A style-savvy couple, with three young children, clicked into cyberspace to help renovate their new city living space
meet & greet
Rebecca Boektje (social media influencer and travel blogger), her husband Bo The (creative agency owner), and their three children, Yuki, five, Ravi, three, and Xan, two.
the property
Four-floor historical 1886 townhouse in Amsterdam.
Young urban professional, mother of three and keen traveller are just parts of who Rebecca Boektje is. A successful social media influencer, Rebecca @rebeccaboektje has turned her passion for interiors, family life and fashion into a thriving occupation. And she even has time to write and maintain a popular travel blog, My Travel Boektje.
Rebecca is a style junkie, not only when it comes to her home, but fashion in general. Decorating and designing her new, city home was a massive adventure, but it’s one she embraced wholeheartedly. As an Instagram influencer, the platform was a huge source of inspiration for her. Using her network, she could build on her ideas for her interior and discover the suppliers or outlets others had used to buy the right materials to bring their ideas to fruition.
“It was never a chore. I just love creating the right ambience in my home. But I am also practical, and have three growing children, so it is important that the house is sturdy and child-friendly,” she says.
The story of this house
“We weren’t planning to move – Xan was just six weeks old, but Bo is addicted to funda.nl (real estate website) and saw this house. Even though we thought it was out of our league, we decided to view it anyway.”
Then the Covid-19 pandemic broke out, which meant that the number of viewers permitted per day was greatly reduced and that many potential viewers and purchasers dropped out. A window of opportunity opened for Rebecca and Bo, which they seized wholeheartedly. They put in an offer, it was accepted and they became the proud owners of a fantastic historical property.
Rebecca says, “The elderly couple who were selling the house had lived there forever. They had raised their family there and filled it with wonderful memories. They realised we wanted to do the same. We were looking for a forever home for our growing family and that resonated with the owners, who were happy to entrust us with this house.”
Perhaps, at another time, there would have been a good deal more interested parties and Rebecca and Bo’s story would not have made an impression on the property owners.
The renovation
Down to the studs is no exaggeration when it comes to describing where this couple started from to makeover this period home. They literally reinvented it. While maintaining its characteristic street view, the interior has been readjusted for the 21st century, and was achieved by upgrading the plumbing and wiring, tearing down walls and ripping up floors.
The couple even went as far as relocating staircases to not only turn their dream into reality, but to ensure that this property would be their forever home.
“I see my kids growing up here,” says Rebecca. “Being real city kids at the heart of where it’s all at – and at the same time having the luxury of an amazing, spacious garden where they can chill out with their friends.”
Rebecca and Bo consider themselves lucky to have found this property, so all the elbow grease, hard work and imagination that went into renovating it, was worth it all.
The mezzanine (sky box) and the high ceiling in the dining room is their design. Drenched in natural light, and with a fantastic view of the garden, the area is a great place to work.
Decor and design
Rebecca loves to combine old with new, high-end with budget, and to play around with style, texture and colour.
“I wanted to go all out on this home,” says Rebecca. “After all, if I get sick of a colour, I can always paint over it.”
The exposed brick wall is one of her favourite features. “It’s so New York loft, I love it.” It took some charming to convince Bo that this would work in their home, but it certainly does.
Bathroom bliss
The top floor, the loft of the house is where you find the main suite. Rebecca’s pride and joy, the ensuite bathroom, is separated from the main bedroom by a wonderful walk-in closet and massive wardrobe. With three growing children, Rebecca wants a place where she and Bo can retreat and chill out.
Rebecca had a clear idea of what she wanted for her bathroom. She searched and found all the materials herself, and envisioned how it should look. Then she hired the right craftsmen to turn her vision into reality. The vanity unit is custom-made to Rebecca’s design, the wash basin cut from onyx stone.
“I always dreamt of a free-standing tub with palm tree; I had seen something similar in Thailand and wanted it,” she says.
Since so many of the features in the bathroom were costly, Rebecca saved by buying budget-friendly wall lamps and other lighting. However, they still create the ambience Rebecca wanted. The shower is a Duravit Stonetto and the walls are from Benacci, the white marble-look version.
Future plans
Right now, after all the time spent renovating, the only essential upgrade is to the back of the house. The couple plan to replace the windows and the double doors leading out to the garden with high end, double-glazed steel framed doors and windows. All the better to sit back and admire from their garden the fruits of their labours.
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