Quantcast
Channel: Places – No Glitter No Glory
Viewing all articles
Browse latest Browse all 20

Kind Of OJ // Bruges

0
0

KOOJ-11If you follow along on Instagram, you may have noticed that I spent a cosy weekend in Bruges last fall. For many Belgians it’s like an open air museum you visit once or a few times in your life, but now there is a new, very good reason to frequent Bruges more often…The recently opened Kind Of OJ, that serves not only as a B&B but also as an architect’s showroom and art space.

We headed to Bruges with a big group on what was the rainiest, windiest and grimmest weekend of fall, but it didn’t matter as we were quickly immersed in the Kind Of OJ spirit once the door behind us closed and we entered the world of interior designer Jo Hoeven and his family; his wife Eleonore, their daughter Tattou and their family dog Nelson.

Kind Of OJ is located in a beautiful town house on the Guido Gezellelaan and has three different wonderfully decorated suites, all designed by Jo himself. An ambitious project that was set into motion when his parents decided to sell the townhouse they once bought with the intention of turning it into a hotel. Jo studied interior design but went on to run a supermarket, and has now circled back to his initial passion with Kind Of OJ. A place where he can completely edit and design to his own taste, experiment and showcase the atmosphere he creates.

The ground floor is an amazing living space with high ceilings filled with art, a big fireplace and a beautiful open kitchen overlooking the garden. Much of the time, Nelson was lying quite picturesque in front of the fireplace on a cosy animal hide from Carine Boxy that, -coincidence or not- matched his own fur perfectly. Last but not least there’s also a huge dining table in the common space out of lime tree and sycamore tree that Jo burnt himself for a beautiful charred finish. This truly forms the heart of the space for the guests of the B&B, which we quickly noticed during our fantastic dinner and breakfast here.

None of the carefully selected items are permanent though, as Jo views this as a playground to experiment and display artisans and artists and plans to change things regularly. My current favourites? Hard to choose. Maybe the beautiful clay bathtubs Jo designed himself together with Aardig Gedacht under the label Studio Loho, tested and approved in the B&B guestrooms. Or the mirrored obelisk in the living room by Michel Martens, understated yet impossible to miss. Or maybe the colourful artworks by Fleur De Roeck and Thomas Trum.

I was definitely in love with the bold yet harmonious colour choices made in many of the spaces, like the green and red bathroom of the XL suite, where both the bath and sink were made in collaboration with the aforementioned Aardig Gedacht.  As you may or may not know, I’m a sucker for moody spaces and plants in the bathroom, so the black bathroom in the room I stayed in, the M suite, was a big hit for me (as were the Aesop products in every room).

There’s something to see in every corner of this carefully designed space, and much of its charm is in the details, like the embroidered custom made napkins and bedlinens, or the fabulous mouthblown champagne glasses. One thing is for sure, nothing is ordinary, and the final result is a wonderful luxurious space that feels like home.

I’ll be anxiously awaiting Kind Of OJ’s webshop with carefully curated items. But most of all I can’t wait to head back to Bruges in person and experience Jo’s hospitality and contagious enthusiasm about his project all over again. Soon.

KOOJ-35

KOOJ-33
KOOJ-32
KOOJ-31KOOJ-34KOOJ-30KOOJ-29KOOJ-27KOOJ-26KOOJ-39KOOJ-38KOOJ-37
KOOJ-25
KOOJ-23
KOOJ-24KOOJ-42KOOJ-49
KOOJ-47
KOOJ-5KOOJ-6
 
KOOJ-22
KOOJ-18
KOOJ-17
KOOJ-21 
KOOJ-19
 KOOJ-16KOOJ-15

Can’t wait to stay here?

Book a room on the website

More Kind Of OJ?

Instagram

Pinterest

Facebook

Check out my friend Hannelore’s blogpost about Kind Of OJ as well!

The stay was gifted by Kind Of OJ, but as always, all thoughts and opinions are 100% my own.

KOOJ-36


Viewing all articles
Browse latest Browse all 20

Latest Images

Trending Articles





Latest Images