When launching our Poma/Olera series during the last Dutch Design Week (read all about it here) we had a lovely chat with journalist Jasmijn Missler of Dutch newspaper Trouw. 
Although this hasn't boiled down to a 'real' article in the newspaper yet, we're happy to get a little mention in this piece about food waste. 
Check it out here:

In the article the Poma/Olera is mentioned briefly and described as a fruit bowl making it possible to keep different kinds of fruit and vegetables in separate compartments to avoid them being subject to the ethylene gas emitted by ripening fruits like apples and bananas.
Which is, of course, very true.
​
But the Poma/Olera series has more dimensions than just separating different fruits.

The fruitbowl also has multiple presentation platters for fruits that should be eaten first, while also serving as a lid  keeping the stock below in a dark and slightly cooler (due to evaporation cooling) space.

Also part of the series is ripening bowl Patera Maturus which uses ethylene gas emitted by certain fruits to speed up the ripening process of other varieties like avocado or mango.

The reason we're expanding a little on the subject, is because later on the article mentions a couple of things you can do to keep fruit and vegetables fresh for longer and Poma/Olera pretty much covers them all.

Happy to know our extensive homework during the research phase paid off ;-).

<Read all about Poma/Olera>

Super happy and proud to have our new Helios Constellation featured in the Holiday gift guide of Volkskrant Magazine last Weekend.

It's only a tiny mention, but judging by the extra webshop orders, people are definitely noticing :-)
Also, we're joined by a pretty decent collection of other great-to-gift goodies, so if you can use some inspiration, make sure to check out the full gift guide in November 23rd Volkskrant Magazine!

Find more about the Helios Constellation here
or
Order Helios in our webshop

This season we're going to try something new. We'll be participating in a Christmas Market!
And not just any Christmas market: the Amsterdamsche Kerstmarkt, to be precise.

As a sucker for Christmas tunes i'm very much looking forward to 4 days of Jingle bell cheer and gluhwein.
And since the market is open to everyone and has a fun programme for all ages, this is definitely a place to spend some time in the Weekend before Christmas. 

Come find us, get your Holiday presents at our stall and i'll lovingly wrap it to make sure your gift will stand out under the tree. 

<Read all about the market here>

A month ago Today, Eindhoven was the worlds' epicenter of design, and slap bang in the main square of all Dutch Design Week festivities was a large white box stating "Design bepaalt de koers", Dutch for "Design sets the course".

​The box was a temporary building designed to represent a blank sheet ready for a the first draft of a new design, and was commissioned by Dutch bank ABN AMRO.
​For 9 days this pavilion was the home of 4 Game Changers: designs that can help us live more sustainably daily lives.

​One of those Game Changers: our Poma/Olera series.
Brandbase and ABN AMRO gave us the opportunity to come up with a solution for everyday fruit and vegetable storage. 
(More about the origins of Poma/Olera can be found here)

Our design was accompanied by the Transformer table (getting better with age), a candle using fat from a water sanitation plant and a filter that takes out the micro-plastics from your washing machine waste water.  

The ABN AMRO Game Changers exhibition was set up as an experience: up to 15 visitors accompanied by a host would be guided along the 4 different Game Changers with a professional voice-over and well timed lighting schedule.

This meant that as a visitor of the Game Changers Pavilion you really experienced design, rather than simply looking at it. Something very different to most other exhibitions and very professionaly executed.

Because of the voice-over directing the pace of the little tour, people didn't really have the time to linger around our work and take photographs to share online.
That's why we snuck in before the show started to get a few pics of the Poma/Olera presentation.

Having ABN AMRO backing our project meant that we reached audiences we probably would have missed otherwise.

We were very happy we got to tell about House of Thol to a professional audience during a Sustainable investment event and expanded our network tremendously.
​
Apart from an interview with a journalist from a national newspaper that will hopefully be published in a few months, we had a lovely chat with Francis of Sublime radio, which let into our 60 seconds of radio fame that you can listen to here.

Not being able to stand next to our designs was new to us, and made for a refreshingly laid back Dutch Design Week.

It also meant we missed out on a lot of direct response to our Poma/Olera series, and that's kind of a shame.
We love getting into conversation about our designs, to clarify the decisions we made and brainstorm about future possibilities.
​Luckily a lot of people still managed to reach out to us and tell us what they thought about Poma/Olera via e-mail and social media

Most heard response was: "When will the series be for sale?" and "Where can i get a Poma/Olera fruit bowl?".

​With so many specific requests, we're happy to get a move on: We'll be producing a small Poma/Olera series in house meant for direct sales on the short term, while at the same time diving deeper into terracotta production possibilities as close to home as possible.
We're not in this alone: Fonds Kwadraat is helping us with the next step.

We've currently set the price of a large Poma/Olera bowl (Patera Magnus) at €195,-. 
Production will take approximately 4-6 weeks.

Interested in keeping your fresh food fresh?
Get in touch!​

In the Netherlands we're as a nation postponing the Christmas cheer until after December 5th, when our own Saint Nicholas heads back to his palace in Spain.
But boy, then it does start in earnest. The Weekend following Sinterklaas' departure, it's absolute mayhem in every garden centre selling Christmas trees. 

Personally i love the Holidays not so much because of the religious significance, but rather because people all over the world go through lenghts to spend time with the people they love.
No matter what (if any) religious meaning you attach to this time of year, the way this season helps get people together is a reason to celebrate on its own.

And it's not just about seeing everyone you love in person, this season is also about sending your best wishes to friends and family.
​How about sending them some flowers as well? Not actual flowers of course, they'd wilt in the mail, but wildflower seeds caught in a Holiday card.
​
​Especially for these festive times we designed 4 new Holiday Growing Cards.
​The cards have been printed on Growing paper: 240gr recycled paper that contains wildflower seeds.

 To germinate the seeds, lay the paper in moist soil, place in a sunny spot, cover with a thin layer of earth and keep moist. 
Depending on the kind of seed in the paper, you'll see the first tiny green leaves pop out of the earth after about ten days.
​
Order now and we'll send along a matching Bee Happy envelope for free!

<See all growing cards>

Here at House of Thol we're very fond of being able to wrap presents in a stylish unexpected way and are big fans of public domain works of art that we can use.
Last year we launched two types of custom wrapping paper for our Flower Constellations: The gorgeous dark flower painting by Dutch Master Rachel Ruysch and the vibrant original by Ambrosius Bosschaert the elder . 
​Both beautiful floral Dutch Classics.

About a month ago we finished the design of the official Helios Packaging: the brass growing disk comes in a small eco-cardboard box that is lovely to gift.
And because it is such a suitable present, this calls for great wrapping paper.
Since the Helios is not so much about Flowers as it is about plants and greenery, we scored the Public Domain for colorful paintings that are all about growth. 

Instead of going for just one, we opted for two different wrapping papers to choose from right from the start. 

Find out more about the works by Henri Rousseau and William Morris below.

Henri Julien Félix Rousseau only started painting in his 40ties and never received official training.
Although he is now seen as an inspiring avant-gardist, his naive style got ridiculed during his lifetime.

Rousseau painted many jungle-themed works, but probably never left France or saw a real jungle. 
He was an avid visitor of the botanical gardens though, and loved being surrounded by tropical plants.
The animals he painted were inspired by texidermy settings of wildlife. 

This painting of monkeys in a tropical forest from 1910 was probably one of his last. Rousseau died in Paris on September 2nd 1910.

Currently William Morris is best known for his Ats and Crafts textile and wallpaper designs, whereas in his lifetime he was better known as a poet. 

Though officially trained as an architect, Morris started a firm focussed on interior decoration with several associates in 1861. He took over as sole owner in 1875, renaming the company 'Morris&Co'. 
The company flourished during the Arts & Crafts period (1880-1900), and stayed in business until 1940.
Many of the Morris&Co prints are still in production.

This 'Fruit' (or 'Pomegranate') wallpaper pattern was designed in 1865/1866, and is one of the first paper designs William Morris brought to market.

It's almost December and Sinterklaas is in the country!
With our boys being 4 and (just) 7, our household is all about the Saint and his nimble associates.

With just a few weeks to go till Pakjesavond we know the struggle of having to find gifts for all your loved ones while steering clear of the socks, chocolate & shower gel clichés.
Look no further: 
The brass Flower Constellations are a great personal gift for any flower lover (and who doesn't love flowers?); Waterworks makes it super easy for anyone to care for their houseplants; and growth constellation
Helios is perfect for anyone who'd love to watch a plant grow from an otherwise discarded avocado pit.

To help you along, you can now choose to have your order wrapped in Sinterklaas-themed wrapping paper!

May we have your attention please!
....drumroll...
Here it is, the new official packaging of our Helios Constellation: Ready to gift!

Because our growth Constellation Helios is a special in the Flower Constellations family, we went in a different direction with the packaging.
The Helios might be smaller than its Flower Constellations cousins, the brass calls for packaging that does the semi-precious metal justice.

The Helios comes in a deluxe eco-cardboard giftbox, which makes for a nice chique gift, while still being flat enough to fit in an envelope and to be sent your way via regular mail. 

Each Helios box has a black foam inlay keeping the brass in great condition, and a minimalist manual that shows you step-by-step how to best use your Helios and how to prepare (avocado-)pits to grow into a water-rooted plant.

Ready to start gifting the Helios to you friends and loved ones? We have news coming up about special wrapping paper soon!

The 'Grote Nederlandse Kunstkalender' or 'Big Dutch Art Calender' is a beast of a calendar: weighing more than three (3!) Kilograms, the calender features a new piece of Dutch Art every day of the year.

A mix of fine arts, photography, illustration, product design, architecture and graphic design, the selection consists of work by upcoming talents as well as from big names in the Dutch world of art and design.

Or go ahead and get the calender for your significant other so you can enjoy a full year of Dutch Art together. 

The Grote Nederlandse Kunstkalender can be bought for €34,95 (ex. shipping) via Trichis.

//Read more about the calender here//

Sublime is a Dutch radio station all about soul, funk and jazz. Aside from music, they feature a super cool side step into sustainable and social progress every hour called 'Nieuws van de vooruitgang' (news of progress).

Listen to the (Dutch) piece here >
Sander and Francis zoom in on the Dutch Design Week fairly quick, and the Poma Olera series is the first project  discussed.

More can be found on Sublimes website.

For more information about the Poma/Olera, click here.

First of all, eating an avocado is really good for you! They're packed with vitamines and healthy fats and contain even more potassium than bananas.
​
In our household we're a big fan of a salmon & avocado poké-bowl, and there are many more great recipes to be found online.  
Can't be bothered to go recipe-hunting: simply go for the avocado-on-toast for an easy snack.

Please note: avocado are imported and use a lot of water, so they come with a footprint. Bought from Kenya, Peru, Mexico and Spain, they're labeled an alright choice by Milieucentraal (environmental label B).
​
Whatever you do, eat your avocado when it's ripe: check the stem to be certain (here's how this works). 
Here's a little help to store your avocado in the best possible way.

Gently remove the pit from the avocado without damaging it and clean off all residue. 
Leave the pit in a jar of clean water for 24-48 hours.
​
If you want to, you can carefully peel off the outer layer of the pit, exposing the pale wood-like seed. 
Some say this can speed up the germination process, or do it because they simply prefer the look.

Wrap your clean pit in a moist paper towel and put in a plastic bag. Store the bag somewhere dark at room temperature  (in a cabinet is perfect)​
​Check the bag every three days to see if the towel is still moist and/or if the first sprouts are showing yet (can take up to two months). 
​Once the first roots have grown about 2 centimeters we're ready for the next step. 

Get out your Helios constellation and customize the size of the star-shaped opening by folding the perforated lines.

Find a glass vessel (D5,5-8cm) and fill with water. Either go for a used jar or a nice vase: ideally something that's easy to clean and you'll want to look at for a while.

Lay the Helios disk centered on top of the jar/vase and push the inner brass circle downward to fit.

Carefully place your sprouted pit in the disk, making sure the roots are under water and the leaves leaves have room to grow up towards the sun.

Change the water every few days to keep the growing plant happy and the developing root system visible.

When the stem reaches 20 cm, cut back to about half to force the creation of more roots.

​If you want to, you can occasionally add nutrients to the water for stronger growth.

We've had avocado plants on water thrive for years, with an ever growing root system to enjoy under water.
​
If you're serious about growing an avocado tree make sure to move the plant to soil and keep in a warm and light environment.
(if you can use a little help watering your potted avocado plant, we've got you covered).

Enjoy your homegrown greenery!

It all started with a phonecall in June: ABN AMRO was looking for designers to come up with a sustainable solution for everyday situations, and if we could pitch an idea in July?

Since our House of Thol slogan is 'Durable products for easy green living' of course we had to participate!
We had a few ideas up our sleeve that could perhaps impact a marker like Earth Overshoot Day.

We took a close look at our own day-to-day and found plenty of things that we still can do better.
​One of the things that's a real problem, is food waste: with two young kids with fluctuating appetites in the house, we can't help but throw out food ever so often.
Such a waste! Not only because of the money, but also because of the resources we waste.

And this goes beyond our household: in the Netherlands we throw out 34 kilograms of food each per year, and globally one third of the food produced is wasted.
That's about 1.3 billion tons!
​
If we could save only a quarter of that amount, we could feed every hungry mouth in the world (source). 

Bringing it back to our own small household: what can we do to avoid food waste in our daily lives?
We noticed we often have trouble with fruits and vegetables: what is the best way to store them, so they stay fresh for longest and we don't have to throw out wrinkled bell peppers?

Turns out not every fruit and vegetable plays nice with others, so keeping them all together in one large fruit bowl might not be such a great idea: the ethylene coming from fruits like apples can negatively impact the taste or ripeness of other fruits in the bowl.
Anyway, learning about the best way to store fresh food involved a whole lot of research (spreadsheets, seriously) that deserves its own blog post soon.

Back to the process: We presented our plans in Amsterdam in July and the day after our meeting with the jurors we drove off to the Schwarzwald in a 42°c heat and two eager little boys in a car without airconditioning.

We spent two blissful weeks of summer break, and got the phonecall with the final go for our Poma/Olera project while en route.

These past months, ever since returning home from our break, have been all about Poma/Olera. 

The design changed somewhat from the first drafts and we created a series of round vessels specifically designed to store fruits and vegetables in a better way.

The making process involved a lot of sketching,computer drawing, 3d printing, mold making, clay casting, finishing, failing, doing it again, changing the molds, recasting, firing the kiln, glazing tests, new glazing tests, production, production, production.
​
Well, your typical design process, really.

We're super happy and proud to be able to showcase the first prototypes of our Poma/Olera series at the Game Changers Pavilion on the Ketelhuisplein during this Dutch Design Week.
We'd love to see you there!

Last weekend we spent 4 days in sunny The Hague at chique art/design festival 'Masterly The Hague' - Not only was the festival taking place in a beautiful setting, we were blessed with great weather and many enthusiastic and lovely visitors!

We were super happy with the great presentation of our work: the bathtub being flanked by this gorgeous 1930ties silk Kimono that was on loan from the Gemeentemuseum The Hague, and the over all high quality athmosphere at Hoogsteder & Hoogsteder.
Also not too bad to share a room with skillfull glass artist Geir Nustad and be a temporary direct neighbor of Orange or Red, Bibi Smit and Thed Konings.

And, lest i forget: we worked together with Ceramist Henriette Meijer to create a stylish floral setting at the entrance of Museum Bredius.

Since we were pretty much talking all the time, we didn't get to take that many photographs. 
Luckily plenty of others did!
Here's a few of the pictures we found online. All images link back to the photographer or account we found them.

Thank you Nicole Uniquole and the Masterly The Hague organisation for a lovely festival!  

Summer might not even be officially over yet, With the fall tradefairs all taking place this month, the Holiday Season already started in retail-land!

Because we're very familiar with the challenges involved with designing and marketing your own products, we created a 'Get it at the Creatives' gift guide filled with affordable Dutch Design.

Check it out, because all these creatives are still out there making beautiful things that you should definitely add to your wishlist!

Since we first launched the Flower Constellations, we've been lucky enough to be featured in quite a few publications, both on the web as well as in print.

Because we're super proud of these mentions, we've dedicated a webpage to them -an online cutting file, so you will-, on which we've made an overview of all Flower Constellations publications we could find.

= Check it out here =

Whenever we need photographs of our designs, we turn to one very talented lady: Masha Bakker Matijevic of Masha Bakker Photography.

I've known Masha since high school, yet that's not the main reason why we love working with her: with her keen eye for lighting and composition, she always delivers gorgeous and timeless pictures that are ready to share.

Our last photoshoot was last spring and i wanted to take a moment to share the lovely series she shot of our Flower Constellations as well as the Ophiuchus & Helios constellation.

Interested in using these photographs in a publication? Everything and more can be found in high resolution in our image bank. Get in touch for a log-in!

Please note: We're happy for you to share our work and photographs, however, please mention the source and photographer.

Here at House of Thol headquarters we have quite a versatile workload: We might be stylishly setting up a floral arrangement for a photoshoot one moment and be sanding a wooden door the next.
Building cabinets, designing packaging, managing social media, preparing Waterworks-sets, producing terracotta cones, packing webshop orders, reaching out to partners, developing concepts and writing blog posts: it's all in a days' work.

Thomas and i have been happily sharing this work between the two of us, but now time has come for us to learn how to delegate.
That's why we're looking for TWO interns!  ​

Do you want to know what it takes to run an independent design brand?
Curious to experience how it works to design and market your own products as well as working together with brands and manufacturers?
​
Come see how we do it at House of Thol headquarters. We'd love to take you along for the ride!

We're looking for two positive people for the following internship positions:

You'll be working hands-on with Thomas on production, prototyping and model making.

You speak Dutch or English and love spending time in the workshop.
You're inquisitive, won't back down from a challenge and like to learn new skills. 
You'll work with a variety of materials and techniques, ranging from casting porcelain and terracotta to 3D-printing, woodworking and construction.
Knowledge of 3D modeling software would be great.

You'll be working closely with Jana on marketing, sales, pr and all things visual, including content development for website and social media.

You're adequate in English and preferably Dutch.
Social media has very little secrets for you. You love to create beautiful image and write fun, informative posts.
You're happy to communicate with shops and customers as well as with journalists and magazines from around the world.   
Knowledge of Illustrator, Photoshop and Indesign (or similar programs) would be appreciated.

Interested in being an intern at House of Thol?
Great!
Send your Dutch or English application with CV to home@houseofthol.nl 
Any questions or remarks? Don't hesitate to get in touch!

We'll ask you to be at House of Thol headquarters (Parksesteeg 8, Overasselt) from Monday to Thursday 09:30-17:00.
During fairs and exhibitions it would be great if you could join us on site if needed.

After weeks of summer adventures and waking up without an alarm clock, we brushed the boys' hair this morning and dropped them off at school with suntanned faces eager for a fresh year.

Recharged and with our hands freed again, we're ready to take on the coming months.
We might as well... there's loads to be done!

To get the new season off to a running start, we've set up a Back to School discount of 10%!

So get your Waterworks sets now and keep those plants alive, start growing your avocado tree, get yourself a Flower Constellation to stylishly arrange the cut flowers from your garden (even the ones with thicker stems) or simply stock up on presents for upcoming birthdays!

To receive the 10% discount, use code 'BacktoSchool19' at check-out and ten percent will be deducted from the total amount of your order.

The discount code is valid on all products up to September 8th.

We're super excited that only one year after we launched them, the Flower Constellations are now available in the United States of America!!! Yeah!!

Uncommon Goods, webshop for unique gifts, home decor and more, picked up on our design a while ago, and after we sent over a few samples, the sales team gave their go and we shipped the first batch to the US right before our summer break.

So for all of you lovely people living in the US who can use a stylish tool for stellar flower arrangements or are looking for a flowery gift for a loved one , head over to UncommonGoods.com and order Flower Constellations now!

Not living in the US?
Our products are now being sold in 13 different countries around the world, so with a bit of luck there might be a store near you!
Check out our Store Locator for more information.

Although our summer break was cut short because of the opportunity of a sudden assignment that we didn't want to miss (more about that later, i promise!), we still had two long weeks to unwind and relax.

Our last-minute planning brought us to the Schwarzwald (Black Forest) in Germany, a mere 5,5 hour drive from the headquarters.

We landed on a wonderful campground right next to a stream and a little waterfall. and together with the boys spent hours on well-made playgrounds and adventure trails such as the Black Forest Treetop walk (with a large slide going down) and a Barefoot path where we got to got to walk over pieces of broken glass (still pretty sharp).
We clambered accross Germanies' largest waterfall and walked a 60 meters high suspension bridge that slightly swayed in the wind.

Of course we had to play a round of adventure golf (guess who struck a hole-in-one) and we somehow visited two places where people were extremely serious about model-trains as well as to a museum of clocks, vintage cars and vintage vending machines (because what else in Germany on a rainy day).

This September will mark the second edition of Masterly Den Haag.
Masterly started out as a festival celebrating Dutch high craft in Amsterdam, and over the past years became a Dutch staple of the Fuori Salone programme during the furniture fair in Milan in April.

Nicole Uniquole, the initiator and driving force behind Masterly, has a love for things that are well made: both now and in history.
Situating contemporary Dutch Design in a classical environment creates an interesting tension between the 'now' and the 'then'.  The beautiful locations she uses as a backdrop are always worth your visit.

We're super happy to be part of the Masterly Festival this year, and proud to be coupled with the painting Jan van Ravesteyn made of Amalia van Somst.
​
Amalia came to Den Haag as a refugee at 17 and went on to marry Stadtholder Frederik Hendrik, thus becoming the original matriarch of our Dutch Royal family of Orange.
​In her married life, lady van Solms worked towards elevating the position of her husband and family.
​She showcased her collection of paintings and porcelain in refurbished or newly built grand houses and palaces with lush gardens.

In 1641, Amalia married her son Willem II to young Mary Henrietta Stuart, Princess Royal, making grandson Willem (William) III a true prince of Orange who would become monarch of England, Scotland and Wales in later life (but not without a battle).  

As lovers of Flowers, we're drawn to the beautifull embroidery lady van Solms is depicted wearing: showcasing the long love the Dutch Royal family has for flowers. 
A perfect match with our Flower Constellations!
Did you know descendant and namesake Catharina-Amalia, Princess of Orange, has a tulip named after her?

Summer is a time for fun and adventures!

Since our children highly appreciate our company when they're not in school to share said fun and adventures, we've planned for a little time off during the dog days.

From July 26th until August 9th we'll be out of the office. E-mail will be read sporadically. All webshop-orders placed during our break will be shipped upon our return in August.
For super-important things that definitely can not wait, send us a message via text or WhatsApp.