What did I write yesterday, about how pessimistic (for a reason or another) I am about what will happen tonight against Germany?! May I be blunt? No, better not, ‘cause “may I be blunt” usually means something like “I am about to be very rude and rant like I’ve never done before…”, but in few words: a huge Charlie Foxtrot.

That said, I will obviously remain a huge fan of Netherlands football team, root for the match against Portugal, and most important continue with the “Oranje Dagen” project (hehe wait, even if project is a way too serious word…).

From this point of view, I could not find a better title than “Gezellig”, both talking about the specific post and with the will to use a world which like practically no other one is Dutch par excellence. I mean, if we want to be honest there is a third reason too, ‘cause since the title with the two editorials was already long I absolutely wanted to add only one / two words right after them… but more specifically… well, first of all: just a couple of words about what “Gezellig” is and means. Briefly is a Dutch untranslatable (and without the help of a mother tongue unpronounceable) word (no: cozy doesn’t express the meaning) which means… a lot of things in fact!, you can use it to describe a cozy and/or warm place, a delightful situation, a pleasant person too, or a funny party, a friendly, familiar, fond or tender situation… they can all be “Gezellig”. And the conclusions are in any case the same: “Gezelligheid kent geen tijd” and “Gezelligheid kent geen grenzen”… hehe something like “Time flies when there’s Gezelligheid” and “Gezelligheid knows no limits”…

All that said and right after this “Gezellig preamble”, somehow necessary in these “Oranje Dagen” – Patricia van der Vliet appears for the second time this week, and in fact this post is the natural continuation of the “Oh! You Pretty Thing(?)” I did about her and Josephine Skriver @ Vogue Russia June 2012 by Benny Horne few days ago. A post where the conclusion very briefly was: two cute models with a crystal clear, delicate, graceful and adorable beauty, but who both are capable of expressing something more, something else (too), something way more interesting, versatile and in some occasions even cryptic / astonishingly gorgeous, still without the enigmatic and multifaceted exterior unique characteristics / astonishing body presence and drop dead beauty some other models may at a first glance more manifestly express (for the record, the second part is specifically about Josephine, and how not-surprised I’ve been as I knew she shot for VS).

So – let’s start from the first editorial I decided to propose, the one @ Twin Magazine Spring/Summer 2012 by Tung Walsh, and let’s see what “Gezellig” has to do with it and generally Patricia:

tungwalsh.blogspot.com

(a couple of words about Patricia’s short black hair? Here the thing is and looks simply perfect ‘cause just like the makeup or styling is expressive and part of a coherent suggestion, generally… well, I won’t say if I prefer her this way or blonde, but what I want to underline is how stupid would be to change your mind about a model because of her hair; so yes, if it is a good opportunity to propose something else, ok, but if the way it often happens it’s a way to paint the front of your house with a different color to sell it more successfully, well, the house will still remain the same, and a mirror for larks only for larks after all good is…)

First of all, even if “Грусть и красота” (“Sadness/Sorrow/Melancholy and beauty”) was the title of that editorial @ Vogue Russia, I have to say these shots because of makeup, styling, photography and whatever you can find right between them powerfully expressed that subtle concept, being a little less “accommodating” and somehow wonderfully effective. The result is in fact successful and surprisingly captivating, makeup, styling and first of all a wonderful Patricia played a great part in such a subtle, feeble nevertheless strong whisper these shots have been.

Btw, yep, what “Gezellig” has to do with Patricia, reasons are practically two:

-a word untranslatable, so a word that practically doesn’t have an univocal corresponding term, which yes, can somehow be explained, but with a good amount of other words;

-from that same point of view, we talk about a word capable of describing a wide range of concepts with ease and always being simply perfect in its wonderful simple uniqueness.

“Wonderful simple uniqueness”, so something unique, wonderful and at the same time transmitting a forceful feeling of simplicity, lively naturalness – lively naturalness?

(first of all, these first two shots look simply wonderful; then, more specifically – what about Patricia wearing Balenciaga? can you feel some kind of marvelous mismatch?, ‘cause I definitely do… and for the record, just to be a little more clear about what I mean in Balenciaga SS12 show the outfit was worn by a model like Hanne Gaby Odiele)

(what I love of Patricia is she could show ANY finger with that same nonchalant cheeky face, and do it successfully… hehe *_*’)

designscene.net

Here by Regan Cameron @ Numero Tokyo July/August 2012, Patricia marvelously proposed the best characteristics of her “crystal clear, delicate, graceful and adorable beauty”, and at the same time the Dutch model showed her capacity to be a lively and brisk interpreter – now cheerfully cocky, now confidently seducing, now brightly playful, all those things, and like no other model could have been. “Gezellig”, the way her versatile yet crystal clear, delicate, graceful and adorable beauty can be, and untranslatable,  multifaceted, the way the word “Gezelligheid” is.