The Project - JK's Project

Share experiences
around a house

An atypical couple

The original idea for the JK’s project comes from the formulas that Jacques and Katia themselves were looking for for their vacations in a previous life. He running the De Greef jewelry store and she heading the restaurant Viva m’Boma in Brussels. Jacques: “When I was still active in Maison De Greef, we had already opted for formulas excluding hotels during our holidays. Tired of intrusive stares, we already rented houses: a bit like shelters. Our objective ? A real rest, far from any imperative of representation. We changed our destination every year, with a marked preference for the islands. But little by little, these islands have become real breeding grounds for great tourism.

The authentic life of the natives often disappeared there under the pretext of the globalization of holidaymaker’s tastes. Then one day, Katia and I discovered Crete. And more precisely the region of Apokoronas around the town of Chania in the northwestof the island. This land seduced and touched us so much that we returned there for several years. Architecture has always been a passion for me, as has decoration for Katia, so we decided to take the crazy gamble of launching ourselves into a second life and building the house of our dreams there. “

A global architectural project

Bon vivant and followers of a stylish but authentic lifestyle, Jacques and Katia set themselves a few strict criteria from the start: the house should be spacious, comfortable, offering a balanced compromise between tradition and modernity and breathtaking views around. All accompanied by a service and infrastructure worthy of the best hotels. The house should obviously be tucked away out of sight, close to traditional restaurants and to medium-sized towns within a 30-minute drive. And above all: no bling-bling entertainment like you can find in super-trendy vacation spots these days. If desired, authentic local life should take the place of animation.

What we do

DESIGN, DRAW

Design a place where grandiose nature is a guest of honor

Endowed with an eclectic aesthetic and architectural sense that was nourished by trips to the four corners of the planet, Jacques and Katia, the protagonists of JK’s Project, joined forces with the ARCHTIFY office of the Cretan architect Eirini Apostolakis to create their contemporary buildings. Eirini Apostolakis translates the most ambitious dreams of JK’s Project into an authorized architectural language: as an architect, but also as an engineer, she allows to make Jacques and Katia’s dreams come true in the most reliable way.

CREATE, MANUFACTURE, MONITOR

Create a house where minimalist style, modern comfort & local authenticity coexist

Crete may be an island, but its magnitude houses all the advantages of the mainland. There is therefore no need to import craftsman for the construction of a building, since it brings them all together. That said, taking into account the requirements of our sophisticated concept, it goes without saying that the highest quality standards must be guaranteed. And we’re here to make sure. Quality will always come at a price, wherever it is sought. We have been working with these trades for 3 years: the time necessary to carry out with Eirini a strict selection in order to optimize a trusted team on site.

DECORATE, INSPIRE, DESIGN

Be inspired by our discoveries, to bring together materials, ideas and History

Within JK’s Project, Jacques oversees architecture and Katia, interior design. But one is never far from the other, otherwise balance and harmony between the architecture and the interior design cannot be achieved. Katia systematically searches for the most beautiful materials with, as a common denominator, their timelessness. And if her demands are not met on the island, she will not hesitate to import items from all over the world or summon the required artisans.

RENT, SHARE

Sharing more than a house, to transform a rental into an inspiration to another way of life

If you desire to amortize your investment in Crete by renting the house that you build with us, we know the perfect person to supervise the rent. With Erini Apostolaki, we will assist you with everything concerning the logistics of the matter : maid, arrival-departure, etc.