January Favourites

I have been really into books lately and most of all very into sketching (I am sketching more than 10 designs a day and it's just so addicting). I have read tons of fashion design related books like the beautiful fall from Alicia Drake. That is definitely one of my favs this month (so far).

Basically it's about how fashion exploded in the late 1970's in Paris. It's all about the revelry between Karl Lagerfeld and Yves Saint Laurent and about celebrities  living 'the chic life'. Their shared obsession for beauty and fashion is fascinating.It's pretty addictive.

Other very interesting books (mostly fashion related) :

-Fashion A-Z

-D.V. Diana Vreeland

-The Fashion Designer Survival Guide 

This skirt has actually made it to my favs. I am so grateful for this one  (received it for Christmas). It's absolutely stunning and really well-made. Maybe it's still available at Topshop. I don't wear it on a daily basis but it's literally perfect for a special occasion.

This brownish sweater is my dad's one but it's just so comfy that I had to borrow it for some days (or maybe more). 

This post is kind of strange because it doesn't involve very much, just books, some clothes and the fact that I am really into drawing again, but I hope you enjoyed reading it. I wish you a wonderful day full of happiness and joy!

xx

Vegan dinner party

Hello my beautiful friends, before Christmas I made a Christmas dinner for my dearest friends. I know that food was only partly christmassy, but everything was so delicious and it was a successful evening. I will tell you now what I have cooked and if you are interested counseled a recipe, let me know.

There were a red cabbage salad with apple and lots of cinnamon, lentil soup, a rice dish with plenty of vegetables, Ovenwedges, Guacamole, Salsa and a carrot dip, ahh and even cheesy kale chips. For dessert I baked some cookies (gingerbread ones), my all-time favorite oat and dates squares and also a deliciousnes dessert from my dear friend. We ended our lovely dinner with baked apple including some pine nuts, raisins and of course cinnamon. It was a wonderful evening, we absolutely have to repeat it again. 

Vegan dates squares

Red cabbage salad

christmassy

Cheesy kale chips, guacamole, salsa

tadaaa

Lots of love, Valerie Brooks

Raw oat & dates squares

Some weeks ago I had a dinner party (a christmassy dinner party btw hahah) at my house and I decided to create something special for this (special) event. I made some oat squares which taste too good. This treat is vegan, gluten free and also very good for your body. 

Okay I think you are here because you want to make this deliciousness, so let’s get started.

What you need:

-400g dates

-100g oats

-4-6 tablespoons ground cinnamon

Just mix all the ingredients separately and mix them together at the end. (you can verkleinern the oats to have a better consistence.

Put the ground onto a baking paper and place this on a tablet. It should look like a raw small cake. Put it into the freezer for about 2 hours (or more) and when it’s hard just cut it into pieces and enjoy. If you liked it, send me pictures.

xoxo, Valerie Brooks

Outlet Shopping, Parndorf

 

Maybe this post will just be on in winter, but currently I am in our car and it’s July 16th. We have just been to an outlet near Vienna, in Parndorf.

I was here for the first time and I only had one and a half hour. This might sound long, but if there are shops like MK, Levi’s, Ralph Lauren….the time flies by so quickly. I basically ran the whole time to visit all the shops I wanted to.The plan was to buy a watch, but I bought another things too.

Firstly, I went straight to Fossil and found a beautiful gold watch. It was not on sale but it was much cheaper than not in an outlet. And I had to pay 10 % less, because I had made a privilege card before. So if you plan to go there, check out their website first. Then i headed to MK, I did not want to buy anything there, because I got a bag from there for my birthday in January, but I wanted to have a look. Of course. So there were pretty bags and if you are looking for one, Parndorf is a great choice, because most of the bags were cheaper about 50-120 euros.

I do not shop often by Mango, but this time I found 2 beautiful dresses for summer and a white tanktop/blouse, all for 30 euros, that is pretty good.

The last item I have bought, was a bag. A bag from Liebeskind Berlin. It reminds me of the mulberry bag…I got it for 100 euros cheaper and I also got 10 % off. I didn’t wanted to buy anything else, but this bag was really worth it and I am happy that i made this choice. In the sun it looks really shiny, so beautiful. I don’t know whether you can see it, but it’s black-grey and I do not own a bag like this.

To sum up, i enjoyed being there for this short time and i will definitely go back if I want to buy a designer item, because Parndorf has great brands with prices which are okay for these things.

The location is also very cool, because the whole outlet is build like a little town and believe me, you could spend there a whole day easily.

xoxo, Valerie Brooks

Caramel Nicecream / Chia

Hello my beautiful friends, today I want to share with you this delicious recipe. I love this for breakfast since it's light and sweet. Caramel nicecream. Sounds perfect, right?
So you need some dates (I used Medjool Dates), some frozen bananas, chaises, flaxseeds and fruits. You can also add some nuts If you want to.Believe me, this combination tastes like caramel.
Mix together the frozen bananas, add the dates and give the substance into a jar or a bowl.
Finally add the chiaseeds and flaxseeds and merge everything together. Serve and enjoy!!!

xx Valerie

Madeira 2012

Rovinj 2015, Croatia