There are many reasons I love blogging as my profession. One of them is certainly the friendships and connections you build with other bloggers and readers.

And sometimes those connections don’t just stay virtual either. I met reader Lorraine in Singapore and previously saw bloggers Lisa and Stephanie.

Suzanne Carillo in Amsterdam | 40plusstyle.com

This week blogger Suzaanne Carillo came to visit. Not just me but also my blogging and real life buddies Anja and Greetje. Needless to say we are having a ball!

We are meeting up as a group and have created some videos (more on that at a later date) but I also got to take out Suzanne individually.

Wearing a colorful Preen skirt with fuchsia blouse | 40plusstyle.com

I took her to the streets of Amsterdam, specifically the Jordaan area and the ‘nine streets’. A beautiful area in Amsterdam full of independent little shops. My friend Greetje did a fabulous report on this area here.

At the Amsterdam canals | 40plusstyle.com

The area is surrounded by canals which of course make for the perfect photo opportunity.

happy bloggers | 40plusstyle.com

I was wearing my Preen colorful skirt which I showed you a few days ago. This time I made the look even more colorful by adding an airy fuchsia blouse which I acquired in one of the local shops here. I paired the outfit with flat shoes this time to make it easy to walk comfortably through Amsterdam the whole day.

Suzanne wearing a colorful flower dress | 40plusstyle.com

Suzanne embraced color as well in a beautiful airy flower dress. She completed the look with comfortable shoes and the summer essential we discussed yesterday: the light straw hat!

Mendo bookstore in Amsterdam | 40plusstyle.com

This is one of the new shops we discovered on our walk: Mendo. An incredible bookshop where they only sell big coffee table books about fashion and design. The books are sometimes enormous and almost every designer was covered. An absolute must-see for fashion lovers!

Romantic pink flower dress | 40plusstyle.com

Suzanne tried on this gorgeous dress. Unfortunately, it was just a tiny bit too small so she did not buy it in the end. She sure looks great in it though!

At the Dam in Amsterdam | 40plusstyle.com

Of course we did not only shop but did a little sightseeing as well. Here she is in front of the Paleis op de Dam, the place where our new king was recently crowned.

Meeting another blogger in real life for the first time | 40plusstyle.com

And this is what happens when 2 bloggers that have virtually known eachother for years meet for the first time in real life. Big hugs and laughter all around. Pictured here is Greetje from No Fear of Fashion.

Posing in front of the Amsterdam canals | 40plusstyle.com

Greetje joined us for diner after her work and we chatted until we could chat no more.

It’s always a risk to meet up and spend a lot of time with people that you don’t really know in real life. Then again, you get to know some readers and bloggers so well through connecting on an almost daily basis that it feels that you actually know them really well.

Suzanne was exactly as I had imagined her to be and more and we had a lot of fun and lots of great conversations.

There is still one more day left to enjoy her company which we will spend with the four of us in Amsterdam. Expect some more reports, videos and photos coming up on this site soon!

Have you ever met up with friends that you have never seen before? How did that go?

Sylvia

Sylvia is 40+style’s editor-in-chief and has been helping women find their unique style since 2011. An alumni of the School of Color and Design, she is devoted to empowering women of any age to look and feel their best. Read more about Sylvia and 40+style on this page.

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