On the wall running the length of the living space, the couple installed large cabinets of their own design.
The four shallow cabinets not only subdivide the large space into different areas, but also give the room a sense of coherence. Furthermore, as the coloured panels can be easily swapped, they can be used to harmonise the ever-changing displays of arts and objects on top.
Woth-initiators Mary Hessing and Toon Lauwen transformed an inner-city dairy into a remarkable family home.
The brick façade looks almost inconspicuous between the other large town houses on either side of the street, but behind the row of chocolate-coloured doors something rather special is hidden. Built in 1884 as cooperative dairy distribution centre, the huge 800 m2 building has had a chequered life. After the dairy closed, it was used as furniture storage before it was turned into an artists’ colony in the 1960s. Mary Hessing, founder and editor of WOTH Wonderful Things magazine, inherited the building from her father in the late 90s. The place wasn’t in great shape at the time but in the course of 10 years she and her partner Toon Lauwen, design journalist and co-founder of WOTH media, have transformed the vast industrial space into a comfortable home for themselves and their three daughters.
Hessing reflects on the history of the building: ‘The idea of having a working farm in the centre of town in order for inner city people to have access to fresh milk is quite romantic. There used to be a field with cows at the back and where our kitchen sink is now, there used to be an animal trough. Our living roomwas formerly a storage area fot the milk carts that were used to distribute dairy throughout the city.’
There are in fact many more reminders of the building’s former life as a cooperative diary; the black and white tiles, various dairy storage rooms and the hayloft have all been preserved as much as possible. Lauwen: ‘We tried to keep to simple, clear-cut interventions in order to transform what is a large monument into a warm family home.’ Key changes were the creation of a patio and the addition of steel-framed windows that separate the garage from the living area and the kitchen from the patio. The designs for these were sketched by Hessing – based on drawings from a book in Lauwen’s extensive design library – and then translated into a design by a technical designer: ‘Nowadays there are specialised companies who can do this but ten years ago steel-framed windows were hard to get.’
Whilst in most homes the garage is a decidedly ‘behind the scenes’ area, here it is nothing short of an opening statement, with an industrial feel that perfectly complements their classic Mercedes 350 SLC. The black and off-white cement tiles were part of the original interior of the dairy.
Off the main living area, a large open kitchen is situated, leading to a small enclosed patio with a beautiful pink magnolia tree. Hessing: ‘Unfortunately, the magnolia only flowers for a week and a half per year, although when it does, it really heralds the start of Spring for us.’ The back wall of the kitchen is clad in green handcrafted Moroccan Zeliger tiles. A simple cabinet made out of steel and mottled glass hides the extractor whilst the kitchen cabinets were tailor-made and based on the interior of Antwerp restaurant De Gulden Bock.
The former cheese storage room was dark and stuffy before Hessing and Lauwen installed second-hand church windows. It is now a cosy home office. The mirrored cabinet is a special edition of the Ikea Malm series. One of the rattan chairs belonged to Hessing’s grandfather; the other - wich is almost identical - was a lucky find.
The dark parquet floor and muted colours give the bedrooms a touch of elegance and warmth.The bedstands were painted in exactly the same colour as the walls.
A theme of creamy beige was chosen for the main bathroom. Its crisp lightness contrasts with the adjoining master bedroom. Tube-lights were installed over the mirror to create maximum light reflection. One of the lights cleverly hides the joint between the two mirror surfaces that were needed to cover the width of the room.
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