My husband was born and raised in Akkrum and is one of the owners of a marina and water sports company in the village. A few years ago, we had the opportunity to build a house near the marina and drew up some building plans with my uncle Jan Bart de Jong, who was the architect. We wanted a cool house that suited the environment, something like a barn, a shed, or a warehouse. My uncle was able to elaborate on our ideas in a fantastic way.
We wanted to live upstairs, like in a loft, in a large space and with views all around, like a lighthouse. There’s a terrace built over the garage, so we can sit out there if we want. It didn’t take long to get used to living on the first floor. Apart from the beautiful view of the meadows, privacy is a big advantage. In summer, it’s busy and lively at the marina; in winter, we enjoy the silence.
During a walk, I found the birch trunks. I attached them to the beams. I made the felt rugs myself.
We’re more aware of the different seasons now. We get that great holiday feeling in the summer and enjoy total peace and quiet in winter. All that space, the fields, and the water give us a real sense of freedom.
The lamp with the felt cover is one of my works of art.
The house was built using reliable and robust materials. The exterior of the house is finished in wood; the inside is made of stone. The rafters are visible in the living area. The house has screed floors. The use of color is simple: black, white, and shades of gray. It’s a nice house to live in. The house doesn’t feel new. Because of the layout and the materials used, it has a lot of atmosphere. As if it has been here for years.
On the ground floor are three bedrooms, a bathroom, and the studio. Our kitchen and living area are on the first floor. Our staircase, which the architect placed it in the middle of the house, is very special to our family lifestyle. It splits the house in two so that the living rooms are situated around the stairs in a U shape. It is light and spacious due to the windows we had installed in the stairwell and skylights in the roof near the staircase also allow daylight in from that side. It is perfect andvery practical for our family, especially when the kids want to watch TV and we want to do something else … we all have our own “corner” to do that but yet we are together.
The dining table, where my family often finds me working, is from our old house. On the wall is one of my paintings. I made the lights myself from papier-mâché.
I went to art school. Years ago, my mother suggested I take an art course working with felt. I thought it was so inspiring that I wanted to continue working with it.
I like to create and to experiment with materials; I research different techniques and structures. In this new house, there’s room for a studio. It’s nice to have a room where I can do this. My works of art can be found throughout the house. On the walls near the tables are my paintings. Felt rugs lie on the chairs. Above the dining table are lamps made of papier-mâché. The artworks give our house a unique character.
The desk was made of old wooden boards from a barge in the harbor.
The interior design came about naturally over the years. Re-use of materials has been an important principle. When we moved here, we brought some furniture from our old (smaller) house with us. Some of that furniture is still here, such as the dining table. We like to recycle things, and we use objects we find in the area alongside local materials. We’ve turned the old wooden boards of a barge into a desk and created occasional tables from a beam we salvaged from the harbor. On a walk, we once found some birch branches. We’ve attached them to the wooden beams in the ceiling. Sometimes I decorate them, but they look just as beautiful on their own.
My husband was born and raised in Akkrum and is one of the owners of a marina and water sports company in the village. A few years ago, we had the opportunity to build a house near the marina and drew up some building plans with my uncle Jan Bart de Jong, who was the architect. We wanted a cool house that suited the environment, something like a barn, a shed, or a warehouse. My uncle was able to elaborate on our ideas in a fantastic way.
We wanted to live upstairs, like in a loft, in a large space and with views all around, like a lighthouse. There’s a terrace built over the garage, so we can sit out there if we want. It didn’t take long to get used to living on the first floor. Apart from the beautiful view of the meadows, privacy is a big advantage. In summer, it’s busy and lively at the marina; in winter, we enjoy the silence.
During a walk, I found the birch trunks. I attached them to the beams. I made the felt rugs myself.
We’re more aware of the different seasons now. We get that great holiday feeling in the summer and enjoy total peace and quiet in winter. All that space, the fields, and the water give us a real sense of freedom.
The lamp with the felt cover is one of my works of art.
The house was built using reliable and robust materials. The exterior of the house is finished in wood; the inside is made of stone. The rafters are visible in the living area. The house has screed floors. The use of color is simple: black, white, and shades of gray. It’s a nice house to live in. The house doesn’t feel new. Because of the layout and the materials used, it has a lot of atmosphere. As if it has been here for years.
On the ground floor are three bedrooms, a bathroom, and the studio. Our kitchen and living area are on the first floor. Our staircase, which the architect placed it in the middle of the house, is very special to our family lifestyle. It splits the house in two so that the living rooms are situated around the stairs in a U shape. It is light and spacious due to the windows we had installed in the stairwell and skylights in the roof near the staircase also allow daylight in from that side. It is perfect andvery practical for our family, especially when the kids want to watch TV and we want to do something else … we all have our own “corner” to do that but yet we are together.
The dining table, where my family often finds me working, is from our old house. On the wall is one of my paintings. I made the lights myself from papier-mâché.
I went to art school. Years ago, my mother suggested I take an art course working with felt. I thought it was so inspiring that I wanted to continue working with it.
I like to create and to experiment with materials; I research different techniques and structures. In this new house, there’s room for a studio. It’s nice to have a room where I can do this. My works of art can be found throughout the house. On the walls near the tables are my paintings. Felt rugs lie on the chairs. Above the dining table are lamps made of papier-mâché. The artworks give our house a unique character.
The desk was made of old wooden boards from a barge in the harbor.
The interior design came about naturally over the years. Re-use of materials has been an important principle. When we moved here, we brought some furniture from our old (smaller) house with us. Some of that furniture is still here, such as the dining table. We like to recycle things, and we use objects we find in the area alongside local materials. We’ve turned the old wooden boards of a barge into a desk and created occasional tables from a beam we salvaged from the harbor. On a walk, we once found some birch branches. We’ve attached them to the wooden beams in the ceiling. Sometimes I decorate them, but they look just as beautiful on their own.
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My husband was born and raised in Akkrum and is one of the owners of a marina and water sports company in the village. A few years ago, we had the opportunity to build a house near the marina and drew up some building plans with my uncle Jan Bart de Jong, who was the architect. We wanted a cool house that suited the environment, something like a barn, a shed, or a warehouse. My uncle was able to elaborate on our ideas in a fantastic way.
We wanted to live upstairs, like in a loft, in a large space and with views all around, like a lighthouse. There’s a terrace built over the garage, so we can sit out there if we want. It didn’t take long to get used to living on the first floor. Apart from the beautiful view of the meadows, privacy is a big advantage. In summer, it’s busy and lively at the marina; in winter, we enjoy the silence.
During a walk, I found the birch trunks. I attached them to the beams. I made the felt rugs myself.
We’re more aware of the different seasons now. We get that great holiday feeling in the summer and enjoy total peace and quiet in winter. All that space, the fields, and the water give us a real sense of freedom.
The lamp with the felt cover is one of my works of art.
The house was built using reliable and robust materials. The exterior of the house is finished in wood; the inside is made of stone. The rafters are visible in the living area. The house has screed floors. The use of color is simple: black, white, and shades of gray. It’s a nice house to live in. The house doesn’t feel new. Because of the layout and the materials used, it has a lot of atmosphere. As if it has been here for years.
On the ground floor are three bedrooms, a bathroom, and the studio. Our kitchen and living area are on the first floor. Our staircase, which the architect placed it in the middle of the house, is very special to our family lifestyle. It splits the house in two so that the living rooms are situated around the stairs in a U shape. It is light and spacious due to the windows we had installed in the stairwell and skylights in the roof near the staircase also allow daylight in from that side. It is perfect andvery practical for our family, especially when the kids want to watch TV and we want to do something else … we all have our own “corner” to do that but yet we are together.
The dining table, where my family often finds me working, is from our old house. On the wall is one of my paintings. I made the lights myself from papier-mâché.
I went to art school. Years ago, my mother suggested I take an art course working with felt. I thought it was so inspiring that I wanted to continue working with it.
I like to create and to experiment with materials; I research different techniques and structures. In this new house, there’s room for a studio. It’s nice to have a room where I can do this. My works of art can be found throughout the house. On the walls near the tables are my paintings. Felt rugs lie on the chairs. Above the dining table are lamps made of papier-mâché. The artworks give our house a unique character.
The desk was made of old wooden boards from a barge in the harbor.
The interior design came about naturally over the years. Re-use of materials has been an important principle. When we moved here, we brought some furniture from our old (smaller) house with us. Some of that furniture is still here, such as the dining table. We like to recycle things, and we use objects we find in the area alongside local materials. We’ve turned the old wooden boards of a barge into a desk and created occasional tables from a beam we salvaged from the harbor. On a walk, we once found some birch branches. We’ve attached them to the wooden beams in the ceiling. Sometimes I decorate them, but they look just as beautiful on their own.
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