On the 17th of December, the same day as we had planned our CRAVE evening at the Trelise Cooper Suite, snowflakes kept on coming from the sky, covering the city in beautiful white… but also creating chaos on the roads… My own travel to the Cornelis Schuytstraat, which normally is 10 minutes by car, now took me 1,5 hours by tram. The fact that our expected full house with more than 30 RSVP’s turned into a mini-crowd with almost as much guests as models did not surprise me at all. It also did not stop us from enjoying the evening which was so well organized by the Trelise team!

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This post was written by Isrid van Geuns of Isworks and the created by Cristina Stoian of Crisspix

Last night The CRAVE company launched its first edition of the CRAVEbook in Europe, Amsterdam. CRAVE Amsterdam, The Urban Girl’s Manifesto is the ultimate guide to the places women crave in Amsterdam. Over 150 female entrepreneurs showing their businesses in and around Amsterdam, from shop owners to coaches from chocolate and beverage to cosmetics and Idea concepts. It is all there and waiting for you!

We are at the Hotel Casa 400 in Amsterdam waiting to kick off…

We found our way through the oranges and limes to the press room. Melody Biringer, the founder of the CRAVE company, states that Amsterdam was the ‘real mission’ and that it took her eight years to finally get there. You can see that she is very proud that it’s been accomplished and introduces several women who joined the CRAVE Amsterdam guide to say something about their businesses.

In the spotlights

Catriona Ravelli is the owner of ZZP Adviescafé and talks about a new concept called LaptopLounge where we will have our drinks later on. Margriet Darwinkel from Happy Family Life mentions the Family Organizer and that it is all about ‘back to the basics’ and parenting from the heart. Antoinette Gast from Tuyu started her own business in developing business gifts when she was looking for a job. For her Tuyu is the combination of ‘helping other people’, ‘business sense’ and ‘beautiful products’. And the website for mothers and pregnant women called Trotsemoeders.nl is founded by proud mother Mira Ahles. She accentuates how difficult it is for her, as a mother of three little children and having her own business, to keep her household tide and clean. What started as a joke on twitter popped up as the ‘Club van slechte huisvrouwen’ and already is a huge success that led to radio interviews and is booming in the media at this moment. After all the enthusiastic talks from these entrepreneurs we are invited for the Book Launch and drinks in the Laptop Lounge.

LaptopLounge

The LaptopLounge is a new concept owned by Marijke Krabbenbos from IdeaCompany and Catriona Ravelli from ZZP Adviescafé. The Laptop Lounge is located in the bar of Hotel Casa 400. The concept is about giving you a place to work and connect with other people. You can either work there on your own, join for plenary coffees and lunches if you like, have brainstorm sessions with others or simply share ideas. It’s all about Working & Connecting with the idea that everyone can learn from each other! You can become a member via www.laptoplounge.nl or just get a day card at the hotel reception. The atmosphere in the Laptop Lounge is excellent and a good combination of feeling at home and work vibes. And now it’s filled with all the business girls and a few men. You can get drinks at the bar, plates with sushi from Sushi Time, little exquisite treats from Lombardo’s, and other finger food comes by, including the fabulous raw pie chocolates from Diana Store’s Raw Superfoods. Let the CRAVE party start!

Welcome CRAVE Amsterdam

Melody Biringer welcomes us all and tells what inspired her to found the CRAVE company. Her whole life she lived in Seattle running her businesses and mainly saw her best friends just twice a year. That was not acceptable and she threw a party for all of them and the CRAVE party had been born and since then held every month. When she got to know The Netherlands she fell for the Dutch cookies ‘stroopwafels’ at Schiphol and had similar feelings over here as she has in Seattle. Basically it felt like home coming. She rented a flat for nearly three months and learned to ride a bike the way Dutch people do. Finally she brought the Orange Bikes from Tulpfietsen to Seattle as well! Here in Amsterdam she was wondering “where are all the female entrepreneurs?” and decided to bring CRAVE to Amsterdam. She brought CRAVE to more than twenty cities in the US, two in Canada and Amsterdam is the first one in Europe. She emphasizes that she wants to start a movement in Amsterdam. Melody gives a special thanks to her fabulous team and asks them to come on stage.

CRAVE Amsterdam team

Cristina Stoian is introduced as ‘the glue that holds everything together’. She had much fun taking all the pictures for the CRAVE Amsterdam book and it helped starting her own photography business with Crisspix. She thanks all the photographers who helped and assisted her with a special thanks to Paul Butterfield who was her mental coach.

Isrid van Geuns comes up and expresses that she likes the effect of meeting through social media. She started 1,5 year ago again as a female entrepreneur with IS WORKS and she met many new women that are all so enthusiastic. Her moto is “Real success is finding your lifework in the work that you love”. She is proud about the CRAVE Amsterdam guide and states we all should make a platform by doing things together and bundle our strengths.

“They’re all great women. Why didn’t I know them before”, says Athalie Stegeman from Lotus Living, referring to the period when she just met some female entrepreneurs through CRAVE. There now are 1200 people that are interested in CRAVE and they start connecting through the guide and CRAVE platform. She learned that all the business women have such great spirit! Athalie finishes her talk with “Bring us forward with all we do.”

Melody again thanks her team and emphasizes we should pass the CRAVE word!

While the CRAVE party continues and all women are connecting, searching for new contacts, looking for old ones and catching up with friends, the drinks and bites passes. At the end there is even a bicycle to win for all the ladies who handed in their business cards. The bicycle is sponsored by Marjolijn van Oordt, the owner of Tulpfietsen. And the lucky winner is Fenje Bolt from TEA BAR. Congrats Fenje! When leaving the LaptopLounge there are CRAVE Amsterdam give-away tea bags from the tea bar to bring home with you.

This is what CRAVE is all about, and the CRAVE Amsterdam book launch is a great success!

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This post was written for the CRAVE company by Marjon Parmentier, who worked as editor for the online magazine vrOuw.nl and was responsible for partnerships, public relations, writing articles about spirituality and female related subjects and other content for the website. With her business background she thought that what she did at vrOuw.nl, she could do for various websites/organizations. She is passionate about people and why they do what they do!

Therefore she recently started PARMsupport in order to support other persons with their organization/website by various activities, such as supplying content for websites, writing articles, workshops, project support and other. For her it is all about People, Communication, (Business) Spirituality, Female Strength (girl power), Eco/ sustainability and Health. Soon you can check her out via www.PARMsupport.com.

We all want beautiful skin, especially during the “skin showing” months of summer. So how do we get it without spending a fortune at the Clinique counter? By eating antioxidant rich foods, that’s how. Your skin, just like every other organ in your body, needs antioxidant laden foods to keep it healthy and toxin free. Here are some of the most important foods to eat for beautiful skin. Try to get these delicious foods into your diet as often as possible and I promise you will love the results.

Foods for beautiful skin:

Sunflower seeds, Swiss chard, and almonds- What do they all have in common? Vitamin E! Vitamin E works to protect skin from ultra violet rays and rejuvenate the cells. Sauté swiss chard with garlic and olive oil and top with a mix of toasted almonds and sunflower seeds. Vitamin E never tasted so good!

Cauliflower, walnuts, and cabbage- Did you think wild salmon was the only place to get Omega 3 fatty acids? Well get excited because they are in vegetables too! Omega 3’s are essential in creating beautiful skin for they help maintain cell membranes. It is these membranes that act as barriers for the body, letting water and nutrients in, and keeping toxins out. Make an easy cabbage slaw topped with walnuts then steam cauliflower and serve with a lemon tahini sauce (also packed with Vitamin C). After these two dishes, your skin will be good to go!

Carrots, Kale, and Apricots- Not only are these foods quick and easy to get your hands on, they also serve up a giant does of Vitamin A (aka Beta Carotene). Vitamin A is involved in the repair and growth of body tissues, which is particularly beneficial when dealing with sun damaged skin. Stir-fry carrots and kale with garlic, ginger, and soy sauce for a great side dish. For the apricots, try throwing them on the grill for a great summer dessert!

Bell peppers, broccoli, and strawberries- Loaded with more vitamin C than an orange, these foods work to create collagen in the skin and protect your lovely epidermis from oxidative stress. Best ways to eat them? Grill the peppers and broccoli or eat them raw with hummus. As for strawberries, just pop them in your mouth (or put them in a crisp).

Shitake mushrooms, cod and shrimp- Mushrooms (both shittake and crimini), cod, and shrimp are chock full of selenium, a potent nutrient that promotes skin elasticity and quality. Broil cod with a fresh tomatoes and basil. For the shrimp and mushrooms, toss them into an easy Thai curry. So good!

*This post was written by Jamie Dougherty for the Please feel free to contact Jamie with questions or to share your health, wellness and foodie stories. Email: jamiegd@jamieliving.com Facebook: JAMIE LIVING Twitter:JAMIE LIVING

From runway show recaps to laid-back street looks, the world of fashion blogging is a vibrant virtual scene. It’s not necessarily about the newest, hottest, or spendiest trend — it’s about the textiles, color palettes and silhouettes that make us feel gorgeous.

For a jolt of wardrobe inspiration to pull you through the dog days of summer, bookmark Jazzi McGilbert, Sally McGraw and “Miss” James Kicinski. While their personal styles may diverge, their message is the same: get dressed, and get going!

Jazzi McGilbert of JazziMcG.com

Thrift store scenester? Or haute couture hound? Jazzi McGilbert (aka Jazzi McG) confidently struts straight down the center of the spectrum. Her blog traipses through the world of high fashion, throws the spotlight on intimate “intern confessionals” and shares a few DIY treasures (Alexander Wang sock garters, anyone?). As Jazzi puts it, her mission is to “let everyone know that the fashion industry can be tackled without a trust fund”. Can I get an amen, sister?

Sally McGraw of Already Pretty
Can one personal stylist change the way women view their bodies, and themselves? Sally McGraw thinks so. The lovely McGraw elevates her passion for chic clothing with an outspoken commitment to body acceptance. Blog posts like “What IS Flattering?” provide commonsense insights into topics that have frustrated shoppers since the dawn of time. And her weekly contests and giveaways — which range from cotton scarves to summer frocks to hefty gift cards — are not to be missed.

“Miss” James Kicinski of Bleubird Vintage
Chic baby mama. Vinyl record collector. Frilly knicker designer. Miss James is a retro inspiration — and a drop-dead gorgeous one, at that. In addition to writing about her latest Etsy obsessions and selling dreamy vintage-inspired collections through her online shop, James also blogs over at N.E.E.T. magazine. Best of luck as she stylishly feathers the nest for her new baby (due in July). What a busy little bird!

*This post was written by Alexandra Franzen for the CRAVE company:

ALEXANDRA FRANZEN is a writer + editor + organization freak. She designs rockstar resumes, leads personal branding jam sessions, writes marketing copy and teaches wallflowers how to hustle like a gangsta’. You can find her blogging up a storm at Unicorns for Socialism and tweeting away @alex_franzen.

When running a business (or just running your life), you are constantly making new connections. Whether you are heading up an event, composing a website or publicizing your blog- you are building up your network of people you need to know. We are constantly CRAVEing assistance from professionals that can give us good advice and help us grow. We have scoured the Amsterdam area and found some women owned businesses that will do the trick!

CoBuro
Coordinated and organized, these event planners will have any event requests you have covered. From organizing events to developing products CoBuro is effective, efficient, creative, and flexible. They believe in getting to know their clients and move towards truly knowing them in order to better serve them.

Toute Media
Specializing as an independent PR and media consultant, Fabienne de Vries is ready to help business professions create the best business possible. With her company Toute Media she offers presentation services for business events but also empowers other people with presentation skills individually through coaching personal performance.

So PR
Here is a public relations office that will get your business not only on its feet, but moving and growing! So PR claim to take PR and marketing to a whole new and higher level. They don’t just market a brand; they develop an all around philosophy and strategy in a remarkable way.

Its summer! Which means wedding season is in full swing. It includes then, grabbing the gal pals and celebrating your bride-to-be’s last nights before she takes the plunge. We have looked throughout Amsterdam and found a couple fabulous places you’ll CRAVE to find creative gifts for your lady.

Marlies Dekkers
What better gift to give your gal pal but some sweet and o-so-sexy lingerie! If women’s delicates is what you’re looking for Marlies Dekkers is who to go to first. This lovely woman has designed some of the most successful and sexy lingerie of our time! With over 750 outlets worldwide, you can see she’s no small name. Her designs are flattering yet unique and will have your bride-to-be blushing but extremely grateful! To see more about this sensational woman and her designs, visit her website.

Zitara
If lingerie isn’t really the gift you were thinking, there’s always the option of jewelry! But we don’t CRAVE just any jewelry, we want it to be special. This is where Anju Madan comes in to help. She is the founder and head designer of Zitara accessories and jewelry. They are known and loved for their contempory jewelry designs with silver and semi-precious stones. With fabulous and unique designs, your gift will be greatly appreciated! To see more about their locations and products click here.