H&M fedora – G-Star jacket c/o – Gina Tricot dress – Zara sandals – Primark bag – Michael Kors watch – Diamanti pet Tutti bracelet c/o – Alain Afflelou sunglasses c/o

When I was little, I had this breezy yellow summer dress with big sunflowers on it. It was my absolute favorite and I have this vague memory of running around with it when we were on vacation, having the best time. When I spotted this daisy dress in Cologne, it immediately reminded me of that sunflower dress I cherished so much as a child. Since I’m still a kid at heart and it wasn’t expensive at all, I bought it and wore it the next day. And yes, it gives me the same happy kind of feeling that other dress used to give me – I have a feeling this might become a new summer favorite!

If I wanted to go to Cologne for the weekend, they asked. Mais oui – I mean, jawohl! German is not my favorite language, but I at least like to pretend I speak it fluently. Just add some German flavor to your Dutch and the job is done! Cologne isn’t the most typical place one would go to for a city trip, nonetheless I’ve been there a few times for the festival called Summerjam – where I’ve had many awesome times. This time the trip also involved a festival, but one that revolved around fashion and design – also known as Le Bloc.

Our hotel (the Hopper hotel, a former monastery) was located in the Belgian neighborhood, where Le Bloc took place. Didn’t spot any Belgians, did see a lot of street names similar to ours. Alright, back to Le Bloc party. Imagine a super-cozy neighborhood, streets filled with hipsters and handsome Germans, music and a lot of cool shops and you get a pretty good idea of what this fashion and design festival is about. I instantly fell in love with a denim-aztec-neon Maison Scotch jacket at Boutique Belgique but I ignored my shopping voice for once and decided to leave it in Cologne. After discovering the shops we enjoyed the drinks, the food and German vibe – which can be described as chill, fun and cheap. Conclusion: there’s no place like Cologne for a Bloc party!

Thanks to Thalys and Köln Tourismus for a fun weekend!