With the soulful voice of the, always smart looking, Leon Bridges in the background, singing 'Pull Away', I sit behind my laptop, contemplating what to write to you. Leon's voice distracts me. Love the mellow sound...... It's the perfect music for a lazy Sunday afternoon.
Just came home from a morning's work in the garden. I am running terribly behind. Lots of chores I still have to do. I did some heavy work in the front part today (getting rid of a, partly dead, tree), which makes me feel about eighty. It's time to relax now, put my feet up, read a book and listen to some more music.
Part of today's photo's were taken in Utrecht, a beautiful old town in the middle of my country, which I enjoy visiting: the canals running through the city centre, the many historic buildings and the lively atmosphere.
The amazing black and white graphic dress is a recent vintage find. It's very elegant. I found it in one of my favourite vintage shops in my home town, The Dearhunter vintage.
The black and white photo's of Dali, Audrey Hepburn, Marilyn Monroe and Alfred Hitchcock were made by Philippe Halsman. I saw a a retrospective of his work in De Kunsthal yesterday, which inspired me. The exhibition is called Astonish me, and it most certainly did.
The remaining photo's were taken in my home. It's covered in flowers. The spring vibe got me :-)
How about you, did you bring spring into your home?
Wishing you a sun filled week!
Love,
Madelief x
En of we zin hebben in de lente.....an bijna niet meer wachten...Utrecht is mijn geboorte stad heb er jaren gewoond....herkende het gelijk.....mooi je bloemen ...prachtig ....liefs fijne week van mij x ❤️
BeantwoordenVerwijderenbeautiful blooms and a dreamy dress!
BeantwoordenVerwijderenI really enjoyed your images of flowers and that gorgeous city and the old photos. You really have an amazing eye for beauty. Are you going to model the dress for us? Have a wonderful week ahead. ((hugs)), Teresa :-)
BeantwoordenVerwijderenDe lente komt! Hoe dan ook, en het spat al een beetje van de foto's af! Prachtig!
BeantwoordenVerwijderenWe hebben er zin in. XX Esther
hello Madelief,
BeantwoordenVerwijderenYou deserve to put your feet up and enjoy a good cup of tea. Your work in the garden sounds strenuous.
Have a glorious week
Helen x
I always love your photographs,they are so clear and of such beautiful things and places.I like the picture of the lady in the dress,she looks so elegant.You have a beautiful home,I am most envious.Wishing you a happy week.
BeantwoordenVerwijderenWe loved Utrecht! Our Dutch friends have offered to do another home exchange with us in 2107 so we are looking forward to exploring more of your beautiful Country. I love your pots filled with with Spring bulbs... have a wonderful week ahead Madelief!
BeantwoordenVerwijderenHugs,
Wanda
Beautiful pictures, as always Madelief. A very pretty city, and some gorgeous Spring blooms. And your new dress is so elegant - you will enjoy wearing that one. xx
BeantwoordenVerwijderenBeautiful images of your world, Madelief. Flowers filling the house makes it so pretty. Here there are pink tulips inside and pots of hyacinths and yellow daffodils outside.
BeantwoordenVerwijderenLovely to see all the beautiful scenes of the city, the photography, spring flowers on your mantel, and your fabulous vintage dress. I'm sure you will receive many compliments wearing it. The little painting over your mantel is so charming. I am enjoying a lovely azalea topiary that my daughter gifted to me for a touch of spring inside. Hope your week is wonderful. xo Karen
BeantwoordenVerwijderenLeuk die terracotta potjes met schoteltjes op je prachtige schouw. Mooi plaatje.
BeantwoordenVerwijderenDank je wel Marieke!
VerwijderenYes a Spring is here, even if in the UK our weather has turned very cold again. I've transplanted my strawberries into a bigger bed and I'm pottering around the garden generally tidying up, it feels good! ;) xxx
BeantwoordenVerwijderenooh heerlijk!! wat genieten! Hier wordt je toch zo blij van!
BeantwoordenVerwijderenwat super gezellig bij jou weer. en wat heb je de lentesfeer toch goed weten te
pakken in de stad.
fijne week
Yolanda
De lente springt gewoon uit je foto´s. De schoorsteen zo mooi met de potjes en dat heerlijk overhangende boeket. Gewoonweg genieten van de lente in huis!
BeantwoordenVerwijderenGroetjes, Janneke
Just love those canals!
BeantwoordenVerwijderenAnd yes I'm enjoying Spring into the house! :)
V x
Photos of your blooms are beautiful, love the old city views also.
BeantwoordenVerwijderenHappy Spring to you ~ FlowerLady
Thank you so much Lorraine. A happy spring to you too!
VerwijderenYOur world, my goodness, your world is like a Dutch Master. The light is like that of Vermeer, the focus on one object is so strong yet gentle. Madelief, you really know how to capture. MUCH LOVE
BeantwoordenVerwijderenWat een heerlijke dag heb je gehad, zo te zien!
BeantwoordenVerwijderenEn dat je dan zomaar een leuke jurk vindt...
En je bloemen zijn als altijd prachtig!
Ik wens je een heel mooie week!
Liefs, Gerry
Beautiful pictures, I love the Dutch buildings and canals...each one is like a painting! Your flowers are so gorgeous too...yes, I have brought spring into my house as well :) Happy new week Madelief.
BeantwoordenVerwijderenHelen xox
You have certainly brought spring into my life today Madelief. Visiting Amsterdam soon and looking forward to canals and gorgeous houses. Utrecht looks wonderful too!
BeantwoordenVerwijderenLieve Madelief,
BeantwoordenVerwijderenDe foto's brachten mij even terug naar onze laatste afspraak in Utrecht, wat is het toch een heerlijke stad hè! Een wandeling langs de grachten is elke keer weer een feest.
Ik hoop binnenkort weer in de tuin aan de slag te gaan, er moet nog het een en ander gesnoeid worden. Volgens mij gaan aankomend weekend de temperaturen omhoog, wie weet heb ik er dan even gelegenheid voor.
Ik wens je een hele fijne week! Liefs, Ingrid
Wonderful spring vibes indeed!! So good to see! xx
BeantwoordenVerwijderenDear Madeliefje, so lovely to visit and see what you've been up to.
BeantwoordenVerwijderenLoved the photos of Utrecht, so interesting to see the different styles of architecture.
Your vintage dress is a wonderful find, the design reminds me of Lily of the Valley on it's gently curving stems. I'm sure you'll look very chic in it.
So nice to bring Spring indoors, you get to enjoy it twice as much.
Here in Oz, we are having quite a hot spell. It's very dry and I'm sure everyone is looking forward to some proper Autumn weather and cooler temps. At least the nights are cool enough to sleep well.......Claire xx
Your photography is always stunning. I am in awe of the clarity and color, and, of course, the subjects. Spring is trying to push her way in here. Today we had rain, not snow. Much prefer rain. There isn't anything blooming yet to bring in, but I did brave a purchase of 3 Paper White bulbs. They are on my kitchen counter in Mason jars and they are actually growing. I have never forced bulbs before. It is very hard work removing trees. You'll get a workout for sure. Have a wonderful week.
BeantwoordenVerwijderenPink and yellow tulips, branches of camellia and small vases of hyacinth - all in my house as we celebrate the good weather.
BeantwoordenVerwijderenYour photos are lovely - achingly lovely, some of them. I am particularly fond of Lily of the Valley and enjoyed your photos of them.
Such beautiful photos :) We are dithering between winter and spring here. One minute there's bright sunshine and the next hail and sleet. That's the British weather for you! Love the dress.
BeantwoordenVerwijderenIk ben steeds verbaasd hoe je steeds een vintage jurk vindt. Ik kan in zo'n winkel nooit iets vinden. Grappig nietwaar? Het is niet te leren denk ik. Lekker voorjaarboeken. Ik heb 50 tulpen gekozen deze week. Heerlijk! groetjes,
BeantwoordenVerwijderenHetty
Dearest Madelief,
BeantwoordenVerwijderenLovely post and yes, Utrecht is the beautiful Heart of The Netherlands and in the spring it looks even lovelier.
Enjoy the spring and hope you recovered from your mega job in the garden.
Hugs,
Mariette
PS as to those series about husband Pieter's Trip to East Asia, it was ONLY him who traveled at that time... I wish I could have joined him but we didn't have the financial means for doing so. Finally I worked this out, scanning the old slides (and some photos from a book he'd put together) and Pieter enjoyed re-living this very special experience. If we compare, we all have SO much to be grateful for. Especially in the rural areas what I show in upcoming scheduled posts, where the average tourist never gets to go...
Thank you for sharing your lovely flowers, Madelief!! Such a pretty preview of spring there. Speaking of spring, we are enjoying temps in the 70s today in DC. Cheers
BeantwoordenVerwijderenUtretch looks a wonderful Dutch town, that was so lucky finding the lovely dress too! Your home looks so beautiful with spring flowers. I hope you enjoyed the rest of your afternoon listening to the music with your feet up! Sarah x
BeantwoordenVerwijderenDear Madelief, you are still a few weeks ahead of us in welcoming all that spring will bring.
BeantwoordenVerwijderenThat black and white dress is very chic...bravo to you for finding it! What a wonderful graphic design to its fabric.
I've never been to Utrecht,but the city's name has a beautifully friendly connection. For many years, there were a few locations of a wonderful artists's supplies shop here in NYC, called Utrecht Linens. Just the sound of the name was enough to encourage us to visit their shops. Now, Utrecht has been absorbed by some sort of business deal into Blick Art Store, which does not have quite the same graceful sound. However, the formerly Utrecht shops are still a pleasure to browse, and I will still patronize them. I have so many art supplies right here in my apartment that it is rarely truly necessary for me to buy more.
Ahhh, but I do love to browse.
xo
Heerlijk dat lentegevoel Madelief. Ik geniet weer helemaal van de foto's en hier schijnt de lentezon naar binnen. Lieve groet,
BeantwoordenVerwijderenYour photos make it seem as if Spring is already here, I'm sure your Winter must seem shorter because of the range of flowers you grow in your garden... wensen u een heerlijke rustige week. x
BeantwoordenVerwijderenBeautiful captures both inside and outside.I think that dress is made to fit you perfectly.
BeantwoordenVerwijderenHappy weekend ahead!
Olympia
I wish I could watercolor each and everyone of your beautiful photos!
BeantwoordenVerwijderenUtrecht is on my list of places to explore!
I cannot believe you have Lily of the Valley already. I named my DD who was born in May after the flower ;)
Thank you~
Hi Alexandra,
VerwijderenI don't have Lily of the Valley in my garden yet. They come from my local garden centre :-)
What a lovely name 'Lily' is!
Lieve♥ madelief..♥
BeantwoordenVerwijderenPrachtig♥ jou mooie kleurige♥ foto's..daar geniet iedereen wel van♥ zo bijzonder..;)
Je krijgt er enorme Lente♥ kriebels♥ van hihi..Lieve♥ Groeytjes Gaby..♥x♥
Time for my periodic 'happy fix' from Madelief's amazingly colourful and beautiful blog! It never disappoints. Thank you! Now it's time for a beer.
BeantwoordenVerwijderenPure delight ...
BeantwoordenVerwijderenWonderful blog post.
Wonderful images.
Thank you.
All the best Jan
Beautiful Madelief, thank you so much for coming to visit my blog! It means a lot to me that you would leave me a comment. I know everyone (including myself) is so very busy, but that gesture to acknowledgement is so sweet. Much love to you always! Anita
BeantwoordenVerwijderenWow! What a lovely post and lovely pictures Madelief...
BeantwoordenVerwijderenYour blog gives me so much inspiration, always!
Have a great saturday and take care.
Love, Titti
Everything on your blog is so beautiful. Some day I hope my health is getting better, and I can work in my garden....Your blog are so wonderful and pretty! I love your photos, Desirèe. It's like a dream...your cakes, decorations and flowers! Have a happy weekend.
BeantwoordenVerwijderenYour post is really full of spring vibes, dearest Madelief! Are these little flowers in your home lilies of the valley? In German they are called Maiglöckchen, what means they use to bloom in May... so these flowers are very "early birds" ;o))But they look adorable in the beautiful surrounding with the poetic portrait of a girl. I congratulate you for discovering the black and white dress - as well as the black and white photos in the exhibition are very impressive. Particularly funny, the Hitchcock-portrait :o))
BeantwoordenVerwijderenLots of Küschelbüschels from Traude
ჱܓჱܓჱܓჱܓჱܓჱܓჱܓჱܓჱܓჱܓჱܓჱܓ
MOOIMOOIMOOI!!!!!
BeantwoordenVerwijderenliefs van mij XX
Dear Madelief,
BeantwoordenVerwijderenYour Spring vibes are gorgeous and I see you have my favourite flowers - lily of the valley. I have a pot in the shade with some plants and all I have is a leaf at the moment so hope to one day have some little flowers.
Hugs
Carolyn
Just beautiful!
BeantwoordenVerwijderenI do LOVE the pink/gold big vase too.
Yes, spring has captured me also. I do believe the black and white dress is you for sure.
BeantwoordenVerwijderenIt is so wonderful...Love it!
BeantwoordenVerwijderen_______
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