Hello! How are you all? I hope you had a great weekend! I am beyond excited to share with you a styling production that I did last year with photographer Jansje Klazinga, which is featured in the March 2014 issue of the Dutch interiors magazine vtwonen. But more than that, I was delighted to discover that the feature has made it to the front cover! I have been working with Jansje – sourcing, styling and writing about gorgeous homes for her to shoot – for several months now, and it’s been great fun. We have done several productions together, one of which was this crazy retro vintage home featured recently in the Volkskrant (major Dutch newspaper) magazine, but this beauty has been one of my favourite homes since I photographed it for the book project, and I’m thrilled to see it on the pages of vtwonen’s March issue. Take a look at some of my favorite snaps from the shoot and read a little bit about this home.
Since I also wrote the english version of the vtwonen article, I thought I’d also share a part of the story with you. When home owners Stella and Joeri purchased their neglected three story row house in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, there was much to be done. The entire property needed to be stripped and renovated, launching them into a full scale renovation that transformed this once dilapidated row house into an eye-catching family home with jaw dropping features. A five meter floor to ceiling window was installed, the layout was changed almost entirely {keeping the original narrow passageways and historical character in tact} and a brick wall spanning the length of the house and all three floors was stripped bare. The results? Breathtaking.
Architect Dimitri Kruithof was hired from the get go, helping the couple to get the most out of the 220 square meter structure. But Stella and Joeri didn’t leave it all to the pro’s. They tackled many tasks themselves, laboring away their weekends on their future home. One task included painstakingly stripping the walls of their inner-city abode back to it’s bare bones to reveal the original brickwork. The job took them three weekends chipping plaster off with an electric hammer. “It was a terrible amount of work!” Stella says, reflecting on the dust, the sheer amount of work involved and the lifting of heavy bags of chipped plaster at the end of it all. But it was worth it. The brick wall is now one of this home’s most striking features.
The kitchen was an Ikea purchase, but Stella and Joeri cleverly had the oak cupboard fronts custom made by Koak Design, a company which specialises in customising Ikea kitchen cupboard fronts, and added a concrete counter top. They chose a fuss-free look that features a singular row of cabinets and a refreshing shade of green across one wall. A uniform selection of chairs in various colours surround a custom table that was created from planks of wood salvaged from a factory, while a trio of industrial vintage pendants suspended high above the table completes the industrial feel. The combination of oak, concrete and bricks strengthen the look, and while the industrial style wasn’t exactly what they were working towards at first, “we ended up really liking the style,” Stella says.
A shared love of vintage and retro furniture resonates throughout Stella and Joeri’s home. They enjoy combining these pieces with meaningful items handed down through their families. “We love to incorporate a mixture of new items with things we love that hold memories,” Stella says.
I particularly enjoyed styling the bedroom in this shoot. The combination of crisp white bed linen atop a wooden bed frame gives the space (which features an exposed brick wall at the foot of the bed) a feminine quality, while a colour palette of black, white, grey with pops of coral mirrors the stained glass panels in the original windows. The couple’s baby girl Hanna sleeps in an old cradle that was carpented by Stella’s grandfather 65 years ago and has become a family heirloom. Stella made the white cotton curtain herself. So lovely.
Stella and Joeri had searched long and hard for the perfect home, until they discovered the ‘Een Blok Stad’ concept in 2010, whereby an entire block of residential properties undergoes extensive renovation. Properties are typically sold at very low prices with the condition that they are restored to their full potential, an initiative organised by the local municipality in a bid to turn once derelict neighborhoods into desirable places for young families and professionals. By the time Stella and Joeri discovered this concept, all of the properties on offer had already been sold. Three weeks after leaving an application for future property openings, a house suddenly became available when it’s previous buyer pulled out of the process. In a matter weeks they were holding the keys to their new home.
For Stella and Joeri, the renovation process was an enjoyable and positive experience, largely due to the sense of teamwork they felt not only with their architect, but with the neighborhood as a whole. Last year, all of the homes in the street entered into a collective project that won the Rotterdam Architecture Prize for modern urban renewal. On the whole, the experience was a positive one. “We would like to renovate again, but to be realistic, you only do something like this once in your lifetime,” Stella says. “For now we just want to enjoy all the things we did.”
Amazing, right? I’m thrilled to have worked with the talented Jansje Klazinga on this production, who captured this stunner of a home to perfection. We are headed to Copenhagen next month to shoot and style more inspiring homes together. If you spotted something you love in this home, the credits list is below.
Have a wonderful week,
Holly x
Image credits: Jansje Klazinga Photography; architect: Dimitri Kruithof; kitchen cabinets: Ikea; cupboard fronts and concrete counter top custom made by Koak Design; lamps kitchen Spoor 38; kitchen wall colour: Histor Compleet, Zorgvuldig (2010-G50Y); kitchen chairs: Dykmeyer via De Machinekamer; sofa: Isassi; cushions on the sofa: Snijder & Co, Ferm Living and Lile Sadi all from Femkeido; white throw blanket: Ikea; vases: Femkeido; bed: Jorg Steigerhout, lamps: Kvart from Ikea; bed linen: Ikea; throw blanket: Mae Engelgeer from Femkeido; art above bed: Original letterpress print by Marjon Hoogevoorst/Vorstin from Femkeido; cushion: Tas-Ka
Original article and pictures take www.avenuelifestyle.com site
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