{"id":13392,"date":"2022-08-02T09:30:16","date_gmt":"2022-08-02T07:30:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.homesandantiques.com\/?p=32868"},"modified":"2022-08-02T09:48:10","modified_gmt":"2022-08-02T07:48:10","slug":"a-dutch-home-filled-with-bold-colours-and-eclectic-antiques","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/homesantiques\/rss_feed\/a-dutch-home-filled-with-bold-colours-and-eclectic-antiques\/","title":{"rendered":"A Dutch home filled with bold colours and eclectic antiques"},"content":{"rendered":"

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By Katie Pike\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Tuesday, 02 August 2022 at 12:00 am<\/p>

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When Sandra K\u00f6nings-Blokdijk was a child she was known for her mismatched socks. Why would she commit to one colour and pattern when she could choose two? While her schoolmates were made to stick to a pair, Sandra\u2019s mother encouraged her to be creative and experiment with colour \u2013 and the socks were just one quirky embodiment of this. \u2018My parents also gave me free rein with decorating my bedroom. This once resulted in the discovery that dark brown makes a room appear very small,\u2019 she says. \u2018I\u2019ve never had a brown wall since.\u2019<\/p>\n

Her love of colour \u2013 and interiors \u2013 she believes, stems from growing up in homes filled with brightly hued stuffed birds and vibrant paintings. \u2018My parents lived in Indonesia when they were children and being surrounded by colour was the norm in that country. I remember being fascinated by a particular painting that hung above our sofa \u2013 I marvelled over the artist\u2019s use of colour,\u2019 she says.<\/p>\n

Fast forward to Sandra\u2019s current home, a former farmhouse in a leafy Dutch village, and colour now plays a starring role. The living room curtains are yellow, the sofa bottle green (chosen before the hue became fashionable) and the vintage<\/a> decorative bottles bright apple green. \u2018I was never a fan of the taupe trend,\u2019 she laughs. \u2018That\u2019s too boring. I need energy \u2013 I like to be stimulated by colour. If I crave a peaceful environment, then I\u2019ll go into the garden and surround myself with nature.\u2019<\/p>\n

Sandra works as a brand creator for businesses in the food, interiors, fashion and horticulture sectors. It\u2019s a role that isn\u2019t easy to define but, in brief, she develops the creative vision for her clients. Interiors are a big part of her world. And, as fashions change, so do the colour palettes of her home. A new scheme can be sparked by something as small as a couple of artworks. \u2018I recently bought two paintings at a design fair that feature black, red, blue and yellow. The combination of colours inspired me so much that I re-covered the sofa in a red fabric and painted one wall blue.\u2019<\/p>\n

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Design classics (such as the Eames armchair and Barcelona chairs) create a contemporary feel in Sandra\u2019s living room. <\/span> <\/figcaption> <\/span>\n<\/div> <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
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Sandra\u2019s collection of vintage Vaseline glassware sits on the mantlepiece.<\/span> <\/figcaption> <\/span>\n<\/div> <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
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The plates on the wall date from the 1960s.<\/span> <\/figcaption> <\/span>\n<\/div> <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
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The jug containing a floral stem was found at a Dutch flea market.<\/span> <\/figcaption> <\/span>\n<\/div> <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
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The kitchen table is actually made from two flea market finds that have been combined by Dick.<\/span> <\/figcaption> <\/span>\n<\/div> <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
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Sandra collects mid-century china.<\/span> <\/figcaption> <\/span>\n<\/div> <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nAlthough Sandra\u2019s job means that she\u2019s always looking to the future, she admits that, when it comes to her home, she loves old more than new. She\u2019s always been one for rooting around flea markets<\/a>. It\u2019s a habit that was born from necessity when she and her husband Dick were starting out and \u2018didn\u2019t have a dime\u2019. Now, her decorating ethos is all about balancing the heavy, Victorian antiques<\/a> that they inherited with the house (such as the chandelier<\/a> in the living room) with her collection of flea market finds (her green glassware and pastel crockery are favourites) and design classics.\n

\u2018When we moved here, the house was starting to look like a museum with all the Victorian furniture. We love having an eclectic mix and the balance was all off \u2013 so we invested in contemporary and mid-century pieces<\/a>, such as the chairs in the living room.\u2019<\/p>\n

Sandra and Dick had admired the former farmhouse for years before it came onto the market and bought it even though, when it finally became available, it was \u2018ready for demolition\u2019. Luckily, Dick is an architectural restorer, so was well-placed for the epic project, which involved working on everything, from foundations to roof. The couple also added the striking conservatory<\/a>, which quickly became Sandra\u2019s favourite space in the house.<\/p>\n

\u2018It\u2019s always summer in here, even when it\u2019s cold outside,\u2019 she says. \u2018Having a glass room brings so much light to your life.\u2019 Sandra can often be found working in the conservatory, surrounded by her pastel-hued mid-century crockery or part of her 500-strong collection of vintage scarves. \u2018I often delve into my vintage collections to illustrate certain colour combinations and shapes,\u2019 she says. \u2018Understanding the future means embracing the past and seeing where trends came from. It\u2019s fascinating how much inspiration can be taken from these old pieces and translated into something fresh.\u2019<\/p>\n

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Sandra\u2019s hoard of orange vases includes a 1945 Liberation vase and a Kiki van Eijk for Royal Leerdam design.<\/span> <\/figcaption> <\/span>\n<\/div> <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
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Sandra is obsessed with vintage scarves and has around 500.<\/span> <\/figcaption> <\/span>\n<\/div> <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
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Vintage German industrial lighting and a reclaimed table made by Dick create a rustic feel in the conservatory. <\/span> <\/figcaption> <\/span>\n<\/div> <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
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A paint effect has been applied to the ironwork of the conservatory so that it resembles oxidised copper.<\/span> <\/figcaption> <\/span>\n<\/div> <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
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Sandra and husband Dick live in a restored 1904 farmhouse, located in a village near The Hague in the Netherlands. Sandra likes to work from the conservatory, surrounded by her vintage collections<\/span> <\/figcaption> <\/span>\n<\/div> <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
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Sandra enjoys browsing for vases and other ornamental vessels at flea markets.<\/span> <\/figcaption> <\/span>\n<\/div> <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/body><\/html>\n
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By Katie Pike Published: Tuesday, 02 August 2022 at 12:00 am When Sandra K\u00f6nings-Blokdijk was a child she was known for her mismatched socks. Why would she commit to one colour and pattern when she could choose two? While her schoolmates were made to stick to a pair, Sandra\u2019s mother encouraged her to be creative […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":13393,"template":"","categories":[1,41],"acf":{"readingTimeMinutes":"5"},"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/49\/2022\/08\/a-dutch-home-filled-with-bold-colours-and-eclectic-antiques.jpg",1141,1600,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/49\/2022\/08\/a-dutch-home-filled-with-bold-colours-and-eclectic-antiques-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/49\/2022\/08\/a-dutch-home-filled-with-bold-colours-and-eclectic-antiques-214x300.jpg",214,300,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/49\/2022\/08\/a-dutch-home-filled-with-bold-colours-and-eclectic-antiques-768x1077.jpg",768,1077,true],"large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/49\/2022\/08\/a-dutch-home-filled-with-bold-colours-and-eclectic-antiques-730x1024.jpg",730,1024,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/49\/2022\/08\/a-dutch-home-filled-with-bold-colours-and-eclectic-antiques-1095x1536.jpg",1095,1536,true],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/49\/2022\/08\/a-dutch-home-filled-with-bold-colours-and-eclectic-antiques.jpg",1141,1600,false]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"importmanagerhub@sprylab.com","author_link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/homesantiques\/author\/importmanagerhubsprylab-com\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"By Katie Pike Published: Tuesday, 02 August 2022 at 12:00 am When Sandra K\u00f6nings-Blokdijk was a child she was known for her mismatched socks. Why would she commit to one colour and pattern when she could choose two? While her schoolmates were made to stick to a pair, Sandra\u2019s mother encouraged her to be creative…","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/homesantiques\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed\/13392"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/homesantiques\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/homesantiques\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/rss_feed"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/homesantiques\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/24"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/homesantiques\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/13393"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/homesantiques\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13392"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/homesantiques\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13392"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}