My top three interior design trends for 2021
So, a few weeks ago I was asked by Porch.com to predict three interior design trends for 2021. Now, I don’t know about you but I always have mixed feelings about trends. One the one hand, I like to think that I’m too cool for school and don’t follow trends. But…
Tadaaa…the Maison Berger Jonathan Adler collection is here!
Oh my, what on earth is causing that horrible smell? It’s a sentence I say to myself at least, ooooh, once a month. I come home, open the front door and it hits me. An unpleasant scent that permeates my 65 square meter apartment. As I hold my nose, I start…
SUITE702: I’m in bed with Shirley and Olaf – and yes, so could you!
Let’s face it – most of us sleep better at hotels. And if you’ve ever had the luxury of staying in an actual hotel suite, you’re a) one lucky bastard and b) you *know* you’ve slept even better than you would at home. If you’re like me and you like nothing…
Don’t worry! I got your back in the sack (together with Bedsupply.eu)
Question. And I want an honest answer here, so no fibbing. When was the last time you asked yourself, can I go to bed yet? If the first words that come to mind are either ‘no, never’ or ‘wait, what?’ then please move along. Nothing to read for you here. If,…
On a roll! Which pattern from Wallpaper from the 70s should I get?
There are dozens of ways you to divide Western society in two opposing camps. Are you a cat person or a dog person? Do you like the Beatles or the Stones? Want a Coke or a Pepsi? Do you support Trump…oh, never mind. The same cannot always be said for paint…
TV in your living room? How to make it work with Philips and Georg Jensen
I’m going to be brutally honest with you. And I just know you are going to agree with me one hundred per cent. I hate having a TV in my living room. There, I’ve said it. It’s big, it’s black, a rectangular vortex that demands your attention no matter if it’s…
Edwardian Times Bloom at JEE-O / an interview with Lammert Moerman
You may not be aware of the brand name JEE-O, but I bet you know one product they have designed: the iconic original shower 01. I first saw it at the opening of the C-More Concept Store, which is owned by my good friend Iris. A while ago, she invited me…
Ten items I would have bought in a heartbeat at Design Icons but didn’t
One of my favorite assignments of these past few years, is curating for Gevonden op Marktplaats, a blog run by the best Dutch tastemakers who share their best interior design finds on Marktplaats – which is the Netherlands’ biggest online marketplace. Believe it or not, but this is hard work. I can…
I’m telling you now so you’ll be ready when you need a bathroom: Alape!
The moment I bought my new bathroom, I just knew that I was going to get a serious case of buyer’s remorse at one point in time. Tiles, shower screens, faucets, cabinets and a wash basin – I needed them all and I needed them fast. It was early 2017, I…
I got two Vitra chairs for less than the cost of a cappuccino
In 2006, Nora Ephron published an essay called Moving On in The New Yorker about how she once fell madly in love with her apartment on New York’s Upper Westside. You may know Ephron as the screenwriter and director of rom-com blockbusters such as When Harry Met Sally and You’ve Got…
Krystle – the short film that was shot at my home
Last August, my friend and filmmaker Abid Chand asked me if he could use my home as a location for a film that he wanted to shoot. He told me he was participating in the Rotterdam edition of the 48 Hour Film Project, an annual competition in which local filmmakers have…
It’s in the bag! My nine-year old nephew reviews Terapy’s Elly beanbag
Yes, you read that correctly. My nephew Kick turned 9 a while ago and, even though much like his uncle he is very well-behaved, I thought I’d teach him a lesson – about interviewing, art direction and photography, that is. Our subject? A new ergonomic beanbag that we could both enjoy….
Spice up your bedroom with the new Auping Pixel nightstand
It’s the first piece of furniture you see in the morning. And the last one before you send yourself off to sleep. Yup, I’m talking about the trusty old nightstand. I’ve looked many, many years for just the right solution. The ideal nightstand does not only look good, it also has…
Farrow & Ball’s Colour Consultancy Manager Patrick O’Donnell: ‘In the end, your home is about you.’
If there is one thing I like best about being an interior design writer, it’s meeting new people who share my passion for creating wonderful homes. Patrick O’Donnell was no exception. As manager of Farrow & Ball’s colour consultancy service, he understands like no one else how colour can make –…
Via Antica – The Brussels vintage design store that made me go —> HOT DAMN!
For years and years and years, I used to go to Brussels and come back disillusioned. Where was the nice part of town? How come I didn’t find any cool vintage shops? I’m lucky to report that those years are OVAH because on a recent trip to the capital of Belgium…
Is this burning an Eterne flame?
If I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a thousand times: your home should have an eclectic mix with accessories you’ve collected during trips to faraway countries. But what if it turns out the hand-crafted occasional table you’ve *just* bought at that souk in Marrakesh doesn’t fit in the overhead luggage…
A ten-minute peek at the one and only Piet Hein Eek
“Did you just say we have to be back in ten minutes?” the Italian journalist next to me asked. “You should have brought your running shoes!” our guide snapped back in jest. It was one of those typical Dutch Design Week international press tour moments that I have not only learned to appreciate,…
Svinging by Svenskt Tenn in ten minutes tops
What if you only have one and a half hour of free time in Stockholm? Well, you sving by Svenskt Tenn before you do anything else! At least, that’s what I decided to do after an exciting press trip to the Hästens factory and flagship store had come to an end….
Tales of the Unexpected
If you had told me before I drove to Arnhem that I would end up in a total stranger’s living room admiring a skeleton dressed in a velvet cape, I would have laughed in your face. But there I was, and I was in total awe. So why don’t you sit…
Moooi! An exclusive interview with stylist Martine de Schipper
It is the biggest interior design in the world – Milan Design Week. Needless to say, I was there. I ran as fast as my legs could carry me to the Via Savona showroom of Moooi, where I met up for an exclusive interview with stylist Martine de Schipper of Stories of Sense…
Sintra – three Portuguese palaces full of mind-blowing interior inspo
As our plans for next summer slowly but surely become concrete, I thought I’d get in the mood and revisit the trip my husband Patrick and I took to Sintra in Portugal last year. We both get a kick out of visiting European palaces and castles – for us, they are…
Jan des Bouvrie: “Things have to keep moving!”
“What magazine is this for?” Jan des Bouvrie asks as I enter his office at Het Arsenaal in the Dutch town of Naarden. “It’s for the internet!” his assistent replies as she closes the door behind me. I sit down at a pristine white table, introduce myself and give a brief…
Monique des Bouvrie will throw her own party, thank you very much
The sun carefully peeks through the clouds when I get off the bus in the Dutch town of Naarden on a chilly November morning. I briskly cross the street, enter Het Arsenaal and report myself to the receptionist. “I’m here to interview Monique des Bouvrie. And then Jan.” I know I…
FRUSTRATED ;-) at the Gevonden op Marktplaats Wintersalon
Time to share a little bit more about myself than I do normally. For many, many reasons I’ve been practicing this year with frustrating myself. That may sound weird, but it has brought me a lot. Or rather, it has brought me nothing. Which is a good thing. Let me explain….
Michelin stars shine at the Timothy Oulton instore dinner party
Dinner tonight will be served by Erik van Loo from Parkheuvel in Rotterdam,” my host for the night says – and I nearly fall off my chair. A chef from a restaurant with two Michelin stars who will be cooking for me at at the Timothy Oulton flagship store in Amsterdam…
Ink Hotel Amsterdam – Style written in Ink
Give me a new boutique hotel with an interesting history and I’m a happy man. It’s as simple as that. As you may have seen on my Instagram feed, I’m taking a much-needed break in Cascais, Portugal. But did you know my trip started out in style last week at the…
At home with Gert Voorjans
An interview with the deliciously eccentric Belgian interior designer Gert Voorjans – that’s not something that you get to do every day. Together with photographer Jacqueline Louter I went to Antwerp for an inspiring conversation at the overwhelming home of Mr. Voorjans – who has also just released a very special book, called Interior Life….
Abigail Ahern’s home – part 4
Alas, we have come to the fourth and final installment of our exclusive tour of the insanely talented interior designer Abigail Ahern. Bed, bath and beyond! And in case you’re just tuning in by the way, here are parts one, two and three. It’s been a week since I was in London and I had a wonderful…
Abigail Ahern’s home – part 3
We’re movin’ up one floor today for the third installment of our tour of the fantabulous home of Abigail Ahern. During the design class that I attended along with about ten other (very nice) people, the question on everyone’s lips was why, oh, why was the ceiling in the Abigail’s studio…
Abigail Ahern’s home – part 2
I hope you enjoyed yesterday’s blogpost about the home of the enfant terrible of interior design, the one and only Abigail Ahern. Today, it’s time for part two: the living room and dining area. As you can see, Abigail is not afraid to ‘go dark’ – in fact that was her big motto when I visited her…