The first thing you’ll notice about this post is that Angie isn’t writing it. We’ve been taking pictures of Angie’s outfit every day and of course only some of them make it into a post. I was particularly motivated to post this one, however, because I was a bit unhappy with the quality of my picture of Angie’s outfit in SeaTac. I had been hoping to find a place with nice light and some typical airport signage in the background, but in the end it was just an ugly, gloomy airport departure gate in a state of disrepair.

Then we were in Schiphol Airport for our flight from Amsterdam to London and I saw exactly the situation I had been hoping for in SeaTac. Also, air travel in general is such a great opportunity for fun photography. So we took a few pictures before boarding our flight.

As for Angie’s outfit, I think it’s a perfect travelling ensemble. Casual and practical, but also pulled together. I love the denim on denim, made subtle by dark wash on top and light wash on the bottom. And I do think that mixed media denim jacket is fantastic.

G-Star RAW makes eco-friendly pledge, Target recruits bloggers for its new swimwear campaign, Speedo signs an Olympic medallist, and more news from the style trenches this week.

• Target teams up with bloggers for its new “A Fit For Every Body” swimwear campaign.
• After recent plans to publish Lucky Magazine on a quarterly basis, the print publication is now discontinued entirely.
• Speedo has signed five-time Olympic medalist Missy Franklin as a year-round brand ambassador.
• A retrospective of Isaac Mizrahi’s 30-plus-year career in fashion has been announced for next year. The exhibition, “Isaac Mizrahi: An Unruly History”, will be staged at The Jewish Museum in New York.
• Dutch denim brand G-Star RAW has pledged to use only forest-friendly fibres in its rayon and viscose clothing.

Fun Fashion Fact

Did you know that for years designer Ann Demeulemeester, one of “the Antwerp Six” who left her eponymous label in 2013, lived in La Maison Guiette. This is the only house in Belgium designed by Swiss-French architect Le Corbusier. It’s an early example of the “International Style”, and was built in 1927 as the residence and studio of the painter René Guiette.

My Dad lives in the Netherlands, in a very quaint little village called Velp that’s near the German border and a 10-minute bus ride from a city called Arnhem. He was born in Velp, and grew up here. In his late twenties he accepted a job in Hong Kong and that was the beginning of an adventure that included marrying my mother and having his two children, and living in Hong Kong, Japan and South Africa. After my mum died 15 years ago he returned to Velp and has been living here since.

If you’ve seen the movie “A Bridge Too Far”, you’ll know how significant this part of the Netherlands was during World War Two. Papa was a young lad at the time. The Allied forces freed Velp when he was 12 years old and that day is still celebrated annually some seventy years later.   

Whenever we’re in Velp I like to go on a walk with my Dad that takes us past the home where he grew up. I love hearing his stories about living in Velp before, during and after the War. Some of the stories make me sad, but they also help me understand my Dad, and appreciate him even more. 

My great grandfather — my Dad’s grandfather — had their house built in 1906. My Dad, with his little sister, his parents, and a few of the neighbours would seek shelter in their cellar during air raids. During the toughest years of the war food was very scarce and kids stopped going to school. At one point my Dad’s father was taken away by German soldiers to dig trenches for their armies, but he managed to escape. These experiences have shaped my Dad into the amazing man that he is today.

We took these photos when we were with Papa last week. Here we’re standing in front of the house on Koning Straat.

The house has a stone with the inscription, “R Tuinman, oud 5 jaar, 1906”. This was a dedication to my great grandfather’s son Reijer, who was 5 years old at the time.

The shed at the back of the house was converted into a workshop for my Dad’s father, my Opa, who was a carpenter by profession. My Dad was a Chartered Accountant before he retired, but he’s very handy because he spent many a weekend in his father’s workshop learning about carpentry. 

My Dad’s almost 83 and still the most independent, resourceful, tenacious, practical, and hardy person I know. He is a survivor who does not let things get the better of him. His strength is coupled with an incredible gentleness and great patience. My Dad is also the most charming person I know, and I couldn’t be more proud of his willingness to live for his children and grandchild after he unexpectedly lost the love of his life to cancer.

We at YLF wish you a happy Father’s Day this Sunday.

I’m wearing outfit 9 in the series on my travel capsule for a 4 week trip.

Design Sponge is currently doing a three-part series on DIY nail art projects for those of us with shorter nails. Here are the first two instalments: cat nails and daisy nails.

According to StyleCaster the most popular nail colours tend to be nudes. That’s why they asked nail art expert Miss Pop to share some cool ways to wear nude nails this Summer.

I enjoyed reading the comments on Cup of Jo’s post about her go-to nail polish. Which is yours? After seeing this picture, I was inspired to go with an ink blue polish for my toenails, and I’m loving it.

Fab Links from Our Members

Diane G really likes how Catherine looks in this outfit which combines comfort, practicality and oodles of style.

Joy found two interesting articles in The New York Times about women shaving their faces.

There’s been some discussion on the forum about uniforms. But Annagybe says this interesting experiment shows us what really happens.

Laura (rhubarbgirl) directs us to news about Gap lay-offs and the planned closure of 26% of their US stores.

Maneera loves Kate Mara’s new pixie haircut.

This article on how living in New York affects one’s style resonates with L’Abeille, not at all an urbanite, because it speaks to how we can maintain a sense of style while making compromises to suit our lifestyle needs.

Preston Davis from Keep It Chic shares her shopping rules. HiggsMistress found the overlap with Angie’s shopping advice interesting.

Roxanna liked this post about budget-friendly go-tos over at Les Anti-Modernes.

She also loved this witty and insightful article about Marie Claire’s Chelsea Peng wearing a red carpet gown in real life for an entire week.

The Directrice talks about spending, splurging, and pricing hierarchies. This is always of interest to Olivegreen as she feels obligated not to strain the family budget, while satisfying her desire for novelty and some quality in her wardrobe.

Kookaburra found it refreshing to see a street style report from Japan that is more about how the general population dresses, not just a few young kids in Harajuku.

Dee would like to share this article on backlash from affluent consumers about the ubiquity of logos on high-end bags.

Laurinda refers us to a study of the effects of wearing heels on ankle strength and balance with a group of South Korean University women who are required to wear high heels as they prepare for careers as airline attendants.