Looking inside a Tieleman kitchen in Oostvoorne

Lydia and Dennis converted their home – a municipal monument and heirloom from 1934 – into a lovely family home where they plan to live forever. Showpiece is the kitchen, heart of the property.

“At one time, my grandparents lived here,” Lydia says as we look at the cozy 1930s house. “The plot then consisted mostly of pasture land. On part of this my sister now lives, from the rest we made a vast lawn with terraces and an outbuilding with porch.” Together with an architect, the couple created a design for a remodel. One wish involved a master bedroom downstairs so that Lydia and Dennis could grow old together here. The old barn behind it provided the ideal place for this: it was demolished, rebuilt according to building regulations and connected to the main house by a light corridor.

Tough kitchen island
Lydia and Dennis’ biggest wish was a spacious living kitchen, where they could enjoy cooking, eating, drinking and being together with their son Pepijn, friends and family. Dennis: “For the design of the kitchen we knocked on the door of Tieleman Keukens, a household name in our region. Our previous kitchen also came from them and to great satisfaction.” Gerwin den Besten of Tieleman Keukens explains, “Lydia and Dennis chose a large kitchen island with a sturdy, thick concrete-look countertop. There is plenty of space around it, which makes the island stand out even more. At the head we placed four stools at right angles to each other, allowing you to sit together comfortably. The fronts in both the island with stove and oven, and in the elongated element under the windows, are matted white. For the faucet work and all appliances, they chose matte black, which pairs nicely with the ceramic floor in Belgian bluestone look.” The built-in closet was clad in warm-looking oak game veneer, as was the structural pillar necessary to create the extension. Gerwin: “Wild veneer has the same spontaneous pattern as natural wood and the advantage that it won’t work.” With a visit to the factory, the couple chose the desired parts on the spot: with a quiet pattern, few knots and no holes.

Transparent design
A steel facade with French doors was installed between kitchen and sitting room so that these spaces can be closed off from each other – if desired. Visually, two parts are created, while maintaining the open character. Lydia: “The evening shifts from the back to the front here: we start with a glass of wine at the kitchen island at the back of the house, eat at the self-designed table, and in the evening we plop down on the couch in the front sitting room. Our home has everything we need.”

Text: Lotje Deinum
Photography: Denise Zwijnen