We love to make the weird work

We’re Sarah Rowlands and Simon Bush-King — a New Zealand-born interior designer and architect duo, based in the Netherlands for nearly two decades, with experience across residential, hospitality, and adaptive reuse projects in the Netherlands and abroad.

We work closely with clients — often founders, entrepreneurs, or independent owners — to help them rethink the spaces they know too well to see clearly. From hotels to homes, we bring together spatial intelligence, strong aesthetic direction, and a sharp eye for problem-solving.

Clients come to us when they’re stuck, when they want more from their space, or when the stakes are high. We resolve complexity — not just with clean layouts, but with ideas that quietly add value: finding space where it didn’t seem to exist, improving flow, reusing well, or revealing overlooked potential.

We design for feeling and function. Some moments should glide by unnoticed; others should make people pause. We know how to design for both.

Sustainability is at the heart of everything we do. We work with healthy, natural materials wherever possible — and if a material isn’t sustainable, we expect a good reason. Circular thinking shapes our approach with clients, contractors, and the way we plan for the long term.

We work in Dutch-speaking environments daily, but usually speak in English. That hasn’t been a barrier — and often opens different kinds of conversations. Our clients are usually curious, ambitious, and on a mission. That’s who we work best with


Two kiwis walk into a bar

We began in New Zealand almost twenty years ago in Architecture school. A shared passion for design sparked our first conversation that has only deepened over time. Our careers have spanned the globe working for some respected Urban Design, Interior and Architectural offices on a wide range of projects from our home for the last 15 years, Amsterdam.

In 2024 we started, Design the Commons.

The Commons is grounded in our experience that projects succeed with a common vision, & direction.

We believe great design is about truly understanding the heart of our clients’ ambitions and translating them into spaces and experiences that perform, inspire, and endure.

Our mission is simple: to create functional, beautiful, spaces that measurably improve the lives and business of our clients. 

We thrive on turning unknowns into clear, actionable plans. We have turned the idea of doing more with less into a rich working method of sustainable, efficient and surprising solutions for our clients where all resources, time, money and materials are handled with care. 

If you’re curious to know more, please, as they say in New Zealand, give us a shout!