Eye-catching tiles sourced from Dominique Desimpel create impact in the kitchen alongside the stainless steel island and benchtop.
The renovation of a family home for a close friend sees an interior designer create eye-catching spaces around custom details.
Belgian interior designer Frederic Hooft has taken his passion for lived-in spaces and collectable pieces to design the interiors of a home in Wortegem-Petegem, East Flanders. The project is home to Belgian high-end natural stone company Van Den Weghe CEO Tanguy Van Quickenborne, his wife and three children. Influenced by Van Quickenborne’s interest in art and design and their significant collection, Hooft says he “went all out with the custom details”, resulting in unexpected material choices and a series of arresting spaces.
Hooft attributes the project’s strength to the fact he wasn’t given a formal brief. Having known Van Quickenborne for years, he relied on mutual trust to design something very personal. The designer focused on creating intimacy and openness within the original home and where intervention was needed, ensuring it wasn’t entirely obvious. “Between the proposal and the final execution, nothing was adjusted,” he adds.
Medea chairs by Vittorio Nobili for Fratelli Tagliabue.
Pierre Jeanneret PJ/JM/EC-LU-04-B Standard lamp.
Pictured: the Cassina Pierre Jeanneret 051 Capitol Complex chair.
Van Den Weghe’s natural stone is known for appearing in the country’s most prestigious projects and collaborating with designers such as Pierre Yovanovitch, Sophie Dries and Muller Van Severen. Hooft collaborated closely with Van Quickenborne to select the marble and tiles “because it is their core business,” he says. The kitchen and bathroom tiles sourced from Dominique Desimpel were introduced to create impact, accentuated by other natural materials such as stainless steel, oak flooring and teak joinery.
Hooft says he doesn’t like to see “perfectly matched interiors where everything fits together nicely”. “It has to be executed perfectly, but it does not have to fit or match—there has to be friction,” he says. The designer worked with Devaere to create custom furniture throughout, layered with the client’s vintage and contemporary pieces and highlighted by the discrete architectural lighting by Prado that features throughout. “The more they live in it, move and add their personal pieces, the more beautiful it becomes,” he adds.
When reflecting on his collaboration with Hooft, Van Quickenborne says the project is a beautiful summation of their shared vision and ideas. In particular, he appreciates how Hooft led him to material choices he may not have otherwise considered. “The stainless steel kitchen island and benchtop were Hooft’s input, and I would never have chosen this material, but I just love it now, and it goes very well with the other materials we used,” Van Quickenborne says. “As one of the main points of entry, I enjoy the kitchen tiles daily,” he adds.
The interiors feature custom furniture by Devaere. Hooft always selects natural materials because they “age beautifully when used correctly”.
Tapware by Aqualex.
The bedroom features the Valerie Objects Red Solo seat by Muller Van Severen.
Dominique Desimpel tiles also create a lasting impression in the bathroom.
The Lensvelt MVS S88 armchair by Maarten van Severen in the primary suite.
