dutch design firm Ina + Matt furnish hotels and private homes, organize private events and tailor shop concepts. It was during one of these collaborative projects, far north of the Netherlands, that the couple came across the property that would one day become their home — a farmhouse in Friesland. having never imagined that they would end up living in a barn in the countryside, they became more and more enamored with the idea, and eventually renovated the barn into this beautiful open space living area, including an office space for their design studio Ina + Matt. i love the quirky, eclectic decor and gorgeous, high beamed ceilings. what a find! what a wonderful place to work, and live.

• photography by Morten Holtum for bo bedre.

The fashion label polder was created by two sisters, Madelon Lanteri-Laura and Natalie Vodegel who grew up in the Netherlands and spent their childhood living in an area where forested hills overlooked polders that stretched out as far as the eye could see. At the age of 19, Madelon went to study in Paris where she was joined by Natalie a few years later, and both started working with fashion designers including Anne Marie Beretta, Marcel Marongiu and Hermès. Their own collection, Polder was created in 2000 and From the very beginning, hand made components, which bring a unique and handcrafted quality to the collection, have been highly significant in polder’s creations — including handbags, a line of jewelery, handmade knitwear, shoes, clothing and socks. The polder collections are a mix of a Nordic spirit, with a French touch of vintage and you can find their shops all over the world — here’s a complete list. i love their styling and i love their look!

Amsterdam is one of my very favorite places to visit and Sukha is a modern department store there where things are ​​produced responsibly and sustainably, using re-used and repurposed vintage items — like Clothing, furniture, jewelry, and handmade goods. Sukha means ‘joy of life’. Irene Mertens is the owner and founder of both fashion label Sukha, as well as the Sukha shop in the popular shopping district Haarlemmerstraat, named this year as the best street in the Netherlands. you can Find Sukha Amsterdam at Haarlemmerstraat 110, near central Station. you can find them on twitter and facebook, too.

• photos by seen by bien and Jeltje Janmaat.

i got my august issue of vtwonen today and was blown away, as per usual. the dutch magazine always has a way of featuring the most eclectic bunch of interiors, with boundless inspiration and this issue is dedicated to summer colors. these gorgeous images are a vintage-modern mix of odd pieces of furniture and accessories you might not ever expect together, but they totally work. and oh yeah, check out the very fantastic lighting. the whole issue of vtwonen is great this month — you can see a sneak peek here.

it seems like eons ago, but last summer i spent some time in amsterdam, but i couldn’t chat about it because i was on a special assignment for anthology magazine to cover the city, so it was a bit on the hush-hush. but the new issue of anthology is out, and my story lives on its pretty pages, so now i can tell you what a wonderful trip it was! the story includes a shopping & dining reference guide, in case you happen to be headed to amsterdam anytime soon, including the amazing 9 straatjes (or 9 streets) — blocks and blocks of some of the best cafes, boutiques and vintage shops i’ve ever come across.

these photos above and in anthology magazine were photographed by marjon hoogervorst, but i took a whole bunch of my own as well, so i’ve been hankering to share just how beautiful amsterdam really is with you for a while now! for the full article, check out the latest issue of anthology, and you can subscribe here. you can also see all my photographs from the trip here on flickr.

at.elier is a Dutch design studio, founded in 2010 by Amy Jadine van der Veer and Tessa de Guytenaer, both students of Textile Design at the Royal Academy of Art in The Hague, The Netherlands. their Habitat collection includes room dividers, carpets, window panels and lamps, focusing mainly on interior design with a unique and distinct style all their own.

Because of a lack of exclusive and affordable jewelry and bags, Tessa and Amy decided to jump in and design these too, and thus their Wearables collection was born, which is amazing. at.elier works with natural materials, like leather, wool, wood and silver — durable materials that enrich the quality of their designs. at.elier designs are timeless and accessible, functional and aesthetic, powerful and elegant, and all products are unique and made by hand.

i love this new mun furniture collection from interior designer Christine Starkenburg for Andaacht Studio in the Netherlands. It’s called slow wood, and it’s hand-made with love and attention by local craftsmen in Fryslan, using solid wood, 100% natural finishes and mineral paint on iron bases for an industrial look and feel.

designer Christien Starkenburg designed side tables and asked a well seasoned local craftsman to make them for her. they came up with the name Slow Wood, because of the use of (very slow drying) mineral paints. The Mun collection has a family of models which all relate to each other, to be mixed at whim, for your own personal style.

• photography by Ben Lambers.

today we’re dropping in with jantine, of the blog april and may, and visiting her incredibly stylish home in the Netherlands. jantine works as a stylist, and i think it shows. her home is black and white, but i find it warm all over. i love all the little touches — from the beautiful spindle-legged coffee table, to the mural of the tree in her son’s room. she’s also putting together a great new styling blog which will be up soon!

Jantine runs her own company, also called April & May, consulting with a variety of clients on all types of interior styling. she also collaborates with another stylist/friend by the name birdsintrees on self-made concepts and photography, which will also go live featuring their projects soon.

What city/neighborhood do you live in?
I live in the Netherlands in the Beemster (20 minutes from Amsterdam), which is on the UNESCO world heritage list and is a beautiful part of the Netherlands located near some bigger cities.

What is your idea of a perfect day in Beemster?
The perfect day in our town is when the weather is fine and I can enjoy our garden outside with lots of sunshine, relaxing and enjoying a nice magazine. I have a little boy who is almost one year old, so it’s also really nice to enjoy the town with him by bike and looking at the nice landscape and discovering new things. For us it is also very easy to go to a bigger city or the beach because they are all near the place we live.

Please describe your home’s personal style.
My home is modern, personal, open, loft-like and a combination of old and new. I love black & white and the colour grey. You will not find an explosion of colour in our home because I like to keep my home clean and simple. But I love to add some colour by accessories and change them often and when the season starts to change. And I can tell it changes often because I see lots of nice things in my work and like to use it in our home :)

What’s your favorite feature in your home?
I have a few. the Eames lounge chair, the fireplace, our sofa and the Ingo Maurer lamp above the dining table (see below). The Eames lounge chair is my most treasured belonging, because it is such a great and wonderful design piece. And it really gives something to your living room.

Do you have a few Favorite online shops you would share with us?
i like cosas; asos clothing; swedishness; bijzonder mooi*; the otherist; etsy; and humanoid (for clothing and they have beautiful inspiring images on their site).

What are some of your favorites websites/blogs to search for inspiration?
Bloesem, Emma’s design blog, Pinterest (my number one site for inspiration and saving all my favourite images found on the web), and all those mentioned on my blog in the blog list.

i think you’re going to love these ceramics, let alone how brilliantly they’re styled and photographed! Lenneke Wispelwey is a ceramic artist and photo stylist with her own studio in Arnhem, the Netherlands, with a great sense of style, and humor. Lenneka loves working with ceramics, but also works with other materials, and feels her work should make people smile, and it’s also what she also tries to accomplish in her styling work. Lenneka is definitely nimaking me smile. How about you?