A house where everything is possible.This is exactly what the artist and designer from The Hague wanted to create for his sons. And he got down to business with the help of bright colors, functional furniture and unusual solutions for space planning. We study the Dutch experience to understand how to make every centimeter of space work for the needs of the whole family. In the house that designer Arnoud Dijkstra bought in a residential area of The Hague two years ago, there is a little more than 150 meters of total space. And almost a third is occupied by the owner's "office" - an art studio under the roof. But the rest of the space is entirely given over to the family - two sons and wife Linda. For Arno, who specializes in furniture design, it became a platform for bold experiments and unusual decorating solutions. He planned and filled his house in such a way as to unite all household members, but at the same time give everyone the opportunity to freely express their character and individuality.
Common Cause Despite the fact that the designer isfamily - namely Arno, the spouses made all decisions together. A real family home, they believe, is a common cause in which everyone, even children, should participate. That is why the space ended up being so bright and unusual - it became a reflection of the tastes of four people at once. The first rule of good design, they believe in this house, is not to be afraid to take risks.
Arno Dijkstra, designer:- We had a lot of our own ideas. But we were afraid to implement some of them - we lacked experience. Then we invited a friend, a decorator, Rian, to a family council, who, by virtue of her profession, knows everything about combining different shades and materials. And she helped us develop a general style of the space, into which we then fit all the other elements. The wall of glossy tiles in the kitchen, for example, was her idea. And we are very glad that we followed her advice: this is one of the most striking solutions in the house. arnouddijkstra.eu
Stick to the plan Another helpful tipfrom Arno – stick to a clear plan. For a year from the moment they bought the house until they moved in, the couple held a monthly meeting with a detailed discussion of problems that arose during construction, new ideas and doubts about the work already done.
Arno Dijkstra, designer: -It worked great.We collected a lot of photos, sat on blogs, discussed every little thing with each other and with the children, argued until we found a solution that suited everyone. I think that's why in the end we got a house that you can only dream of arnouddijkstra.eu
House-transformer The main thing in a house with twochildren, especially if they are boys, - convenient organization of storage systems. Otherwise, you will face constant scandals or permanent chaos. In the Dijkstra house, everything is different, because they planned the cabinets in much the same way as the English planned garden paths: first they hung shelves in the right places, tested them, and then “refined” them based on the test results. For example, they wanted to make a closed cabinet under the stairs. But in the end, they left open shelves. The children were left with more interesting space for games, and bright books, construction sets, and cars against the light walls began to look like decorative elements, rather than disorganization.
Arno Dijkstra, designer:-The bookcase is filled with children's books at the bottom and adults' books at the top. Our boys read a lot and can almost take everything off the shelf themselves. And what they can't, they get with the help of a special ladder - a storage for office supplies. arnouddijkstra.eu
The kitchen is all planned and made by hand.Arno. The kitchen is separated from the dining room and the hallway by a long shelving unit with openings so that Linda can talk to her men while cooking on one side, and on the other, so that the kitchen and hallway have enough daylight. The kitchen fronts are made of birch plywood and elm, the worktop is custom-made from steel, the oven and hob are Smeg, and the lighting is Arian Brekveld, Droog Design.
The positive mood of the kitchen-dining room is createdan unusual contrast of deep blue and red accents, reminiscent of the brick walls of the old Hague. Wooden chairs - Enzovorm, red plastic lamp - Twiggy by Marc Sadler. To the right of the dark gray kitchen cabinet - “Scharrelkrukje” - a stool-children's table, designed by Arno.
Children's Two children's chairs were found by the couple onflea market in France. - Arnault's favorite shade. And he spent a long time achieving the desired depth of tone, and then transferred the color from the nursery to all the other rooms. For the boys, the designer painted the outline of a world map on it. And on the old suitcase - his own picture of a truck.
Arno's pride is a multifunctional bed withtwo sleeping places. The designer sanded and polished them many times to achieve perfect smoothness and safety for children. At the bottom there is a box for storing toys. The stairs lead to the very top - there is a play area.
Bathrooms in the hallway, to save moneyspace, two hinged doors that lead to the toilet and bathroom. Arno's favorite material is even there. Its sheets are separated from the wall by about 5 centimeters, left specifically for moisture circulation. And the panels themselves are covered with three layers of a special composition against fungus and rot.
Bright and functional home for a modern family from Holland – etk-fashion.com
