One necklace, three outfits...

This is my hand in the photo. Isn't this Peony the most magnificent flower ever? I just had to show you right away :-)

The pictures were taken on Sunday when I visited a garden fair in Copenhagen. Before the weekend I had time to show off my new necklace on a number of occasions. First I went for drinks with my neighbours (happens often!) at some other neighbour's - in a rare trouser outfit:

The photo quality is lousy. An unmotivated teenage photographer and an iPhone...
I've had the shirt for two years, but I have doubts about the colour. Is it too warm?

Friday wasn't too warm, it was perfect!

Finally - time for sandals!!! Friday my neighbours and my family went to the anniversary celebration of one neighbour's work place.

I got to wear sandals :-D  If I could I would have worn some neon coloured shoes, inspired by Sacramento of Mis Papelicos. Instead I took this fun clutch. The photographer here is my lovely husband Michael. He took the shoes and the semi close up below as well :-)

With the unpredictable Danish weather it could be a while before I get to wear sandals again, so better enjoy it with this close up!

The very bright sun light changes the colour of my nail polish, it's really a very dramatic dark cherry.

I really enjoyed wearing my new necklace again. It's certainly a conversation piece! The dress is an old CC (also seen here and here), the sandals are by Rieker and unworn (bought on sale at the end of summer last year), very old jacket and new clutch both by H&M.

The necklace is of course by Monies!

Not only did the company get the Danish top pastry baker Mette Blomsterberg to give a crash course on Chocolate mousse, they also had a free bar :-D and absolutely divine little canapés. They're about half an inch in size - little master pieces! This is just a fraction of the whole spread. Next day I had to wear something very loose fitting!!!

Saturday I went to a friends birthday party. Top and skirt are both jersey...

It's the third day in a row that I'm wearing this necklace - is it getting boring?

These sandals are also by Rieker, and just as comfortable as the grey pair.

The skirt has been hanging in my closet for more than a year. I've tried building outfits around it many times, but given up. Every time it just turns out wrong, until now. I think this works.

And now to Sunday! Again a sunny day - but not at all warm! The forecast said warmer temperatures and blue skies. So I dressed in a lovely summer dress, ballet flats that allowed me to be on me feet all day, and a few bangles. No jacket...

Again a CC dress, my Clarks ballet flats and an assortment of bangles. I carried my bag across body to have both hands free for all the lovely free food samples :-D  which meant No Necklace!

Even though I'm not a flower pattern girl, I do like the fit of these dresses so much that I'm compromising. I've worn this particular one with white jeans in winter (here) which I actually prefer. As it turned out, that's also what I should have done on Sunday!

Here's a close up shot of my bangles:

The large cream coloured is by Kenneth Jay Lane, it only comes on/off with baby oil! The rest is a mix of second hand and cheap finds on holidays down South (Spain!). Like my feet I have size issues, and need at least 68 millimetres in diameter (2,75 inches) to squeeze my hand through.

As it turned out, sunday was very windy, got cloudy too, so very cold in the end. I had to cut the visit short and hurry home, with hands and feet turning blue from the low temperature :-(

Before I left I took lots of photos, the essence (apart from the peony up top) is brought to you here, by Picmonkey:

The watering cans in the lower right corner are leather covered! In the mid left, an art installation is inspired by later years flooding problems - I guess!

Monday morning I had an appointment with my optician. The wind had died down, so I went out in sandals again :-)  this time wisely carrying a jacket. I look quite ready for the jungle here, Khaki and animal print...

Yet another CC dress (also seen here and here), the red Rieker sandals, old jacket, and horn necklace from a holiday on Mallorca, three years back.

The fit really is perfect on my body. I've considered taking it up an inch or two. However, it looks great with winter boots in this length, so keeping it as it is.

This has turned out to be another marathon post - and the next one may very well turn out the same, sorry! My schedule is completely out of control these days. I have so many social events lined up this month, I can hardly breathe :-) The main problem is What to Wear! And how to manage everything on time.

On Friday I'm visiting Torvehallerne again, hunting down stuff for Saturday's dinner with our gourmet club - G2712. I'm already dreaming of what delicacies I'm going to eat on both days!

As a huge summer holiday bonus, my daughter's God Mother is coming "home" from Australia to stay with us for some time. Her son Marcus is coming too :-) It's so exciting since we haven't seen her for years - not since Marcus was a toddler.

I hope I can talk them into appearing on the blog :-)

I wish you all a great week and weekend!

Love Kaffesoester

Double sin with 2 x horizontal stripes on plus-size body!

Every style bible, fashion blogger and and image consultant will tell you that horizontal stripes are a no go if you're plus size, and want to look slimmer. Well, have a look at my outfit!

The dress which has appeared several times  (here, here and here) on the blog, is a favourite. It never  makes me feel looking larger than I am. Quite the opposite in fact. You could argue that it's due to the small stripes...

...but that's not the case with the rain coat! Those stripes are anything but small :-)

Somehow there seems to be more rules for plus size people than regular sized - is that true? Or do I have a touch of paranoia?

With legs like tree trunks I shouldn't be wearing coloured and patterned tights either, and preferably discrete shoes that blend with the tights. Another two rules are broken here!!!

So, the stripe rule is not to be obeyed at all costs. Like in every other aspect in life, open your eyes and judge for yourself! Do you see any problems with my shiny shoes and eye-catching tights?

This outfit was what I went to visit customers in, on a very wet day! My hair looks very strange, like it always does after rain.

The dress is by British brand CC, the bag is Danish, by Adax, and I'm wearing an old ring from Evans which is about the only place where I can buy ready made rings that fit me.

On my way home, I got a bored waiting for the bus... And remembered I hadn't taken photos of my lovely (old) tights. They're not wet or dirty, just printed in a marble-pattern. No, I don't smoke! The gum wasn't me either.

Successfully breaking two style rules in one outfit was pleasing :-)  Breaking an additional two was a right triumph!

By chance I've managed to dress according to the theme on Spy Girl's 52 pick-me-up, so heading right over to link up!

Hope you all have a nice Thursday, with only one tiny Friday to go before the weekend :-D

See you soon!

Kaffesoester

The Singapore Gin Sling cocktail outfit & Copenhagen shots

Remember my last post? I had taken dresses and accessories to make three possible outfits to choose from, for Saturday's cocktail party.

When the day came it was cold (10 degrees C./below 50 degrees F), windy and rainy - and so cloudy I would need to use a flash with my camera, outside. All three outfits just felt too cold.

So I was looking for something warmer, and ended up with this pile of old and seen before items! Notice the wet ground. At least the sky finally cleared. The dress has appeared here and here before, and the jacket here and here.

Upon arrival we were handed our first cocktail - a Singapore Gin Sling, which happened to match my outfit to perfection! I felt a success right from the beginning, and that only improved as the evening progressed, with lots of flattering comments on my outfit :-)

My hair does look strange, but my family reassured me that it was fine once inside!

The new bra worked wonderfully - and with my most comfortable heels, the whole outfit gave me such a relaxed feeling that I haven't experienced in years! It was a great night :-D

Ahead of the party I had agreed to bring Petit Four - and Friday I went shopping for ingredients.

I went to Torvehallerne, Copenhagen's fine food market. As a bit of a food-fanatic this is just heaven! I made a couple of small collages of the delicatessen on offer.

The cakes:

The vegetables (notice the edible flowers in the large photo!):

The relaxed seating:

The place is quite large, with two buildings housing numerous smaller stalls inside, and more outside between the buildings. It's so big I'll have to cover it in another post.

Since Friday was sunny I thought it would be nice and warm as well, so off I went in my little tunic and sandals:

I did wear a coat too, luckily. The temperature was around the same 10/50 degrees. I'm seriously considering learning Spanish and force my family to emigrate!

The colours were warmer than the wind! The sandals by Rieker, are very easy to walk in. There's a chock absorbing sole and elasticated straps to make them fit almost anyone.

The necklace is by Monies, and possibly my favourite piece. I like how the individual pieces resemble my curls.

Sunday I was supposed to try my new herbal wonder, but I was tired... There was a few leftover cakes from the party (I made more than 150 pieces) - here's how they looked:

The white chocolate mousse I originally planned to use didn't work, it was too runny, even with more than double the gelatine in, relative to the recipe. Imagine the panic I went through! Instead I made a whipped cream with vanilla and lemon zest. The bottom is an almond sponge.

Monday was work day, and I thought I was going to the printers in Copenhagen, and then delivering goods to a client. I dressed in corporate grey (again) and a comfortable, long cardigan:

The dress is a cheap version of the Phase Eight dress I wore last week. And it's too short! However a thinner knit is better under a cardigan, so I'm keeping it for now.

The jewellery of the day consists of a few of the usual bangles, the green Mother of pearl by Monies, the other horn, both matching the necklace:

The necklace of the day is also by Monies, a 50th. birthday gift from my friends :-)

It's a unique piece, made from horn, Mother of pearl and ceramic.

As it's such a rare occasion that we get to wear sunglasses in Denmark, I have another photo, showing these Missoni beauties!

For several reasons the visit to the printer and the client was postponed for 24 hours - so staying in the sun for a bit longer - dreaming of Spain :-)

May the sun shine on all of you - and have a lovely week!

Love Kaffeseoster

Easy come, easy go

In a resent post I complained about my waistline.

Today those two inches have gone - celebration?

No! Since Wednesday last week I've been sick from a bad burger. Not the ideal way to loose weight. There's still a few annoying side effects to battle, but in general I'm fine again. Except for the missing appetite. Luckily I'm well padded...

Today's pictures are from last week and last month. It turned out that I missed a planned posting. So, here are the photos

Extremely comfortable outfit

Not so long ago I bought the book Parisian Chic by Ines de la Fressange. That's where I got the idea to match pearls with a t-shirt. As it's still winter up here in Scandinavia I added a denim shirt on top.

Sadly my 15-year old daughter thought I was trying too hard to look young. Well, I just think I'm expressing on the outside what's on the inside :-D

I wore the outfit at a meeting in late February

A few days later I attended yet another meeting, in a slightly more colourful outfit...

Phase Eight dress, Clarks ballet flats all summer 2014

This dress has been quite a favourite of mine. The colours are right up my alley, the drape is very flattering on my figure, and the quality is a light viscose that allows breathing even with a hot flush.

A longer line cardigan would have been better!

So, the wonder is on the other side! It's by UK brand Phase Eight, now a regular name on my bank statements.

The usual big bangles and a silk scarf by Gudrun Sjöden

Just a bit gold in the accessories are perfect, warming the cooler colours up. The dress also appears in an outfit from last summer, in this year's very first post

Last week, on the day that I had the Bad Burger, I went to a business meeting in the morning. Those pink suede shoes from the previous post demanded to be taken out for walk!

Old dress from CC, hardly ever seen on the blog

This dress has been in my wardrobe for years. I've worn it once or twice. It's proven harder than I imagined to style.

Again, my pink shoe-stars are the perfect companion to a difficult dress

I love seeing the heels from behind

This just proves that investing in a great pair of shoes is one of the wisest investments a girl can make. I think maybe even better than diamonds? Well, maybe not!

Sorry about the name tag, I was still tired!

In the next few days Denmark has been promised snow, frost and dark clouds. Sad, when all I want to do is start digging in my garden. Like every year I've already sown the majority of my seeds so I NEED good weather NOW!

Please Sunshine, come back to Denmark, and bring your  friend Warmth!

Have a lovely Easter everyone!

Kaffesoester

Pink stars with purple dress

It's been a fortnight again - how did that happen?

Did I enjoy myself?
Yes, for the most part

Did I have time to relax?
No, not at all!

Will things be different in the future?
Probably not.

My home is a noisy, messy, disorganised place, filled with unexpected guests. Every day I try to follow my agenda, and every day I have undone chores. Instead I have some great laughs - and I do get my (paid) work done. Dressing up in this environment can be a challenge though.

This Friday my husband and I went out to dinner at our best friends. We dressed up, since they really appreciate that

See this dress in an old post here

I do love this print, quite abstract and in lovely colours - purplish grey, aubergine and pearl white.

As always with a flower print I feel aged by it, so I take care to mix it with something unexpected - like these shoes.

Bed of Roses by Irregular Choice

Magically I discovered that these never worn shoes were not at all too high or uncomfortable to wear.

I do love these mad heels

So, I have had them stashed out of site for years - and now I have a pair of totally cool, new shoes, for free! Just how crazy is that? No answer needed :-)


They're by Irregular Choice from the Bed of Roses collection, dating back to November 2012.

The upper is suede, and inside they're stuffed with soft cushions to walk on, covered in rose-printed cotton... They really are the stars of this outfit!

I really walk on roses in these shoes!

The heels are 2,5" so they're certainly not too high. I really don't know what I was thinking when I put them away!


With my terrible feet I don't have many shoes, so this is quite a miracle in my world: Undiscovered, comfortable, cute shoes that will go with a lot outfits. It was a great Friday!


In my previous post I was bothered by my waistline. But who notices that now? Here's how I looked from behind:

I only see the shoes!

These shoes (and I) will be part of Patti's Visible Monday on the Not Dead Yet Style blog because that's where these little pink stars belong :-)

Hopefully my work load will ease up a bit once I've got a routine going - I so miss seeing you all!

Have a great time where ever you are, what ever you're doing!

Love Kaffesoester

My attempt at a masculine outfit with a full bodied figure

Since Patti at Not Dead Yet Style recommended the book "Parisian Style" by Ines de la Fressange, I've been fascinated by the masculine/feminine outfits. It can look so elegant.

With my somewhat Barbapapa-like body shape, it's a bit of a challenge not to loose all my curves in boxy clothes.

Here's how it turned out:

In all natural daylight - unusual in the dark Danish winter!

The masculine parts are the trousers and the shoes. The jacket is fitted and in velvet, so it's not that masculine. But that's how it has to be with a voluptuous body.

Although the trousers are a drapey jersey, the pinstripe pattern add a certain masculine feeling.

Under the (vintage) jacket I'm wearing a ruched, gray, sleeveless top, that help disguise my stomach
The shoes are from Irregular Choice.

Irregular Choice black leather shoes

Around the neck I added my favourite necklace these days, from Monies:

Made of darkened brass and Chrysocolla, by Monies

I'm quite pleased with the result - and plan to wear it in spring. It' still too cold to leave the house in a jacket like this so I changed into a nice warm knit:

Same trousers and necklace, old knit and bag

The sweater has a great shape for me. The v-neck takes focus away from my double chin, and show off my waistline. It's a viscose blend which is perfect for me since I can't wear any type or amount of wool.

I use this bag a lot, it's roomy, it's thick leather and it's gold!

The bag is by a Danish brand, Merete Fonnesberg, and bought second hand. As gold goes with everything - I use it whenever I don't have to drag my laptop along!

A closer look

The rings are the same old rings I've worn for years! Although I don't particularly like the sight of my behind, I'm just quickly going to show you how it looked:

Odd bumps are appearing with age - not fair!

As you can see I'm suffering from a severe case of bibliophilia, so not only did I order the Parisian Chic book (which I haven't received yet, but sneak peeked in on Amazon.com), that Patti recommended. I also got Style Clinic by Paula Reed and The Style Mentors by Elyssa Dimant.

Style Clinic and Parisian Chic are both about classic style dressing and creating a capsule that forms a basis for your wardrobe in a reasonably economical way. I have high expectations from Parisian Chic. The little I've seen has already had an impact on me. I've totally underestimated these masculine elements in feminine dressing. At job interviews I have to make an impression. And it has to be powerful too, which is easier with a bit of masculinity.

The Style Mentors is a bit like Trinny and Susannah's Who Do You Want To Be Today? T&S work with 12 different types and Elyssa Dimant have 8. There is some similarity between the types they describe. Besides that Dimant includes a lot of fashion theory that I really like.

Now some people might think that I'm well off, buying all these books. But I'm not. I buy used, and one of them (don't remember which) only cost 0,10 £! The rest was a few pounds more but still VERY cheap indeed.

Now last week I had a few meetings - and here's how I dressed:

Wednesday evening meeting on the Marketing committee

The colours are awful, but I was in a rush so a quick shot in the hallway with my mobile was all I had time for. The dress is an old CC, the cardigan is another old thing - silk knit from H&M. The boots are from last year, and fur lined! The warmest and most comfortable boots I've ever owned.

Thursday evening meeting with the Structural Committee

The trousers are the same striped pair as above, the black bracelet is made of horn and bought in Barcelona this summer. The brass one is old, and the cream one is Kenneth Jay Lane. It's the largest size I could find, and I need baby oil on my hand to get it on/off!

The work on these committees is part of the democratic process where I live, and it's voluntary. It gives me great pleasure though, to be able to help improve living conditions for my neighbors.

Now, I was going to write all this yesterday. At the same time I was going to prepare dinner (multi tasking...). But I cut my ring finger on my right hand - the tip, while I was chopping onion!!! As soon as I could I rushed to the sink to put it under cold water. Stressful as I were I opened the hot water tap! I jumped up and down, screaming with pain. And no one else was home to hear it, which only made it worse! I felt really sorry for myself, so no writing last night.

Let this story be a warning - keep cooking out of blogging!

Finally I'm linking up with Patti, that inspires me so, for Visible Monday on her Not Dead Yet Style blog. Feel free to check it out, or better yet: Join!

Love to you all from Kaffesoester