This home isn’t about design as much as it is about invention. In their 45sqm/484sqft harbourfront loft, Koen Fraijman and Fadime Gökkaya have created a space shaped by curiosity, resourcefulness, and daily life – where problem-solving meets playful creativity.
“When we think of our relationship, creating together is a huge part of it. We use the house as a way to create as well.”
“Some people claim it must be nearly 65sqm. I take that as a compliment.”
It’s hard to say whether our How We Live Small series was made for this home – or whether this home was made for the series. From the cartoonishly oversized light switches to tiny dioramas dotted around the space, the 45sqm/484sqft harbourfront home of Koen Fraijman and Fadime Gökkaya is happily overflowing with ideas and details that are as playful as they are practical.
Fraijman, a designer, and his partner Gökkaya, a child psychologist, lived in their compact Amsterdam for two years before buying it. But that’s when the real magic kicked in. “We thought, okay, now we are going to make this place exactly how we’d like it,” Gökkaya says. “When we think of our relationship, creating together is a huge part of it. We use the house as a way to create as well.” As is often the case with renovations, the domino effect of change started as a trickle and ended with a flood. This particular trickle was the desire for a dishwasher. “It started with something practical, but then what happens is: but if we do this, we first need to tackle this. Then we’ll need to tackle this and this. So eventually it became this huge project,” Gökkaya reflects with a laugh.
The couple made big changes to the space, installing new kitchen cabinets, creating a laundry and drying zone, reorienting the living area to face the water, designing a bed frame with an integrated mosquito netting system, and building new bathroom cabinets. In this home, however, it is the small details that have the most impact. Many of which evolved through inventing homemade solutions to everyday problems. Koen says: “I love to make and create things. I think when you buy things, you have this peak because you bought a new thing, and then over time it becomes less valuable. With making it yourself, it’s kind of the opposite – first you only see the flaws and then, over time, you really start appreciating it, and it becomes more and more valuable to you.”
TV too far from the sofa? Fraijman’s ingenious (in our opinion) solution was to rig it to a sliding rail – the same kind used for doors. He created an artwork on the back of the TV so that when it is not in use, it sits flush against the wall as an artwork on display. Only have one remote for the blinds across two storeys of a home? Fraijman created a wonderfully low-tech fix for a very modern problem with a weighted pulley system that physically lowers and raises the remote between floors. And, want more outdoor space? Fraijman collaborated with a friend to build an extra section of deck. (Admittedly, this one only works if you live on water.) They first built it inside the living area before partially dismantling it to get it outside onto the water. Finally, the couple also made sure the space works for more than just the two of them. “A couple of months ago we had a concert here,” Fraijman says. “Ten people downstairs and five upstairs, looking over the railing.” With the dining table pushed aside, the open-plan layout becomes a stage, a cinema or a long dinner table – whatever the day calls for.
If homemade solutions aren’t your thing, then there are the vintage light switches. “I really like weird switches and toggles,” Fraijman explains. “I’ve had people asking me why I don’t use smart switches and smart lighting systems. I don’t like to use an app for everything; I like big chunky light switches. Especially when you turn them off, they go CLUNK. That’s great.” Intentional moments of everyday joy like this one are scattered throughout the home. A LEGO castle sits atop a hanging light in the entryway, the holes in a custom air vent cover are shaped like bell peppers, the spice collection is alphabetised, and a stained glass project inspired by Tetris hangs in the transom above the bathroom door. Are any of these absolutely necessary to the functioning of a compact home? While the answer is almost surely no, it is almost surely yes too. These inventions form a language of creativity – one the couple speaks fluently to each other.
And this creative rhythm shows no signs of slowing down. While their 45sqm/484sqft home has served them really well so far, Fraijman and Gökkaya are already thinking about what comes next. “We’re excited about the next step – maybe having a family and being able to create even more together, in a new space,” says Gökkaya. Whatever shape it takes, we’re just as curious as they are to see what they dream up next.
Want to see even more of this home? Watch the original Never Too Small episode here.
