5 things to do in bed.

18 Dec 2015



Today's statement is that beds are amazing things. In fact, they are so great that it's a bit of a shame to use them just for the acts of sleeping (and if you're lucky, having sex). I mean, did you know that Henri Matisse made lots of his famous cut-outs while in bed? Admittedly, the sod had underwent a surgery - after being diagnosed with abdominal cancer - that left him chair and bed bound, so it wasn't as if he had many other options, but that is not the point. The point is that beds are amazing and great things can happen while in them. Feeling it? Check out my top 5 things to do in bed!

1. Who-ever said you needed to brave the cold and the crowdyness of the city to do your last-minute christmas shopping? Just do it right at home, in your bed, with cup of hot chocolate in hand.

2. Social contact is all very nice, but with those busy holidays even the most extreme people-persons might feel slighty overdosed. Going on social lockdown a few days beforehand gives you the chance to build in a little buffer. And it is also the perfect excuse to binge-watch your favourite series...

3. ...or read until your eyes hurt (oh, the excuisite pain).

4. Install a little wellness salon in your bedroom, facemask, footmassage (please, honey?) and nail polish included. Oh, and don't forget that beauty sleep!

5. Or just tap into the easiest way to spend another hour in horizontal state: have your breakfast in bed.

What are you favourite things to do in bed?

Banana pancakes in bed.

11 Dec 2015



When it comes to breakfast there are two types of people (well, actually there are many types of people, but since I'm trying to make a point here I took the liberty of simplifying reality just a tad, ahem): the ones who love to sleep, just because it's like a time machine to breakfast and those who consistently oversleep and thus have no option but to be contented with a large take-away coffee. The latter being the slighty 'trendier' part of the population, since the fact that they have 'no time for breakfast' reflects their 'oh, so busy' lifestyle. But you know, the idiom 'from hell to breakfast' (which is just a nice way of saying all over the place, or everywhere, or high and low) does not coincidentally use those two as opposites whom are miles apart. I'm just saying, there is a lot of wisdom to be found in old sayings. And so basically, breakfast is heaven.

Now we've got that all cleared out, let me get on to my next point: breakfast in bed equals heaven squared. Yup. Eating in a bed, still warm from the night, yet filled with rays of sunlight, is like lingering in dreamland for a little while longer, but being able to enjoy it more fully because you are wide awake.

Not convinced yet? Then you obviously haven't tried eating these delicous gluten-free pancakes under the covers.

  1. All you need is one banana and two eggs
  2. Break the banana in large chunks, add the eggs and let your mixer work its magic. Meanwhile heat up a small pan.
  3. Melt a generous lump of butter and bake up your batter in small portions (depeding on how large you want the pancakes to be). They're a bit difficult to flip since they break easily, but when you use my two spatula-technique (lifting the pancakes with one spatula and then using another one to easily slide deeper under the pancake) you will be just fine.
  4. I used some extra slices of banana, sunflower seeds and just a drop of honey to top things off, but you can litteraly use anything you want.
So tell me, you lookin' foreward to give these a try tomorrow morning? Or do you have another favourite breakfast (in bed)?

5 reasons to get a pixie cut.

23 Nov 2015


Coco Chanel once said that a woman who cuts her hair is about to change her life. I'm not quite sure if that is always the case, but what I am sure of is that cutting your hair in itself already changes your life. And as far as I'm concerned it certainly changes for the better. Can't think why? Well then, read my five reasons to get a pixie cut.


1. Unlike the biblical figure Samson who lost all his power when they cut off his hair, going for a proper pixie cut made me feel super bad-ass. Just not caring about what other people's reactions to this look might be and just doing it for me, gave me a major confidence boost. I can recommend it to anyone!

2. Remember what I said in my last post about getting a new haircut instead of buying new clothes? Well, it totally works! All my clothes seem to get a new look and feel about them.

3. It's the easiest way to give your look that little bit of extra edge.

4. It requires zero styling efforts, which is secretly also the main reason for getting this cut. Honestly, I was so tired of having to straighten my hair every time (if I don't it just becomes this giant pile of frizzy hair) or having to struggle to get it into a semi-decent bun (I have really difficult hair you see). Now I just blow it with a hairdryer for two minutes, rub in some wax and off I go!

5. It's a great way to make a small feminist statement, to show to the world that women don't have to have your typical long, shiny, seductive hair to be feminine and sexy.

Now, what are your thoughts on a pixie cut? Would you ever get one?

How to be happy with what you have (sartorially).

16 Nov 2015



Socrates alledgedly once said something along the line of Nothing will ever be quite enough for anyone who thinks that just enough is too little. And I dare say, the good ol' bearded man was onto something.

After all being happy with just enough seems like the fastest road to, well, happiness. Were it not that this attitude towards life has about the standing of a pair of worn out slippers. No, anyone who wants to be someone in this world has to always want more, to mean more, to earn more and consequently to buy more. People like Khloé Kardashian and her 150-square-foot fitness closet are societies' superheroes, Not having to look at the price-tag while shopping a life-goal.

And then we all like the thrill of something new. So much in fact that fast fashion companies such as Zara and H&M built a whole business strategy around it, providing us with spot-on-trend stuff that is so cheap (and often of miserably poor quality), that we gladly toss it away and replace it by its trendier kin in a matter of weeks. Whereas clothes used to be long-term investment pieces for a very long time, they now have become disposables, with all social and environmental consequences that that entails.

I'll be the first to admit that the purchase of a pair of shoes can make your day (to be honest, buying a black leather biker jacket really did improve life quality tons), but if we're always looking for the next bargain, or craving for things that we can hardly afford, I think we're kind of forgetting to enjoy what we do have.

If we only we would think of Soccy's advice a bit more often and just remember that enough really is enough, we would not only be able to rid ourselves of that constant hunger for things, but also stop supporting an industry that lets other people pay for the True cost of clothes (and boy, is it a high price).

So here are a few rules I'm trying to stick by, a few guidelines to help me resist the temptation of a pair of knitted, acrylic palazzopants.

1. Don't buy obvious trend-pieces you'll get tired of before you've worn them more than twice.

2. You really don't need 20 pairs of shoes nor three different pairs of boyfriend jeans. Don't buy more than you need.

3. Really cherish your wardrobe. Don't let your clothes live on the floor, wash them according to instruction, treat your leather goods with a water-resistant spray.

4. When you're tired of your wardrobe, don't go buying something new, but try to spruce things up by changing your hairstyle, or trying out new combinations.

5.  If you do buy something, buy something that will last a long time. Go for good quality and natural fabrics even if that means you have to pay a higher price.

6. And on the same note: If you really love a designer piece (Valentino rockstud ballerina's anyone?), buy the designer piece and not the knock-off. The real deal will still have value and mantain it's quality long after the hype has lied down, the cheap one will not.

7. Find your own personal style and stick to it. This way you won't be a easily tempted to give into pieces with a short preservability.

8. Have a long-term relationship with your clothes. Sure falling in love and feeling butterflies is fun, but everyone knows that the really good stuff comes when you stick together, no?


Any pointers to add up to this list? Lord knows we can all use them!

We are up and rollin'.

3 Apr 2015

My new blog-baby is born! Go and check out #idle, the new and improved version of La Vie en Mode by N. and let me know what you think!

http://hashtagidle.blogspot.be/




New blog launching in 14 days.

20 Mar 2015



Long has it been since I told you here about my plans and dreams for new beginnings. You might 've even tought I'd forgotten all about them! Or that I've  done nothing but fingertwisting in the meantime. But if that is the case, you are very wrong indeed.

For in 14 days you'll be able to lay eyes on the new and improved version of La Vie en Mode by N. A New lay-out, a new name, a new domain, new and interesting topics and categories such as interviews, food, hotspots around the town, love and life (but of course lots of fashion as well).

I've put a lot of effort in creating a more professional looking lay-out, but also in coming up with more balanced and thought-through identity for my brainchild, and I honestly can't wait to share it with you and hear your feedback. I hope you guys are just as anxious as me, but I have to ask you, however, for a little more patience while make the finishing touches.

In the meantime you can check out my rebranded Pinterest, Twitter and Instagram account and/or Facebook page.


Let the countdown begin ladies and gents!

xxx

Gluten- and sugar free oven-baked chocolate donuts.

13 Mar 2015



Look darlings, I'm just gonna come straight to the bottom line here. I am a person who needs to consume chocolate on regular basis to maintain my mental health. Not just small tidbits, but pounds, cartloads and gallons of it.
And while I could just stuff my inner cocoa monster with loads of Côte d'Or or my favourite hazelnut and raisin chocolate bars from Delhaize, sometimes it's better to make a little bit of an effort, no? Enter these semi-healthy (just enough to shush my consience) and homemade chocolate and coconut donuts.



The recipe, you ask? Here it comes:

100g of butter
85g of chopped dark chocolate
1 tblsp of honey
1 tsp of vanilla extract
1/4 tsp of salt
2 eggs
1/4 cup of coconut flakes
1/4 tsp of baking powder
3 tsp of cocoa powder

Melt the butter and the chocolate together on medium heat. Whisk in the rest of the ingredients. Spoon them into your donut tin (I use a silicone one. Super easy to clean and you don't even have to grease it!) and bake for 15 mins at 180°C.

Now all you have to do is grab onto your favourite magazine and start eating and reading until you finished to lot. Enjoy!