Name: Leenda & Anthony
Location: Brussels, Belgium
Size: 1,100 square feet
Years lived in: owned 3 years
Anthony and Leenda seem to live in an apartment that seconds as a rotating retrospective of mid-century icons. Anthony, a photographer who works in the TV industry, and Leenda, who works in the film industry, live in Brussels, and do a lot of acquiring. But not everything sticks around very long.
Anthony, a big Apartment Therapy fan, sent us a collection of photos of his apartment in the hopes of being included in a House Tour. You'll notice, as you look through the slideshow, that his and Leenda’s apartment is 4 rooms but it might seem a lot bigger than that. Some rooms, tabletops, or corners of the floor, appear more than once, each time with an entirely new layout of furniture and accessories!
Anthony and Leenda collect original mid-century pieces, lovingly care for them, document them, use them, make them a part of their home, and occasionally sell them off. Anthony tries to hoard as many chairs as can be justified by pragmatic or aesthetic reasoning, but sometimes there are just too many.
Clearly, Anthony and Leenda’s eye goes beyond being able to find the perfect piece. He and Leenda have an undeniable talent at creating a setting such that the result is less ‘museum’ and more ‘cool place to hang out.‘ The use of color and the playful arrangement of old and new, cheap and high-end go a long way towards an enviable home.
Survey:
Style: 1920's French apartment
Inspiration: Mid-century modern, mass modern
Favorite Element: Living room
Biggest Challenge: To find a place for all of our chairs so as to not have to sell them.
What Friends Say: "It's so bourgeois."
Dream Source: Case study house, Verner Panton Visiona 2; Cologne Furniture Fair; Pierre Paulin interior architecture of l’Elysée, Paris, France
(Images: Anthony Berthaud)
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© 2009 Apartment Therapy
Those chairs in the living room! That coffee table!
Swoon...
view fledgling's profile
I'm left feeling slightly bewildered, slightly bemused, and in complete and total chair envy.
view Limeliteshines's profile
Utterly gorgeous.
view kristinm100's profile
I've had this apartment bookmarked on flickr for quite a while. I love modernist furniture not featured in the DWR catalog.
view Annieo's profile
I am absolutely confused and pleased at the same time.
Emily
view Emily Sneds's profile
very interesting :)
view hima_vasu's profile
For a while there, it looked as if there were not just a chair fetish, but a sneaker fetish too... (kinda disappointed that it didn't keep going).
Great apartment.
More Belgian home tours please!
view mschatelaine's profile
I have a chair fetish - love this, love, love love
view alexis's profile
Ahhh! PLEASE, does anyone know more about that swivel chair with the tufted cushions? I have one (not in leather) that I scored on CL and love it so much that I want to know more about it. I was told it was Italian from the 60's, but googling got me nowhere :( Any info is appreciated!
view blis_ful's profile
LOVE the color & chairs! Especially against that black...
It's nice to see MCM icons in what does not look like a DWR showroom :) http://cozylittlecave.blogspot.com
view CozyLittleCave's profile
Love the Tomado racks on the wall ;-)
view Hinke's profile
Wow this is awesome. Love the multitude of chairs, especially that fabulous Pierre Paulin... drool. This apartment is fantastic to me because it's so nicely balanced between the classic modern pieces, fun color accents, etc. and keeping it real-- you can tell that real people actually live here. Seconding CozyLittleCave's comment, I love seeing modern homes with personality. Inspiring. WTG.
view alphabetsoup's profile
This is a real connoisseur's home, but not at all stuffy. I love how museum pieces are next to Ikea. Only someone with a great eye can pull that off.
view Lisa (Montreal)'s profile
the lighting is really interesting. it's a very interesting home.
view Lady J's profile
I'm in chair heaven ~ lovely home.
view E.I.F.'s profile
I've got chair, shelving, lighting, and hardwood floor envy. Also toss in some of the framed art and an odd coffee table or two. How about whole apartment envy???
Interesting and highly attractive. Yum.
view lolax's profile
As a Belgian I couldn't agree more with mschatelaine: more Belgian house tours! This appartment is très, très chouette, by the way.
view Elise_B's profile
I love it and agree with the above! My husband is from Antwerp and visiting his friends homes and apartments in Antwerp & Brussels over the years - has convinced me that they have a higher per capita number of chic apartments that anywhere else I have been!
view Papillon Linens's profile
Love it! Being married to a Belgian I am convinced from traveling there to his friends apartments and homes that they have more chic interiors per capita, of anywhere else I have ever been!
view Papillon Linens's profile
Love this place! It's so eclectic but pulled-together at the same time. Fun and polished. So much personality.
view CassieB's profile
It's kinda perfect, isn't it?
THe thing I love most of all is that their friends say "It's so bourgeois." Makes you wanna be the rockin' bourgeoisie, no?
view kushkush's profile
The wall bookcases and cubbies are my fav. I like, and wonder how, some cases are off the floor (makes for easier cleaning). Living room photo is stellar!!!
view KateInHawaii's profile
Adorable. I didn't want the tour to end.
I especially liked that they hadn't tidied their office space before the tour: as if anyone other than (a) Kikki K. (b) a stylist *really* has a dozen Universal Woodcase Pencils HB #2 -- with clean, yellow, unsharpened barrels -- in a pot on their desk!
Just a lovely home. More of where this came from, please!
view JoJenks's profile
I'm drooling.
view Jesse Lu's profile
@ blis_ful
It's a Fauteuil 976 - Geoffrey Harcourt - Artifort - 1968
See on http://www.flickr.com/photos/28662850@N04/2675938745/in/set-72157615139246812/
or http://www.architonic.com/4101030
Max.
view Max C.'s profile
Can anyone source that coffee table? I love.
view fivemonkeys's profile
WAY too many chairs! I'll be happy to take any or all of them off your hands -and the coffee table too! :)
Great furniture, great style
view lori5458's profile
serious floor envy -and i love the fireplace and bookshelves!
view architectdesign's profile
Wonderful! Agreed - Belgium has a ridiculously high rate of tremendously cool and inspiring homes - from where I learnt how not to be afraid of color, to mix or to be different.
view EAM's profile