Top 5 things to look forward to in 2016
Best wishes for 2016!
2015 was a great year. As an ode to all the fantastic shots our team captured in 2015 and all our loyal followers, we’ve put together a short list of the top 5 things to look forward to this year in Amsterdam – doubled up with our most popular blog and Instagram posts of 2015.
1. Several days (at least) of non-stop sun sometime between March 23 and September 17. Otherwise, don’t forget to smile while you squint and bear the rainy weather.
2. Doubling up with a lover (or a stranger). The best part about getting around in this city is pairing up – on one bike is cozy, but side-by-side works just as well. Our cyclists of the month from February love doubling!
3. Wearing black, preferably a leather jacket as well. 
4. Spotting adorable children and their (stylish) mamas. This black and white made waves on Facebook and Instagram. And photos of our own Aude (who now has two little ones) was the most-seen post of the year!
5. Discovering a new favorite corner in this fantastic city. By bike, of course! Maybe a new cafe or a nice view – where ever it is, let it be all yours.
A huge thanks to all our readers and followers this year! We are grateful for your loyalty and we wouldn’t still be around if it wasn’t for you. From all of us at Amsterdam Cycle Chic, happy new year!
Summer’s last days
Rain every day and then one little pocket of sunshine… and it’s shorts and ponytails again.
Snuggle up for sunset
Grab your bike and your love and head out to your favorite vista for tonight’s sunset. It’s bound to be a good one.
Ferry fashion
Sun is out which means all the cool kids are grabbing the free ferry to the North where it’s all happening!
By Mel
Do you stop at *all* red lights?
The other day I was riding down Vijzelstraat towards the city centre. As I was approaching the Prinsengracht (a one-way and precisely here), I slowed down, looked for on-coming cars and bikes from the left and right… and kept riding.
Yes, I knowingly rode through a red light. In Amsterdam. The capital of red-light-running. I know, that doesn’t make it ok.
A police car followed me, pulled me over, and proceeded to lecture me about how it’s unsafe, especially “because a police car was parked at the intersection.”
And then he actually asked me if he could give me a fine of €97. I had already argued my side by saying I felt safe, so I didn’t argue further. But could I have said no? I wonder.
So watch out Amsterdammers. They’re out to get ya!
In search of the perfect pick-up line
What about:
“Hallo mooie dame, you’d look nice on the back of my bike.”
Or maybe:
“I really need a good rack for my bike, yours would be perfect.”
What do you think?
3 styles in 3 minutes on Museumplein
Spotted on Museumplein: casual chic, sporty spice, and too cool for school … which one wins?
Taking it easy
On gorgeous spring days like today, sometimes you just have to stop and enjoy the views of the Amstel, the sunshine…and the cute boys in the rowing boats!
Park love!
It’s official: Spring is in the air! My favorite day of the year. The first really nice day that you don’t need gloves or wool socks.
Lovely 17-degree sunny weather brought all of Amsterdam to the Vondel Park for some much-deserved sun-on-skin action. Ahhhh doesn’t it feel so good. The park was full of people and their bikes thrown anywhere. It’s like as soon as they got to a sufficiently grassy and sunny spot–the kickstands came down, pants rolled up, and blankets strewn. Dust off those sunglasses (or just squint like a real Amsterdammer) and pop the prosecco, because spring is here.
Cycle Chic Spotlight: Singer songwriter Andy
Andy knows what it is to follow your heart. She used to be an investment banker for one of the Netherlands’ biggest banks, but she stopped that promising career to follow her heart and she became a musician. Andy is a happy, positive, 30 year old Dutch singer songwriter. She sings about love, love in relationships but also love for a city. And Andy… she is in love with Amsterdam.
Andy loves Amsterdam
Nine years ago Andy moved to Amsterdam and she fell in love with the city. “Amsterdam is beautiful, the atmosphere is good and there are so many different people. The fact that there are more bikes than people makes the city even cooler. Everyone cycles! Cycling makes people more social then when everyone sits in their own car. I also love the trams in the city. Sometimes I just hop into a tram and let it take me to its final destination. In those 9 years I got to know all the tram routes!”
City Love
‘City love’ is the name of the record Andy is working on. She is in the middle of a crowdfunding campaign to finance it. With as little as 10 euros people can fund it: “Crowdfunding the money to release my second record is a logical choice for me. Music is social. It is my way to communicate. I make music for people. To move them, to inspire them, or to make them happy. So if I make music for ‘the crowd’ why not involve them in the process of producing my record?” The campaign is going well. In only two weeks Andy funded nearly 60% of her project. The record ‘City love’ is about Andy’s love for Amsterdam and about love between people. “Love is nice, it is horrible, it is disastrous… sometimes love makes you act like a complete idiot. That is what makes love fascinating.”
Racing bike
Andy is not only in love with her city, but also with her bike. She bought her racing bike 6 years ago on Marktplaats (the Dutch eBay). “I bought it because I wanted to see if I liked to go racing. But the bike wasn’t good enough for long cycles so I kept it as a city bike. I have many bikes that got stolen in Amsterdam so I am very careful with this one. I used to carry it up three stairs to my apartment, so that I didn’t have to leave it on the street. Luckily I now have a shared garden with a little storage box where I can put it.”
Look at Andy: No side wheels!
Andy has one very clear memory of when she was 4 and learned to cycle. “It was the last day I would cycle with side wheels. I knew that this would be a ‘Kodak’ moment, so that morning I put on my best dress and cycled with a big smile, and my cute little pink basket to my father taking the picture.”
(Cycling) style
Like most Dutch Andy doesn’t have a ‘cycling’ style, she just cycles with what she is wearing that day. Almost always Andy wears All Stars: “I wear All Stars since I was 9 years old and they really became part of my identity. I wouldn’t go on stage without my All Stars. People would just be so surprised to see me wearing something else.” We also loved Andy’s ring: “That ring used to be my grandma’s. That makes it extra special. My grandma was a tiny lady. She was always very sweet, friendly and quiet. But she was a tough cookie: she had 9 kids and a bakery and her husband passed away quite young. So she worked incredibly hard! Also she was a talented violin player. When I look at the ring I think about the hard work she did and that she didn’t have a chance to make music her life. I then feel so lucky that I do have the chance. That is why I decided to go for it. To follow my heart…”
- Want to help Andy to make her dream come true? Fund her crowdfunding campaign!
- Andy is planning a world tour. Do you know a nice venue where she could play? Email her! andy@sidewalkconcert.com
Photos: Aude; Text: Joni
August Amstel Day
Please join me for a cycle on a sunny day in August along the river Amstel.
The artist and his bike: painting the view over the river.
A typical sight for the end of August and the beginning of the new academic year; the new sorority girls all paint their bikes in the same colour.
Just checking where their friends are so that they can join them for a beer on a sunny terrace.
Taking it easy on his way to work. Cycling with no hands and enjoying the view.
The sun on her back, the wind in her hair and the summer print on her trousers, that is August!
Green means go!
The green spectrum seems to be the ideal summer color this time of year. In a matter of a couple minutes, I spotted 3 lovely ladies donning the color in style–and on their bikes of course! So, yes, go out and enjoy this weather! Hopefully it’ll stick around a while…
by Meredith
*Dress* for the sun!
This weather calls for nothing less than short shorts and sun dresses–and picnics, bbqs, and lots of smiles. We’ve waited a long time for this, haven’t we people?!
So, go get those itsy-bitsy frocks out, dust them off, and put them to good use!
by Meredith
Blonde Sunday
Who doesn’t like a blonde on a bike? Nice flowing hair. Great upright posture. Can’t go wrong.
by Meredith
Flirty Sunday
Flirt tip #17: Get a cute dog. And like a good-sized one (nothing against little dogs!). Put him in your bike basket. Roll up to cute blondes. Make them smile.
Now that’s a flirty Sunday.
by Meredith
Pink Sunday
Gotta love this bright green bike and bright pink skirt! In the dark of winter, we need bright style like this to make our days last a little longer.
by Meredith
Sunk in thoughts
by Aude
This girl is clearly sunk in thoughts while cycling through the Vondelpark on one of the last summer days.
Blondie in the sun
Blondie in the sun by Aude
Saturday night
Saturday night by Aude
Typically dutch: blond hair, blue eyes and sitting on the back of a bike on a saturday night.
Amsterdam Cycle Chic 