jokeyhee

You might have already heard that &OtherStories is opening a store in Amsterdam this fall on Heiligeweg. What might still be a little underrated about them is their cosmetics department. It is great. There is just so much effort in it; from the scents to the colors matching their clothes and don't get me started on the graphic design on their packaging, I love the simplicity of it. Another great thing is that they take some responsibility for the environment; most of the packaging is fully recyclable and if you bring back your empty make up/skincare packaging to the store, you get a 10% discount off your next beauty purchase.

When visiting them in Stockholm last October for the Co-Creatives project, I got a box filled with their skin care products. These are my three favorites, very happy about having them available closer to home soon.

/ Moiré Anti stress serum
My favorite thing about it is its fresh, unisex, clean laundry type of smell. Has a really smooth consistency and is absorbed quickly into the skin.

/ White nail polish
Applies like a dream, hardly leaves any streaks and has great coverage. Two things that are extremely rare in white nail polish. Though it chips of quite quickly, so you have to apply a good quality top coat over it to keep your nails white for a couple of days.

/ Plush Balm
Super rich, fragrance and paraben free lip balm. I've also been using it on my hands (which can get so dry in winter) a couple of times when I had no cream in my purse.

Who has time for long complicated manicures?
A dot on the moon and one on the tip of the nail with a nail pen and you're pretty much done. I applied it only to my index and middle finger and painted the rest of the nails solid white. It is amazing how two tiny dots opposite to each other can create such a visually graphic, balanced and elongating effect.

nail polishes: Hema

This is what I'm planning to do with my hair on the last night of 2013 to celebrate and say goodbye to this fantastic year. It's still unsure what I'll be wearing on NYE, but I can already foresee that it will be something basic and plain. Instead of adding accessories, I like to experiment with cosmetics instead. Doesn't mean it requires much time (if only we had more time), special skill or many products; just one simple, radical plan; like covering every single hair in sparkles! I love to put tacky, cheap things in a different context.

Here's what I did
1/ Apply a big blob of gel on your finger tips and run it through the roots of your hair. Repeat until the front and top part of your hair are looking evenly 'wet'.
2/ Comb your hair to the back, distributing the gel even more.
3/ With a soft brush smooth out the hair from front to back with long strokes and put it into a low ponytail.
4/ Let it dry for a couple of minutes.
5/ Take out the hair tie. I love how the low ponytail creates a wave in the back and gives this hairdo a lot of shape. But you could also straighten it out at this point.
6/ The party you've been waiting for. Spray the glitter all over!


It was close to impossible to capture the millions of sparkles in a photograph, some of it became visible with a flash. But trust me, this is something that must be tried and seen in real life, I'm not exaggerating when I tell you it is about ten times more sparkly.

need:
comb
soft brush
a bit of gel
hair tie
glitter hair spray

/ As you can see I'm not that fond of labels. Bare containers and bottles look less cluttered and more uniform on my shelf.

/ Some of you have send me messages about skin care routines. It is pretty basic and straight forward, I just try to keep my face 1/ as clean as possible, 2/ hydrated and 3/ protected against the sun (by adding some extra sunblock to my day cream).

/ A little over a month I've been testing out this new Kiehl's cream, and I can't let it go unmentioned. Specially during busybusybusy times where I tend to have less sleep, this little bottle has been a lifesaver in the morning. When really stressed, I like to take an extra minute or two to apply it and really massage it in, it makes your face feel completely awake and fresh again.

nail polish: Hema
cream: Skin Rescuer by Kiehl's
glass container: iittala

Thought I'd give the two toned, half arsed half and half, or how I like to call them; 50/50 nails a try. I love how it still gives a bit of an idea that the tips of your nails are painted (which I usually find too girly), but in a more simplified, radical and less 'pretty' way. I used my favorite (non-)colors; light grey and white and instead of a glossy topcoat, I chose for matte.

// Start off with the lightest color as a base, in this case white, and paint your entire nail with it.
// Let it dry completely, to be sure give it an extra 10 minutes, else the tape will rip off your fresh polish.
// Cover one nail at the time with scotch tape, paint it and peel off the tape right away to get a straight line.
// Finally add a layer of topcoat.

Seen double partings on a lot of runways; Gianfranco Ferre, Ann Demeulemeester and recently also at Barbara Langendijk among others. (Also looks fantastic with dark hair) But never have I come across someone on the streets with two partings like this. So I thought I'd give it a try as a variation on my usual middle parting with low ponytail. Loving how easy it is to get this graphic symmetric look.

how to
/ Find the center of your hairline and from there make two diagonal partings.
/ Now you've created a triangle of hair on the top of your head, pin this up into a little bun.
/ Comb the rest of the hair downwards into a sleek, low ponytail and secure it with a hair tie.
/ Take out the little bun and comb this top section of hair backwards and secure it with another tie over the existing ponytail.

two hair ties
comb
bit of gel or hair spray

T-straps are much cooler on nails than they are on shoes.
Love the graphic look and how the lines visually elongate the nails. Tutorial is pretty straight forward: draw a straight horizontal line across the moons of the nails and then connect it with a vertical line to the top of your nail with a nail art pen.

bracelet: Topshop

When I was 10 years old I dyed my hair for the first time. On the rare occasion that my mom went to the hair salon, she took me with her one time. We went to the poshest salon in town, not the type where you bring your kids. (hippie-mom not being the type who likes getting her hair done, I know you're reading mom.) Chez Henri was a place where all the clichés of French hair dressers were a reality. While my mother was getting a wash on the other side of the salon, Henri himself came to me and asked; what is it that you want? I answered red-purplish hair. With no further questions asked that was what I got. Meanwhile the ladies next to mom asked each other; who takes their daughter to the salon and lets her do whatever she wants with her hair? To which mom calmly answered; that would be me. Making the rest of the 15 minutes they had to sit there with wet hair utterly awkward for them. After that day and seeing how hair can instantly transform you, I saved up all my allowances and had enough money every other month to buy a new color, I tried out every hair-coloring-kit available in the drug store. this pretty much went on until getting these colder tones between grey, blue and lilac, that I've stuck to for the longest and feel most myself in.

So after reading my little hair resume, you could almost say that I'm an expert with 15 years of experience that learned everything the hard way (=Dyes gone wrong, hair breaking, hair falling out). That doesn't necessarily make me qualified to give you actual advice on how to bleach and dye your hair, but I could give a few tips on how to take care of it. Which is a question that is asked at least a few times a week. First off, when going to nearly white it will damage your hair. A lot. Afterwards you will have to treat your hair entirely differently than before. These might seem like very small useless tips, but if you apply them all they will have effect and keep delicate, damaged and bleached hair healthier.

/W A S H I N G
I only wash my hair twice a week. The process of washing, drying it, styling it is often is too demanding for bleached hair. Also washing hair washes out the natural oils coming from your scalp, making the hair dry.
/H A I R T I E S
Always use hair ties without a metal part. After switching to softer ones I noticed a lot less breakage at that awkward ear-height.
/T A N G L E S
Always try to avoid tangles. Every time you brush and detangle you have the change of breaking and damaging a few hairs. So tie your hair up before going to sleep, when it is windy outside, or just whenever you can.
/L O W H E A T
Classic one; avoid using heat on your hair. If you have to, put your straightening iron or blow drier on low heat.
/C U T I T
This is probably the maximum length of my hair while being bleached. The terminal hair length has to do with the speed your hair grows versus the speed that your hair breaks. Obviously with bleached damaged hair it will break more. So find out what your length is and keep it at that or shorter to keep it looking healthy.

nose piece:Maison Martin
Margiela
tee: Hema