“Repetition of materials provides peace of mind,” Belgian architect Arjaan De Feyter says. His recent revamp of an old factory in Belgium’s ‘Diamond City’ bears witness to that. The reimagined space is sober yet characterful, having clearly been stripped away of all things unnecessary, leaving only what is important to the family that lives there.

Initially, Old Factory consisted of two separate parts; a two-storey terrace house on the left and a former steel factory where gears were manufactured on the right. When the client bought both, it was intended to become one big family home. The boundary between the two was dissolved, but the facades were kept the same to maintain a sense of duality.

That “peace of mind” that Arjaan speaks of is produced by the recurrent use of bold natural stone. The conspicuous material, inset with streaks of plum and flecks of burgundy, exists with pure conviction throughout the entire space. It is, at large, the mark of the home, around which all else willingly convenes.

Arjaan always looking to balance sobriety in the use of materials on the one hand and the client’s story and personality on the other,” . The Old Factory interiors consider the natural progression of a family home; in particular, the idea that what you see when you first move in versus when you’ve been living there for an extended period of time are two very different things. “You have to leave room for personal interpretation,” Arjaan says.

Arjaan自始至终都密切参与设计过程。这个项目是完美的案例研究，进行的每一步Arjaan都在，以确保他标志性的使用诚实的材料和纯粹的形式被很好地实现。“一切都经过深思熟虑，”他说，“没有什么是偶然的”。因此，每个细节最终等同于一个整体，是一个无缝的设计。

Arjaan is always closely involved in the design process from start to finish. This project is the perfect case study; Arjaan was there every step of the way, ensuring that his signature use of honest materials and pure forms was implemented soundly. “Everything has been thought through,” he says, “nothing is accidental”. As a result, each detail ultimately equates to one whole, seamless design.