THE PROPERTY
follows soon after. ‘A lot of people ask me how I get a sense that a home is completed,’ says the Amsterdam-based interior designer. ‘But the answer is simple: if I know there will be a photo shoot or an interview, then everything, down to the accessories and styling, must be done before that moment.’
When the listing for this house came on the market, Nicoline and her husband Pieter lived only two doors away. At first, they convinced friends to buy the apartment, located in a building dating from 1939, but when the sale fell through they snatched it themselves. ‘ That delighted me as I was ready for an new look,’ says Nicoline. ‘I actually prefer to start a new home entirely from scratch, so our last property was sold with all its furniture. We only moved the artwork and antiques, plus the two Groovy blue chairs by Pierre Paulin that my husband inherited from his grandparents – they always come with us.’
Deciding that the six-metre-long kitchen with its 4.5-metre island should be the heart of the house, Nicoline designed a new floor plan around the space that would work better for her family’s way of living. ‘Once I’ve sorted the layout, the interior design follows. With this house, I knew better than anyone the flow of rooms that would make sense to our family. So there are rooms in which we meet and rooms where you can take time for yourself,’ she explains. ‘We also chose not to have large children’s rooms as they always play near us.’
Over the years, Nicoline has noticed that her design choices evolve from the spaces she has previously lived in. ‘I always design with a view to an interior looking as beautiful and relevant in 20 years’ time,’ she says. ‘But whereas in the previous house I chose brighter, primary colours, this house is more subdued. Of course, we live here with two young children, aged six and eight, so I tried to keep it a bit playful and not too serious.
‘Outside my own home, I follow the tastes of my clients, although I’ve heard it said that there’s a “typical Nicoline house”. While I don’t fully agree, I can tell you that I will always use wallpaper, texture, colours and prints, combining them to deliberately contrast. For balance, I use modern finishes with a quiet and timeless neutral base,’ she says. Thus, her new kitchen is pared back and pale with a splash of visual interest from the dramatic marble veining, while the snug is darker and characterised by earthy, warm colours prompted by the forest wallpaper mural.
Completing the new interior to deadline, Nicoline and Pieter soon noticed a shift in their lifestyle. ‘Because everyone started working from home due to the pandemic, it did make us think. My husband moved into our garden house and, luckily, I had a studio in Amsterdam that I could cycle to but we realised, in principle, we could both do our jobs anywhere in the world.’ Some months later the family took the plunge and bought a country house, near Lisbon in Portugal, where they plan to live more of the time. ‘I get so inspired by the architecture, which is so different from that in the Netherlands,’ says Nicoline. So much so, it has sparked a fresh burst of creativity for her. ‘I have just begun a dream project: a beautiful old Portuguese house that oozes that real southern European atmosphere. I can’t wait to start working on it.’
Interior designer Nicoline Beerkens, who founded her eponymous Amsterdam studio in 2010. She lives here with her husband Pieter van Herpen, a tech entrepreneur and investor, and their children Georgia, eight, and Jack, six.
Garden apartment in Amsterdamzuid. There are two children’s rooms, a main bedroom suite, a WC and shower room. The kitchen links to a dining/living area and there is another snug sitting room.
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