Nine Streets |

Having spent some time recently browsing the boutiques in Amsterdam’s Nine Streets, I came across one shop who’s name I was semi-familiar with. Scotch & Soda, an Amsterdam original, has definitely popped up on my late night ASOS searches for a while now.

What struck me most, when browsing round their bricks and mortar store, was how well Scotch & Soda have branded themselves. Although the label has been going since the 80′s, in the early noughties it was rebooted and has since expanded to include womenswear (Maison Scotch), premium denim, and childrenswear. It oozes that fashionable, effortless cool only the Parisian and Dutch women of Europe seem to be able to pull off…bitches.

With photoshopped sales assistants floating around (it should be illegal to be as good-looking as the men who work there) it did take me a few minutes to focus on the actual clothes. And thus I spent a good ten minutes tearing myself away from a tweed blazer with a star print lining. Seriously, their Maison Scotch statement pieces are BUFF.

You have been warned. Thanks to Dolce & Gabbana, stars are back in orbit this Autumn, and everyone is following suit.

Having jaunted over Titanic Style to Holland recently, I wasn’t looking for the obvious that Amsterdam has to offer. Having only 6 hours in total to spend in the city meant some meticulous planning was initially involved, and then subsequently thrown out the window. However, I did fulfil my personal mission and instead of succumbing to the, shall we say, more ‘touristic’ pleasures of Dam, I went in quiet search of the ‘Nine Streets’ or the ‘De Negen Straatjes’ to speak native.

Situated only a few minutes from the Royal Palace and Dam Square, the Nine Streets sit in the heart of the Canal district and are home to an array of weird and wonderful, as well as designer and vintage independent shops. Actually, in most instances ‘weird’ is definitely the right word to use. Having arrived on a Sunday, the stores pretty much chose when they wanted to open e.g. 1 o’clock in most cases, and many of the dusty windows displaying Vintage vinyls (one shop window was dedicated completely to Prince’s back catalogue), typewriters, and even stripper shoes, just begged to ask ‘how do I make a profit?’. Maybe the recession fairy forgot the Nine Streets.