Gesine Sonneveld-Bos was born in 1886. Her family came from Friesland, where her father was a police officer. She worked as a crafts teacher until she got married. In 1933, when she moved to this house, she was 47 and had two daughters. Thanks to her husband's meteoric career she had moved several rungs higher on the social ladder, and spent most of her days looking after the house and reading. She received few visitors, apart from a female friend who regularly came to tea. Mrs Sonneveld had a big weakness for luxuries and status symbols. Whenever she went out she'd wear a couple of items of jewellery, a long coat - usually fur-trimmed - and a hat with a hatpin. But she was primarily a practical woman who liked everything to be neat and tidy and hated wasting time and money. She must have loved this revolutionary interior because as well as being luxurious, it was practical and efficient.
If you would like to hear more about Mrs Sonneveld, press A. For the glassware in the showcase, press B. Or press C for the tableware and tablecloth on the table. Please do not touch the cabinets and the tableware. The next room on this tour, number 8, is one floor higher, next to the stairs.