I dedicate the first picture to Outside Voice's feature "Get The Picture: Challenge".

For which I was too late to sign up for...

1. Our plane is getting ready for boarding

2. Buying fruit at a local Boqueria

3. Placa D'espanya

4. View from Montjui

5. Park Güelle

6. La Sagrada Familia

7. La Ciudadela

8. The beach

9. Spanish flag

Stay tuned to see more pictures from my latest trip!

Hey! Introduce yourself: Announcement

2011-07-04T09:46:00.001+02:00

Do you know the saying that we should do something nice for someone every day?
It gave me the idea for this summer feature.
Basically, I want my blog to become a platform for other young bloggers to introduce themselves to the blogosphere. If you are intrested, here's what you do:
1. Write a little text introducing you, your blog, your style etc.
2. Snap a photo (or 2) to go with the text3. Email the package to gohomemydear@gmail.cominclude your blog adress!
easy peasy!
all kinds of blogs are welcome!A question? mailbox and commentbox are open ^^