Before & After: the soft & chic makeover of a home
Unified flooring, a cozy dining nook, and stress-free wall art: discover how a before & after home transformation created a welcoming place
Marlin and Olav have been living in a corner house in Leusden, the Netherlands, since 2021. It’s a beautiful home, spacious, bright, and functional, but cold. The rooms didn’t flow together. The different flooring divided the space into disparate zones. Acoustics were poor. And when it came to style, the couple couldn’t decide: she loves the Japandi style, while he prefers the boutique-hotel look. Five years after moving in, their home still looked like it did under the previous owners. This was the starting point for this before-and-after transformation by Frans Uyterlinde, a stylist on the Dutch TV show *Weer verliefd op je huis* (Vt Wonen, “In Love with Your Home Again”).
For this Before & After home makeover, Frans’s first assessment was architectural, before moving on to the decor. Several different floor coverings were used in the living room, kitchen, and dining area. This inconsistency undermined the entire atmosphere.
Frans installed a continuous Meister Lindura floor throughout the entire ground floor. The result is immediate, with areas that feel like a single space. The room appears larger. And the warm wood tone instantly creates that “welcome home” feeling that was so sorely missing.
It’s a decorating lesson that many underestimate: before the throw pillows, before the paint, it’s the floor that sets the tone for a home.
The living room is long and narrow. This type of space always presents the same problem. You end up cramming it with furniture without ever achieving a truly inviting atmosphere. Frans had the idea to turn this limitation into an asset. He created a “cozy dining nook” by covering the walls and ceiling with dark brown Bonacci panels featuring marble minerals.
The effect is immediate and evident in the before-and-after photo. This room has become pleasant and welcoming, with an almost hotel-like feel, defined by subtle LED lighting. The light oval table and the chairs with light beige fabric perfectly balance the robustness of the dark panels. Warm, indirect lighting and the pendant light made of amber glass spheres above the table create a spectacular result.
One might almost criticize the result for being too perfect, too “magazine-like,” but in the context of a family home, this is precisely what the couple wanted.
In the past, the dining table was in the kitchen, a room that was too small, lacking atmosphere, and, to be honest, rather dreary. Frans chose to reverse the logic. The table remains in the kitchen but becomes a high bar-style table with two stools. It’s a more intimate choice, but also a more relaxed one. For quick meals, they sit in the kitchen, for moments of togetherness, they choose the dining room. The space has gained personality without losing its practicality.
In the living room, the small bench has been replaced by an XXL rounded sofa in caramel-brown velvet. Its generous curves and rounded edges make it hard to resist. Paired with a silver-gray geometric rug and a swivel leather armchair, the whole setup creates a reading/relaxation nook that makes you want to settle in right away.
Marlin and Olav had a phobia of nails, as they put it themselves. They couldn’t bring themselves to hang anything on their beautiful brand-new walls. Frans solved the problem with an aluminum ArtFrame system that lets you change artwork in seconds. Two colorful abstract paintings by Melanie Calis (De landing and Eenheid) add the perfect decorative touch to the living room and dining area. Their color palette complements the warm tones of the furniture, which is an excellent choice.
A custom bookshelf now spans an entire wall of the living room. With its open and closed niches and recessed spotlights, it showcases the plants, vases, and decorative objects. Luxaflex blinds filter the daylight and help dampen the room’s overly harsh acoustics. These two elements, storage and soft lighting, are often sacrificed in renovations due to budget constraints. Here, they play a key role in the final result, making the space both practical and beautiful.
Frans Uyterlinde has achieved a difficult feat: reconciling two opposing decorative sensibilities without overshadowing either. Marlin’s preferred Japandi style (natural materials, clean lines, warmth) and Olav’s boutique-hotel chic (dark marble-effect panels, sculpted pendant lights, generous proportions) coexist effortlessly.
The real stroke of genius is the cozy dining nook with its dark paneling. Cladding the ceiling is a rare touch in a standard home renovation, and that’s precisely what elevates this room from a “nice interior” to a “professional interior design project.”
The “before” photo alone is enough to gauge how far they’ve come, where you’ll notice the gray walls, the black fireplace, the mismatched flooring, and the dark, cluttered kitchen. To see this before-and-after on the VT Wonen website and find all the product, furniture, and decor references used, click this link. Photo: Margriet Hoekstra
Before
A single floor to bring it all together
For this Before & After home makeover, Frans’s first assessment was architectural, before moving on to the decor. Several different floor coverings were used in the living room, kitchen, and dining area. This inconsistency undermined the entire atmosphere.
Frans installed a continuous Meister Lindura floor throughout the entire ground floor. The result is immediate, with areas that feel like a single space. The room appears larger. And the warm wood tone instantly creates that “welcome home” feeling that was so sorely missing.
It’s a decorating lesson that many underestimate: before the throw pillows, before the paint, it’s the floor that sets the tone for a home.
The real stroke of genius is creating a cozy dining nook
The living room is long and narrow. This type of space always presents the same problem. You end up cramming it with furniture without ever achieving a truly inviting atmosphere. Frans had the idea to turn this limitation into an asset. He created a “cozy dining nook” by covering the walls and ceiling with dark brown Bonacci panels featuring marble minerals.
The effect is immediate and evident in the before-and-after photo. This room has become pleasant and welcoming, with an almost hotel-like feel, defined by subtle LED lighting. The light oval table and the chairs with light beige fabric perfectly balance the robustness of the dark panels. Warm, indirect lighting and the pendant light made of amber glass spheres above the table create a spectacular result.
One might almost criticize the result for being too perfect, too “magazine-like,” but in the context of a family home, this is precisely what the couple wanted.
The transformed kitchen with a high bar-style table
In the past, the dining table was in the kitchen, a room that was too small, lacking atmosphere, and, to be honest, rather dreary. Frans chose to reverse the logic. The table remains in the kitchen but becomes a high bar-style table with two stools. It’s a more intimate choice, but also a more relaxed one. For quick meals, they sit in the kitchen, for moments of togetherness, they choose the dining room. The space has gained personality without losing its practicality.
The living room furnished with an XL sofa and effortless wall art
In the living room, the small bench has been replaced by an XXL rounded sofa in caramel-brown velvet. Its generous curves and rounded edges make it hard to resist. Paired with a silver-gray geometric rug and a swivel leather armchair, the whole setup creates a reading/relaxation nook that makes you want to settle in right away.
Marlin and Olav had a phobia of nails, as they put it themselves. They couldn’t bring themselves to hang anything on their beautiful brand-new walls. Frans solved the problem with an aluminum ArtFrame system that lets you change artwork in seconds. Two colorful abstract paintings by Melanie Calis (De landing and Eenheid) add the perfect decorative touch to the living room and dining area. Their color palette complements the warm tones of the furniture, which is an excellent choice.
The details that make all the difference in storage and lighting
A custom bookshelf now spans an entire wall of the living room. With its open and closed niches and recessed spotlights, it showcases the plants, vases, and decorative objects. Luxaflex blinds filter the daylight and help dampen the room’s overly harsh acoustics. These two elements, storage and soft lighting, are often sacrificed in renovations due to budget constraints. Here, they play a key role in the final result, making the space both practical and beautiful.
Our take on this before-and-after home project
Frans Uyterlinde has achieved a difficult feat: reconciling two opposing decorative sensibilities without overshadowing either. Marlin’s preferred Japandi style (natural materials, clean lines, warmth) and Olav’s boutique-hotel chic (dark marble-effect panels, sculpted pendant lights, generous proportions) coexist effortlessly.
The real stroke of genius is the cozy dining nook with its dark paneling. Cladding the ceiling is a rare touch in a standard home renovation, and that’s precisely what elevates this room from a “nice interior” to a “professional interior design project.”
The “before” photo alone is enough to gauge how far they’ve come, where you’ll notice the gray walls, the black fireplace, the mismatched flooring, and the dark, cluttered kitchen. To see this before-and-after on the VT Wonen website and find all the product, furniture, and decor references used, click this link. Photo: Margriet Hoekstra
Before
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