“I find the spirit of things much more important than the look of things – I really don’t mind if things are ugly. They have their own beauty, if only one looks hard enough.” – Axel Vervoordt

I’ve always loved the work of Belgian designer Alex Vervoordt. I love the minimal rustic quality he creates in his work. To me his spaces evoke an understated elegance, a history, a quietness, and a love of natural repurposed materials. He often applies the philosophy of wabi sabi, a Japanese aesthetic rooted in zen buddhism which embraces the art of finding beauty in the aged and imperfect. I think this is a beautiful notion we can embrace in many aspects of our lives.

I think wabi sabi is best described by Andrew Juniper in his book The Japanese Art of Impermanence, “If an object or expression can bring about, within us, a sense of serene melancholy and spiritual longing, then that object could be said to be wabi sabi”.

Axel Vervoordt’s book Wabi Inspirations is a beautiful example of this idea of beauty in the natural and imperfect. I find his interior design very moving, it’s a feeling I get that takes me back to a different time and place, a place I want to go to. Honestly, It makes me want to pick up, sell everything I own and move to Tuscany to grow old and beautiful in my imperfectly perfect rustic Italian farmhouse.

Axel Vervoordt Estate via Wallpaper magazine

Kanaal by Axel Vervoordt via Cereal magazine

Greenwich Hotel New York (photo via Greenwich Hotel)

“I’m restless. Things are calling me away. My hair is being pulled by the stars again.”

— Anais Nin

Holistic Home Designer

The beauty of imperfection

Holistic Home Designer