This Dutch Home Is Full of Vibrant Color — And Has an Unforgettably Shaped Door
“We lived in Amsterdam for many years and really love that city, but it became too busy and too expensive. So we started looking further, also outside the city. That’s how we ended up here in Haarlem,” begins Danielle Sijmons, who works in primary education teaching visual arts and as a cultural coordinator supervising interns.
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“It used to be the garden city of the Amsterdam nobility. Now we are certainly not nobility, but we did see the charm of Haarlem. It is small and cozy, but with the heart of a true city,” Danielle continues.
When hunting for a home in Haarlem in the spring of 2023, Danielle and her partner, Daniel (yes, they are known as “Daan and Daan” in Dutch), “fell in love with this very charming, white corner house from 1890,” and amazingly, it was located in a neighborhood with the same street names as where the couple lived before.
“This house used to be a fish shop that sold ice cream in the summer!” continues Danielle, who says there are lots of photos of what it used to look like. “Where the shop door used to be, there is now a window, with a view of the intersection,” she writes. “Unfortunately, we don’t have a garden, but we do have a lovely roof terrace” and she reports that the beach is only about 15 minutes away. “Who wouldn’t want that as a backyard?”
When it comes to decorating their former fish-shop-turned-home, Danielle says she “can’t imagine a world without color and a world without all the sweet friends and family around me.”
“I look for the pearls in life and see beauty in the little things. I try to bring all of this together in our house. By styling with various playful objects, painting walls in my favorite colors (taking my boyfriend into account as much as possible), and often inviting friends and family for a dinner or a party.”
Danielle is able to fit a studio in her home, where she tries “to give shape to my creativity in a different way. I am busy with tufting (punch needle) and wonderfully sustainable upcycling: placing beautiful images on ceramics, resulting in fun, trendy, colorful plates, and tiles with cool images for the wall.” You can find some of her work on Warenhuis Strant and on Danielle’s studio Instagram.
Resources
LIVING ROOM AND DINING ROOM
- Bank Sofa — Sofa Company
- Sander Artichok — Fonq
- Plaid Panther — Xenos
- Cushion Crouching Tiger — De Weldaad
- HK Living Retro Cushions — Fonq
- Neon Orange Cushion — Mo.Ment Antwerp
- Colourful Cushions — H&M
- Blue Coffee Table — Kwantum
- Holly Hobbie Vase — From My Sister
- Neon Pink Wallet — Puc
- Leopard Pouf — BOL
- Red Stool — Kitsch Kitchen
- Tray on Red Stool — Vintage Worcester Ware
- Rug — Rozenkelim
- Lamp — Vintage Asylum
- Neon LED Lamp Lightning Bolt — Zilverblauw
- Neon Shelves — Harmenelke
- Yellow Cat — Loket Schiedam
- Rocket — Loket Shop
- Pink Cat — Kitsch Kitchen
- Rocket Tintin — Jopo De Pojo
- Coffee Cup — Helen B
- Panther — Spektakelwonen
- “Cat Woman” by Margo Weijer — Studio The Cube
- Gift Company Letter Sign — Mint Mini Mall
- David Bowie Doorstop — Meet the Wedgies
- DanceFloor Poster — FY!
- Blue Home Artwork — O! Galeria
- Donut Lamps — IKEA
- Mirrorball — BOL
- Disco Plant Hanger — It’s a Present
- Wall Paint — Pezik by Decoverf
- Drinks Cabinet — Vintage Designs
- Black and White Lamp — Shop.Vtwonen
- ToetToet Mella Mella Poster — IXXI
- Heart Neon Lamp — Hema
- Light Pink Lamp — Made
- Fan Lamp — BOL
- Table — Allon Dery
- Dining Room Chairs — IKEA
- Felt Cushions — Studio Play
- Candle Holders Neon Colors — Not the Girl
- Curtains — Etsy
- XL Plant — Strelitzia
- Plant Pot — IKEA
- Neon Tubes — Fonq
- Round Windowsill Clamp Tray — Seedor Store
- Blue ’60s Telephone — Opis-Tech
- Side Table with Magazine Compartment — Found on the Street
- Various Books — Local Bookstore
- Bowling Pin — Warenhuis Strant
- Record Cabinet — Tylko.com
- Blue Lamps — Oloha by FatBoy
- White Wall Rack — String Furniture
- Porcelain Monkeys — Floor Vinted
- Record Player — Pioneer DJ Concerto Amsterdam
- Music Equipment and Speakers — HiFiKlubben
- Vinyl — Plato Mania
- Blue and White Chess Tin — Hay
- White Porcelain Panther — Vintage Markt
- Smiley Lamp — It’s a Present
- Toucan Neon Lamp — Sunny Life
- Banania Tin — Vintage
- Lego Figurines Purple and Yellow — Oak Den Bosch
- Wall Paint — Retro Blue from Decoverf
- Display Cabinet — IKEA
- Frozen Charlotte’s (White Dolls in Display Cabinet) — De Weldaad
- Lucky Cat — It’s a Present
- Vase Eye Candy — Coseon
KITCHEN
- Sage Coffee Machine — Nespresso
- Coffee Cup Fish — Flying Tiger
- Milk Frothing Jug — Giraffe Coffee
- Kettle / Toaster — Hay
- Wire Cabinet — Sostrene Grene
- Ice Cream Neon Lamp — Action
- Lamp with Slides — Homemade
- Mask — Bali
- Palmeria Advertising Light Box — Vintage shop Owned by Pedro Santos
- Neon Pink Leather Wall Hook — Puc
- Refrigerator — Smeg
- Cans — It’s a Present
- Ceramic Coffee Pot with Tattoo Design — Anne Dekker
- Cutting Board — Hay
- Marble Cutting Board — Gekaapt
- Jar with Anchor — Kitsch Kitchen
- Cobalt Blue Jar with Lid — C&K
- Waste Bins — Brabantia
- Red-Blue Lamp — Lexon Design
- Towel and Tea Towel — Foekje Fleur
- Maria Lamp: Somewhere in Utrecht – Netherlands
- Barbapapa — Marktplaats
- Candle Holders Blue and Pink — Hema
- Square Wooden Wall Cabinets — Marktplaats
- Green Pan — Create Store
- Turquoise Pan — Hackman
- Graphic Art by Mariana — O! Galería
- Remember Doorstops — Connox
- Sea Green Net Bag — Kitsch Kitchen
- Espresso Cups with Face — Spiegel Amsterdam
- Artwork Pigeon — Joost Stokhof
- Blue Jesus in a Bell Jar — Self-painted
- Blue Candle Holder — Hema
- Fruit Basket — Hema
- Chess Green and White Plate — The Pimp-Uppers
- Plate Mermaid — Concept Store
- Plate Lips — Seletti Studio
- Plate Sailing Ship — Mutti
- Various Plates — Homemade
- Plate Majorettes — Social Label
- Plate with Swallow — Kitsch Kitchen
- Antique Cabinet — Tante Jopie
- Wall Vases — Harmen Elke
- Convex Mirror — IKEA
BATHROOM
- Towels — Suite 702
- Blue + Camel Cloth — Hay
- Tiles — Wout’s Tile Shop Amsterdam Sloterdijk
- Stool and Bowl with Face — Kitsch Kitchen
- Sink Cabinet — Received as a Gift (Painted Myself)
- High and Narrow Cabinet — Bon Prix
- Sneaker Cabinet — Tomado
- String Coat Rack — Marktplaats
- Oval Door — Rob the Handyman
- Handles — BOL
- Door Fittings on Doors — One-Mood Collection
Thanks, Danielle!
This tour’s responses and photos were edited for length/size and clarity.
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