Home of the Artistic Shopper: Pop Trading
Peter Kolks of menswear label Pop Trading opens the doors to his lofty, light-flooded home in Amsterdam’s city centre
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Pop Trading
Peter Kolks of menswear label Pop Trading opens the doors to his lofty, light-flooded home in Amsterdam’s city centre
Shop Pop TradingHolland-based Peter Kolks – one of two founders behind menswear label Pop Trading - mishmashes the house’s to-die-for original cornicing, parquet flooring and stained glass with his company’s skate culture and art influences. The result is eclectic, hugely welcoming and slightly undone. Come in and nose around...
How long have you lived in this house? Who do you share it with?
I have lived in this house for about 5 years now. It’s a beautiful old house in the southside of Amsterdam city centre, close to the Vondelpark. I’ve shared it with my girlfriend Nina for the past 1.5 years.
What does ‘home’ mean to you?
A place to unwind and be yourself, a safe haven away from the vibrant city.
How would you describe your interior aesthetic?
It’s a bit of mash of my girl’s stuff and my own stuff. When I started to rent the place the owner left some cabinets and a piano behind, so some pieces are also still theirs. The house is beautiful in its old character. The high ceilings and the wooden floor do a lot, we just added some of our own things - from vintage designs to Ikea to custom-built pieces.
Does this sit back to the aesthetic of your brand?
Well I am not too sure, some elements for sure. Obviously I have loads of old skateboarding videos and magazines and there is a lot of art from the artists we collaborated with over the years. Some pieces definitely represent what we stand for as a brand, but its also my girl’s house so I can’t have it all be too Pop.
In which room do you spend the most time?
In the living room for sure. When I am not working, we’re either at home for dinner or the after-dinner chill on the couch. At the weekend, we also have friends over for dinner. The living room is just a well-balanced spot - we can open the big doors to the balcony next to the dining table in the summer so you can read the paper or books and practically be outside.
I have loads of old skateboarding videos and magazines and there is a lot of art from the artists we collaborated with over the years. Some pieces definitely represent what we stand for as a brand, but its also my girl’s house so I can’t have it all be too Pop.
What’s your entertaining style?
We keep it intimate. Covid obviously made sure that happened, but as you can see we don’t have a huge dining table and can have 2-4 guests in our house with ease. I love having friends over. I am more of the drinks and appetiser guy and Nina is a very good cook. She always does her best to serve something new and exciting.
Are you influenced by your environment?
I think inspiration can come from all angles - someone biking in front of you on the way to work, seeing birds in the tree behind the house, someone’s choice of footwear or seeing a restaurant’s interior. Its all connected in my opinion, so yeah, I’m always influenced by my surroundings.
How did you go about decorating/furnishing each room?
Technically its one big room, with a kitchen area and a closet/bathroom space on both ends. Over the years we gained more and more pieces and when Nina came into the house she brought her dining table and a very nice to cabinet from her aunt. As mentioned before, it’s a bit of a mash of things collected over the years and right now we feel its balanced out in a nice way.
Do you have any go-to interior brands?
Not specifically, we have some bits from HAY and Ikea and bedding we got from Zara Home as they have nice textiles. We are keen on Habitat but they are not available in Holland, so we tend to go there when in Paris for Fashion Week. We have a few pieces we bought there actually.
Do you have a favourite piece of furniture or object?
I can mention a few. For one, the bed, which was custom made by a very good friend called Harmen Bazuin. Its made to our specifications so we’re very happy with that. It’s huge as well. Other than that, the Tiger blanket by artist Rop van Mierlo, which we bought as a blanket and made into a wall rug. It has very nice textures. Then we have these wax sculptures we made at Pop in collaboration with Dutch product designer Lex Pott, which are basically skateboarding’s take on his twisted candles. I like the look of these bright curled pieces in the interior, it spices things up.
Are there any interior trends you’re particularly into right now?
Well to be honest, we are looking to buy a houseboat. For a boat that is 40 metres long we are looking at a bit of a Japanese minimalistic approach with a lot of wood and open space. Would that be a current interior trend? Otherwise I don’t think I am too up to date on the latest trends, I reckon what we have now is quite timeless.
Are you drawn to specific colourways or design styles?
Within the house I/we do like to play with colour, having a basic tone with bits of colour or patterns. Then I think we like the minimalistic Japanese vibes mixed with that American classicism, some modern chaos. There are loads of references in the house I guess, so feels like we are quite eclectic. We like the cleanliness, but it also shouldn’t be too stale.
Where do you look for interior inspiration?
It can be anywhere really. Books, Magazines, Instagram, visiting friends, stores. There is this amazing Japanese store called Time & Style in Amsterdam that’s really beautiful. The Louisiana Museum close to Copenhagen was very inspiring for example. Inspiration is everywhere!
