Het verlaten van het nest
Amayzine has brought me a very beautiful and special adventure for three years, but sometimes you have to close one door to open the next. An incredibly cliché and super exciting moment, but after three years, that moment has come for me to say goodbye to the Amayzine family. I have sniffed around all the goodies that I got to unwrap every day and painted my nails in a nice color one last time. And with that fresh polish, I am now typing my very last post before diving into new adventures.
But not before I have given all the Amayzine adventures a nice place. I have seen Amayzine grow from an attic room to a beautiful large building where we are now located, from an empty beauty cabinet where you could count about three nail polishes and five lipsticks to an exploded beauty cabinet that you have to guard like a watchdog, I have seen the editorial team expand from four to 15 colleagues, and I have seen Jet and May's clean desk policy grow into what they themselves call inspiration agencies. By the way, it didn't take three years for that last point; that clean desk policy was already a thing of the past within a day.
Amayzine took me to the most fun places on earth. The most beautiful spots in Amsterdam, a press trip to London, a little trip to Paris, or one more and one more, and let's not forget the Fashion Weeks. I got to check off London twice and found New York to be an incredible highlight. Immersing myself in the fashion circus of the month with May, Lies, Jet, and Sacha – my favorite cameraman – is one of the greatest experiences I have had at Amayzine. A meeting with Olivia Palermo, my very first visit to the backstage beauty world, visiting the Bobbi Brown headquarters, and the search for sneakers with Jet where I couldn't have imagined a more fun partner and location. Although I think my colleagues see my special evening at The Boom Boom Room (oh Lord, those gin tonics were terrible. But really terrible) as a bigger experience.
Amayzine has also been my home for three years. The home where I opened my laptop, learned how to suddenly throw things into the cloud and post online, where I met the nicest people and could create the most beautiful things. We have made eight magazines that I am quite proud of, done some really cool shoots, and I have often had the pleasure of picking up the brush to provide the site with illustrations. My two favorite things, illustrating and beauty, have come together here. Although I almost forget two other loves that I have been able to discover here: Kenzo and Céline. Thanks to May, I have become addicted to online shopping and the world of designer bags. My wardrobe has also seen some expansion.
Kenzo and Céline will never leave my life. And I have met people here who will also never leave my life because they have become so incredibly dear to me, created memories (here it comes again; tralala in The Boom Boom Room), found the best hairdressers in the country (thank you Rachel, Youri, and Melissa from The Building AMS), made videos with the most beautiful brands on earth (M.A.C Cosmetics, Bobbi Brown, and Dior), learned the perfect eyeliner flick from Wim Thompson, spent hours crafting with favorite Lil, learned to make avocado roses from Jet, stolen English Instagram phrases from Elke*, and absorbed an incredible amount of knowledge and love from May-Britt. And to that last favorite, I want to send thousands of thank you notes. Many years ago, I started under May's wings. And those wings contain a lot of knowledge, love, and experience that I have been able to benefit from and that have allowed me to grow. When May started Amayzine, I was allowed to sit under her wings again to write, illustrate, and do what I would all enjoy. May has taught me and brought me a lot, as a colleague and as a friend.
What I also really enjoyed: tackling that exploded mailbox. I received the most cherished emails from readers asking how I conjured that bun on my head and where I got my new sneakers from. I cherish those emails and memories immensely. Because what a delight it is to receive emails from you and to dive into the world of beauty to present a good mascara or to let you know how to get rid of those pale legs. I found your responses very nice, and they have given me inspiration for three years to write the latest beauty posts.
Alright. The end is here. I am leaving the Amayzine family, but with a huge smile. Because I have managed to put all that beauty into my little Céline (I knew those three compartments were necessary, otherwise it would have never fit). Thank you everyone for this incredibly fun and enthusiastic adventure.
* I couldn't come up with a title myself. Only tear-jerking, terribly 90s lyrics, so I looked at my colleague Elke. She shook that out of her lovely sleeve. See, that’s what colleagues are for. And that’s why Amayzine is a family.
