“The architecture of Zuidas won us over”

Kirstin Reinink left beautiful Enschede for love seven years ago. Now, she and her husband have lived in The George in Zuidas for three and a half years. It’s from here that Kirstin runs her interior design and concept, design and project coordination studio, INK Interiors. Though the couple weren’t immediately sold on Zuidas when house-hunting during the coronavirus period, they were bowled over by its architecture. 

Kirstin, can you tell us a bit about yourself?
“We’ve lived in this building for only three and a half years, from June 2020. Before that, we lived in Oud Zuid. We’d biked around the area a couple of times and it seemed nice enough, but we weren’t wowed by it. That was back during Covid, so it was super quiet. A bit of a ghost town, really. But we fell in love with the building straight away.”

“I run my own interior design business and this was a brilliant opportunity, since the apartment was being sold as a shell, so I could design the whole thing from scratch. I’ve also got my office here and the building has a communal space where I can work. Apart from that, I always go out to clients and have to be on-site. I don’t have a signature style, and don’t really work with styles as much as concepts. Our home is very personal; there’s a personal story behind pretty much everything.” 

So, why Zuidas?
“In the end it was the architecture that prompted us. From the outside it’s a billowing summer dress, is how the architect explained it. There is planting all around the exterior, which is watered with captured rainwater. This system is completely integrated within the building, and it’s things like that which really appealed to us. The building is highly sustainable. Plus, it’s not a rectilinear block and our flat has a lovely balcony. The lobby is beautiful, too, with that curved staircase. We fell in love with the complete picture. All of these parts added up to something that finally won us over, because it was quite a step to move from a lovely 1920s property in Oud Zuid to a brand-new modern building.”

Do you think you may leave Zuidas, one day?
“Yes, probably. We’re keeping all our options open, also because of my husband’s job. He came here as an expat. Anyway, we’re not tied to Zuidas, but right now, Amsterdam is perfect for him, workwise, and will be for a few more years at least. We’ll see where we go from there.”

The story behind the hallway
“I come from a musical family. My dad was a pianist and passed away shortly after we moved here. I thought it would be a nice gesture, in keeping with the spirit of music and because we live on George Gershwinlaan, to use sheet music of George Gershwin’s compositions as wallpaper in the hallway. It makes this space so personal. My dad got to visit here once and to see it all finished, so that makes it very special.”

Favourite spot at home
“That would have to be my office. In the mornings I do my yoga and work there. It’s not big, but it’s perfect for me! Another spot I like is the sofa, for lounging while reading a book.”

Favourite spot in Zuidas
“There’s no one particular spot in Zuidas. I’m glad the area’s getting livelier, though. We came to live here during the pandemic and it was a total ghost town then. During weekends there was literally nothing going on, but things are getting better. There’s a lot happening in Valley, and we go for pizza at Pizzabakkers sometimes. We also don’t mind it being quieter during weekends. It lets you fully decompress, and if you want to be where the action is, it’s only five or ten minutes to Oud Zuid. That said, Zuidas is still a business district in pretty much every way.”