‘it's a phase’

It seems like I'm being punished for bragging about how well Otis sleeps since his birth: from six months he made perfect nights from seven to seven and as soon as Mr. was laid in his crib, he fell asleep immediately. UNTIL NOW. Those times are over and have been replaced by impossible bedtime scenes and nocturnal escapades. With last night as the highlight, when I dressed and put Otis in bed, was about to hand over to the babysitter and go on a nice date night, and that little one suddenly decided he really didn't want to sleep, only to finally get him to sleep after 36 times of ‘In the moonlight’ and half squatting for half an hour ‘ssssshhhh’. A minute later the doorbell rang. Crying, I let the postman in and crawled back into Otis’ room, which then took me another half hour to calm him down again. There went my date night. ‘It's a phase,’ I hear mom friends say and I fervently hope they are right. Let's hope I can soon brag again about our perfect nightingale instead of our night owl...

For years, I have been standing with Marly at vintage markets to give our ‘hidden treasures’ a new home. Now I buy less clothing compared to years ago and sustainability plays an increasingly important role for me. Numerous new entrepreneurs are launching beautiful lines made from recycled materials. The designer duo HACKED by_ is known for their amazing designs made from ‘old’ designer pieces. I think it's fantastic that H&M is collaborating with them and together they are giving sustainability a big platform. This capsule collection will be launched on February 14, consisting of 20 items made with H&M designs from the sale. More of these kinds of collabs please!

I'm the type who loves to test a new perfume every time, but there are also people who have been wearing the same scent for years. Every time I smell that scent, I think of that person; for example, I think of Chanel no. 5 immediately when I think of my aunt. A lovely perfume, but that identity has unfortunately already been taken. When the new Chanel 1957 was launched last week (the name says everything about the bond between Chanel and the United States, where she has been honored since this year as the most influential fashion designer of the 20th century), I saw my chance and raced to the store to test the scent. And successfully: I quickly claimed that identity.

Now I am naturally blonde, but I always give that color an extra boost by regularly visiting the hairdresser. However, since my pregnancy, I haven't dyed my hair anymore because I was a bit afraid of all the chemicals that end up on your scalp. But when a friend remarked quite surprised: ‘Wow, Caar, you are so dark naturally!’ I knew it was time for a new dye job. Now Wella has a new ME+-color technology (called ‘Koleston Perfect’), which means the dye is no longer absorbed by your scalp and causes much less damage to your hair. So if there ever is a second one on the way, I won't have to wait another year and a half for the next dye job.