Every month we visit a creative and inspiring person. She or he is the 'bedMATE of the month'.

The bedMATE is the most iconic item in our collection. The extra long cushion serves as a headboard, but also as a cuddle buddy, a friend who provides support.

We crawl into bed with the 'bedMATE of the month'. We take a look at their home and their colorful (bed)rooms. In conversation we discover how they experience the SUITE life. What's going on in their heads? Where do they get their inspiration from? And what color do they dream in?

This month, all-round creative Nicole Huisman visited the Belgian An de Jonghe, art director and so much more, who owes her success to curiosity, hard work, good taste and trusting a gut feeling and doing what feels good.

'I like all things nice - whether it's a color combination, a good vibe or something unexpected, it catches my attention. And based on that, my job was born from the things that feel good.' I am sitting at the table with An, a creative jack-of-all-trades with a great eye for color & creation. The cookies, various cups and tea are laid out in front of me, like a still life.

If you had to give the creature a name, An works as an art director. "It's like a sauce that you can pour over anything," says An. 'Whether it's a restaurant that needs art direction, or curating interiors, capturing images, or making adjustments. Observe carefully and then just do what feels right. And if we don't find what we're looking for, we make or design it ourselves. That's how our company started.'

Together with her sister and a small team, An runs Studio Stories. An open house for all things creative, so to speak. ' Our mothership is a photo studio in the heart of Ghent, Belgium. And the rest comes from that: interior, set and decor.'

An made television programs and discovered that set dressing was a job. 'The combination of colours, creating depth in an image, using fabrics and structures. All senses activated, that's where the magic happens for me.' Surrounded by creative friends and a good mentor, An developed her skills. 'I jumped into the world of Art Department completely unaware of what this was exactly. I spent many hours on set, building construction and sets. Discovering how to make things look good, in images and in real life.'

But with all those long hours on set and on location, the need arose to have a permanent location. 'And we noticed that there are few inspiring photo studios where you are encouraged to be creative.' So they started something themselves.

'No business plan, just rock and roll, hard work and curiosity. And now we run an old schoolhouse with our friends. In every classroom a different company with different skills; think of an audio studio, music management, architects, photographers - if you are supported by creativity and people with whom you communicate easily, you grow very quickly and it is a safe place to discover and develop new talents. Which then ultimately become your job. And we help each other. It's also so nice to bring everyone and everything together!'

Almost everything in An's house is vintage or home-made. You will find a mix of objects that they used for photo shoots or that they made as a test for an interior project. 'Don't overthink it, I would say. Acting quickly makes it fun. This is how I also tackled my house. I'm that girl who makes the construction workers roll their eyes, but I still convince them to make it. And I then ask our set builders what they don't like. Make it fun, turn an ugly piece of marble into a table, for example. Or turn leftover Dries van Noten fabrics into curtains. The house remains a tableau vivant. A mix of my favorite places and objets trouvés. A bit of Italian Villa Necchi' bathrooms, along with my favorite hotel in Paris. I go to Mexico, want Barragan pink in my entire garden and google 'how to lay lava stones'... Ultimately it becomes a kind of cut and paste journey / life book.'