What I Love-Frederique van der War

A Victoria’s Secret Model on Her Permanent Fixer-Upper

Frederique van der Wal, a model whose résumé includes Victoria’s Secret, has been filming a still-unnamed FYI network reality show in which she uses fresh flowers and plants to transform people’s homes. It is her way of introducing Frederique’s Choice, the floral delivery business she started in Europe in 2008, to the United States.

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Frederique van der Wal decided to buy a weekend house 15 years ago, when she was pregnant with Scyler, her daughter with the screenwriter Nicholas Klein.

“I was looking for something with an authentic feel, where a child could run on the grass,” she said recently, strolling across the lawn of her 19-acre property near Rhinebeck, N.Y. “I ended up finding an old Dutch house and barn from 1790.”

Frederique van der Wal modeling for Victoria's Secret in 1997

Ms. van der Wal, a model whose résumé includes Victoria’s Secret and who turns 48 this month, added: “I’ve learned what people meant when they said to me, ‘Are you sure this isn’t a money pit?’ ”

The house may be a permanent fixer-upper, but that doesn’t bother her. “Sometimes people find old houses scary, but I love it,” she said. “My next project is replacing the shutters. I found a whole bunch in the barn that were original to the house, and I’ve begun painting them.”

Ms. Van der Wal, who was born and raised in the Netherlands, suspects she was drawn to the Hudson Valley because of its Dutch heritage. But it is also less than two hours from downtown Manhattan, where she lives during the week.

“The moment you begin driving up here, you feel like you’ve left the craziness of the city behind,” she said. “You immediately feel like you’re in nature, and that’s what’s allowed me to survive New York. It’s kept me grounded.”

Her life in the city has been especially hectic this summer, as she has been working 12-hour days, filming a still-unnamed series for the FYI network, in which she uses flowers and plants to transform people’s homes. The show is her way of introducing Frederique’s Choice, the floral delivery business she started in Europe in 2008, to the United States.

“What you see on the website is exactly what you get,” she said. “The flowers come in a biodegradable vase with a canvas bag, if you want to carry them to bring as a gift.”

Naturally, one of her bouquets was on the kitchen island, next to a basket of fresh eggs. “In Holland, flowers are ingrained in our culture,” she said. “If I come into someone’s home and don’t see plants or flowers, I think the space is dead.”

Ms. van der Wal grows flowers and vegetables next to the renovated tennis court, which “was derelict when I bought the property,” she said. “I had it painted red, so it looks like clay. I love to play tennis.”

She loves to swim as well, and the pond was another project. “It was all overgrown when we moved in, and I had it dug out,” she said. “I grew up in The Hague, so water is very important to me. And I thought it was important that my daughter wasn’t scared of swimming with the fish.”

In cooler months, she gathers friends and family around the fireplaces in the living and dining rooms. “We have 20 or 30 people for Thanksgiving,” she said.

  

A visitor noticed several collections on display, including oversize eggshells on the dining table (from a neighbor who raises ostriches, she explained) and vintage mannequins in a corner of the living room. “I thought they were so cool,” she said. “I used to have them in New York guarding us there, and now they are guarding us here.”

Prying open a cabinet hidden in the paneling of the dining room, she showed off one of many built-in secrets. “This is one of the nooks and crannies that made me fall in love with the house.”

And in Scyler’s room, she opened a trap door in the floor, revealing a staircase to the kitchen. “You only find things like this in old houses,” she said.

But the best thing about the house, she said, is that it’s a place to spend time with Scyler. “I was worried she would want to stay in the city now that she’s a teenager,” Ms. van der Wal said. “But she likes to invite her friends here — thank God.”

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