After all, we don't all have to fit into the
same mold..

From the age of 18, I worked for a long time at C&A and later at IKEA. My very first client practically fell into my lap in the summer of 1999, thanks to a friend who owned an advertising agency. The moment I stepped across the threshold of the photo studio, I knew: this is where I belong. A few months later, I boldly quit my job at IKEA. Everyone advised against it, warning that with my high mortgage and high interest rates, I’d be better off playing it safe.

For clients number two, three, and four, however, I had to actively go out and find work. I took on an incredible variety of assignments, starting with many photo shoots, then moving primarily into in-home consultations (visiting over 1,000 homes). I worked with brands large and small, such as Histor, LAB colour the world, Landal GreenParks, and Tica and served as art director for the *vt wonen&design* fair. My schedule was also frequently filled with TV appearances (my debut was live on the show hosted by Carlo and Irene), magazine features, and other media work. Incidentally, that very first client from the summer of ’99 - Ambiant, now the Netherlands’ largest flooring brand, remains a valued client to this day.

Ever since I turned thirty, I’ve felt a strange pull towards India. I visited on holiday for the first time and immediately felt: I could easily live here. That dream became a reality in 2016. Jasper’s work at KPN took us to Pune, and I still commute back and forth, enjoying the "best of both worlds": India and the Betuwe region. So, if we connect, it will likely be via Zoom, but you are always warmly welcome to join me in India for a delicious masala chai.

They are springing up like mushrooms, so there is no shortage of options. But if you are an interior designer looking to earn a serious income from this, it makes perfect sense to team up with me for a while. I know exactly the kind of obstacles you’ll face, and I can show you how to overcome them. I’ve stumbled into countless pitfalls myself over the past 25 years, and nothing makes me happier than ensuring you don’t do the same.

I have deep admiration for the people who make rugs. The entire process is handmade, from spinning the wool to dyeing, knotting, tufting, or weaving. And then there is the finishing stage: the pile is trimmed to a uniform length with scissors, or cut to varying lengths to create a 3D effect. I have visited Bhadohi near Varanasi, several times, where the sacred Ganges River flows; it is the ‘rug capital’ of India. I wanted to understand the entire process before setting out to design a collection for Vloerkledenwinkel. It gave me a great deal of insight and inspiration. The collection I developed with Michiel is colorful and bold, designed for interior enthusiasts with a daring spirit. After all, while a rug can certainly be hung on the wall (which is great for acoustics), to me, it is primarily a painting for the floor.

I met Robert, the founder of LAB colour the world, at the vt wonen&design fair, an event where I had served as art director for years. We instantly shared that recognizable entrepreneurial connection: the constant stream of new ideas, minds always racing at full speed, and a shared determination to keep boredom at bay in the world of business. As we talked, a wonderful idea took shape. LAB colour the world has a foundation that supports water projects in India. Since I spend much of my time in India, we really connected on that level, too. We came up with colors inspired by the "spice box", that staple found in every kitchen (ours included) containing the spices used daily to create aromatic curries. But we didn't stop at spices; we needed to include their counterparts as well: cooling tones, neutrals, and, of course, a dash of "extra spice"!

I have been working with Marthijn for a very long time. Originally, I used to fly to the TPIE tropical plant trade show in Fort Lauderdale every January to give presentations to their clients. But when he decided to found Tégl, an incredibly inspiring tile company, with his brother, our paths soon crossed again. We both envisioned a collection based on the existing "spice colors." However, while mixing paint accurately is relatively straightforward, tile glaze is a different story entirely. We made several trips to Valencia together to match, test, and evaluate colors in the sweltering heat of the factory. Color depends on so many factors: temperature, glaze, pigment, placement in the kiln, firing time, and so on. I wouldn't call myself a perfectionist at all, except when it comes to color. My eye spots the slightest deviation, and it wasn't right until it was *just* right.