Howdy buddies and pleased Friday. I’m writing now on decor8 Substack, so should you observe this weblog you actually nonetheless can however for day by day musings, observe me on Substack and be a part of my beautiful decor8 group the place you possibly can subscribe and be part of me there. So, pleased Friday! Let’s take a house tour, lets? This house is so enjoyable and surprising that I’ve to share it together with slightly interview that I made with the home-owner, Inside Stylist Susanne Otter, based mostly in Leeuwarden, Holland which is the capital of the province of Friesland situated within the northern a part of Holland close to to the North Sea (so northeast of Amsterdam).
Susanne lives in one of many oldest components within the coronary heart of town in a seventeenth century home (circa 1669) with a lot of character, sample, shade and a enjoyable mixture of furnishings and intervals, of artwork, classic and new design, it’s certainly light-hearted and enjoyable. She shares the area together with her husband and two kids. “My model, that’s such a tough factor to outline, I don’t know. I’ve referred to as my enterprise Frivole Studio, frivolous. It’s not too critical, playful, light-hearted,” Susanne confessed… And Frivolous is correct!
They renovated for over three years and declare to know each nook of their house by now. Susanne confessed, “It’s been an awesome journey shifting from room to room till the top of the renovation. We’ve began from scratch and will do all of it in keeping with our view and style.” She additionally talked about that it’s not a typical home as a result of this one was constructed for dwelling and dealing again in 1669, “What’s now our entrance room downstairs was the earlier proprietor’s office, a goldsmith. Our front room is upstairs with the kitchen. In between there’s a flooring with only one room. The bizarre association of the rooms is what I really like essentially the most. And it’s so previous, it outlived so many individuals, world wars, I can’t even think about what 100 years really feel like not to mention 300.”
“I fell in love with the rooms with excessive ceilings, all of the woodwork, the previous home windows, nothing is straight, you possibly can hear the cracking of the ground underneath the burden of your toes.”
Susanne informed me a couple of life lesson she discovered in a really exhausting approach, that I wished so as to add to this submit as a result of it could resonate with you as a lot because it did for me. Particularly when she speaks about her tackle having fun with the moments of a renovation and never stressing your self out about it…
“After the delivery of my son, now 13 years previous, I almost misplaced my life. Every part that might go unsuitable went unsuitable, the docs even informed my husband to arrange for the worst. Since then I dwell day-to-day, no worries for what’s coming, no stress about issues forward, I solely have now and this second, I’m 41. I believe that’s why renovating our house was such an exquisite journey for us. No planning, no schedule, we couldn’t get pressured a couple of deadline. Please get pleasure from life the way in which you need, I’ve seen so many individuals round me working exhausting for one thing they by no means reached, or adopted the foundations for a contented and wholesome life however ended up having most cancers, shedding their job or relationship whereas they didn’t do what they beloved however what they thought they wanted to do. Life is difficult sufficient. Please be variety to your self and have targets, however don’t stress your self an excessive amount of.”
What’s her favourite room within the house? She informed me that it actually will depend on the season. In summertime, it’s the entrance room downstairs as a result of it by no means get’s sizzling even throughout a heatwave. She additionally loves her rest room with the pink bathtub. I personally suppose her canine and cat like the lounge couch greatest… What do you suppose?
I used to be additionally curious to learn the way life has modified for Susanne for the reason that huge C and the entire lockdowns, as we had a whole lot of them right here in Europe. This was her reply…
“Not a lot has modified throughout lockdown and the whole lot modified throughout lockdown. I’ve moved out at a very younger age and have seen and executed all of it. I dwell a easy life and don’t exit that a lot so for me it wasn’t an enormous adjustment. My husband went from working a day or typically two at house and at all times on the highway on different days of the week to working from house full-time. It’d sound unusual however at first It felt a bit like an invasion of my private area having him house on a regular basis. Often my kids, Pepijn and Annabel, and I had dinner with the three of us. We had been so used to do issues our approach and ready for Anne-Roel to return house after dinner however now he was house on a regular basis and even meddling in. The entire dynamic of our household modified. It took a while to get used to it however these days I can’t even keep in mind the way it was earlier than and I really like having him round, we exit for lunch (dwelling within the coronary heart of town means eating places throughout us), I cook dinner lots much less, undecided I even know the way anymore, ha ha. However I’ve to say, we dwell in a home with sufficient area so we are able to do business from home with out getting in the way in which of one another. That makes it simpler for us. And we simply completed renovating as lockdowns started, so the timing wasn’t dangerous.”
“I’m very inventive, so I’m at all times doing one thing inventive. The factor is, I’m so dangerous at ending stuff. I’m at all times beginning one thing, I like macrame, crochet, portray, and so forth. Our home is crammed with al the issues I as soon as began, however half executed. I’m the worst. And I don’t present it. It feels to non-public to me so I maintain it to myself. I might love to indicate a few of my concepts and what I’ve made however since they’re solely half approach there and I don’t end them, I simply cover these! 🙂”
I requested Susanne about these beautiful items of artwork and he or she informed me that they’re by Dutch painter Grace Spiegel who solely makes use of 6 paint colours which she mixes, “The colours actually work properly with the colours in our house and the portraits have a serene really feel to them, it’s how I believe our house seems like, a very good match,” Susanne says.
I needed to ask Susanne about this beautiful Zebra wallpaper. She went on to inform me slightly story about it which you’ll discover as charming as I did.
Susanne: “Oh, the zebra wallpaper! The look on folks’s faces once I informed in regards to the plan for our kitchen, particularly once I informed them we had been going to wallpaper all of the partitions of the kitchen, hilarious! To me it’s not daring or daring. I actually wished a brass kitchen however my husband’s dream kitchen has at all times been a chrome steel industrial kitchen and he’s the chef more often than not so we went for his selection. I don’t like kitchens that really feel very chilly and scientific, I prefer it extra as a room with a kitchen in it.”
She continues…
“Years in the past I discovered the zebra wallpaper within the Dutch situation of Residence (journal) and ripped out the web page to avoid wasting so I knew I wished to make use of it in our house. Metals work properly collectively, metal, brass, copper, chrome, and so forth, you possibly can simply combine them. So the chrome steel kitchen works very properly with the gold and black wallpaper, it’s not that huge of a distinction, it’s straightforward on the attention… And I acquired to have that contact of gold regardless of not getting the brass kitchen.”
Extra on her selection of the sample on the kitchen partitions…
“The factor is, most individuals select wallpaper for only one wall in a room with white partitions, a wallpapered function wall. More often than not it isn’t executed proper and the wall is an excessive amount of in your face which makes a room stressed. It’s all about stability, a pleasant circulate, you possibly can combine and match no matter you need however maintain it in what I name a household. The metals are one household, pastel colours are a household, varied colours in the identical shade are a household and totally different shades of the identical shade are a household. We’ve got a whole lot of totally different wallpapers in our home however all of them have one thing comparable. Many of the wallpapers have a contact of gold and a few have a marble sample. We’ve got emerald inexperienced marble sample carpet in our bedrooms, marble tiles in our rest room and in a few of the wallpapers we utilized in the remainder of the home. You get an ideal combine by repeated use of sample however not in the identical materials, however mushy carpet, shiny tiles, so it doesn’t get boring and predictable.”
I requested Susanne about shade mixing, as I really like her tackle mixing patterns…
“The identical with colours, distinction however not too huge of a distinction, a stability. I solely use colours of the identical shade, grey-ish colours. If you happen to’ve ever been to a building market to search for colours on your house you’ve seen the paint samples. The samples often go from mild to darkish shades of the identical shade. If you wish to combine colours and also you don’t know the way to begin, put the samples subsequent to one another and select the shade you like. You’ll be able to go darkish, mild, one thing in between, that’s your private selection. However use the identical shade for each shade you select, they’ll work properly collectively as a result of there’s no huge distinction, it blends in completely. And take your time to regulate to your new inside. We folks don’t do properly on modifications, it takes time to take all of it in and get used to. Not days however weeks. Our mind wants a minimum of a number of weeks to regulate. So don’t rush to color over that wall that doesn’t really feel good straight away.”
Susanne makes use of largely paint colours from Dutch paint model Portray The Previous. She’s been working with their paints for over a decade and mentioned they even produce scented candles since their motto is, “Don’t fall in love with a shade with out figuring out it’s perfume.” Isn’t that fascinating? I requested her what her favourite scent is at house, it’s Rosewood & Velvet Plum. She additionally used Rosewood within the entrance room downstairs for the ceiling and shutters and Velvet Plum for the window frames in the lounge upstairs. She mentioned that the perfume actually matches the colour. Her second favourite is Eucalyptus & Sage. Now I’m interested in this Dutch model and should look them up – fascinating idea of blending candles and paint in the identical world, don’t you suppose?
In order that’s a wrap! I hope you’ve loved seeing this beautiful Dutch house as a lot as I’ve beloved sharing it. Susanne is such an inspiration, a inventive who leads from her coronary heart, and this conjures up me a lot. I really like how she simply lets go and decorates, with out restraint, with out fear about public opinion or no matter. We are able to typically really feel so held again at house, making an attempt to make the whole lot good or “proper”. Susanne is the right instance of how liberating it may be to only observe your coronary heart and create rooms that you just love, that talk to you and your loved ones.
In case you’re curious, Susanne’s rugs are all from The Souks. She loves pottery by a neighborhood potter in her metropolis, Lydia Pieksma and the kitchen/house store Dille en Kamille. You’ll be able to observe Susanne on her Instagram right here: @frivolestudio
Have a beautiful weekend everybody!
Love,
Holly
(Pictures with permission from Susanne Otter)
