Design | iHeartBerlin.de

City Icons – A Contemporary Souvenir of Berlin

When you think of Berlin souvenirs you probably think of plastic TV towers and tacky T-shirts. None of these things really capture the spirit of the city as we see it, and I’m sure none of you would be interested in any of those.

The Italian label Palomar came up with a new design souvenir titled City Icons that really took us by surprise. They completely rethought the concept of a city snow globe, creating a series of contemporary objects that highlight an architectural icon of the city that is not your typical tourist sight. The series that was designed by Paolo Dell’Elce and curator by Marco Sammicheli includes sleek black snow globes of cities such as Paris, London, Sydney, Hong Kong, Frankfurt, Amsterdam, Barcelona and of course also Berlin. But instead of the Eiffel Tower, Big Ben or the Sagrada Familia you will see the minimalistic shapes of buildings that are maybe not on mainstream tourist’s itineraries but are nonetheless iconic for the respective cities.

iHeartBerlin’s Very First In-Real-Life Design Edition: Berlin Stickers

by Michalina | Design, Products

Advertising

The spirits are even higher than usual among our team today. We are absolutely thrilled to launch a series that is a complete novelty in our over 10 years of blogging. For the first time ever, we’re introducing iHeartBerlin-themed real life products – titled IHB/IRL. The first edition is a colorful sheet of 13 cute stickers created by our talented in-house designer Berk Karaoglu with images you might recall from some of our editorials. The batch is limited, so get ’em while they’re hot!

Over the years, we’ve seen that you heart Berlin just as much as we do, so we’ve tried to figure out an outlet for that love to spread outside of the Internet too. IHB/IRL is a chance for you to have the iHeartBerlin vibe visibly present in your day to day hustle – that’s why we chose to go with stickers for the first edition.

The Talented Furniture Designers of Berlin

by Amanda Artiaga | Design, People, Products

photo: Neo/Craft

Germany is the country where the Bauhaus was born founded by Walter Gropius an outstanding Berliner who, among his revolutionary legacy, coined the historic quote “Form follows function”. He looked for the union between use and aesthetics. Berlin has it all, (only if it was at the sea…) so it’s not surprising that you can find really amazing designers in Berlin. The crafts have always had that strong artisan character deeply rooted in the tradition of learning from those who mastered techniques and materials. Despite that, I personally will take the liberty to think of them as true artists. But regardless of how you address them, there’s certainly one thing we will agree on: what they do is simply amazing. Because they don’t just create stunning objects, they create objects that will help you bring meaning to spaces and to learn what it means to inhabit a space. And hopefully to be able to fill that place with unforgettable and meaningful memories. Here you have 7 of our favorite furniture and product designers that work to keep Berlin’s look cool and, always, unique.

The Ultimate New Year’s Eve Guide for Berlin

by Frank | Clubs, Design, Food, Music, Party

photo: Marcel Berkmann / CC

Edition Noël: Designer Christmas Tree Ornaments Made in Berlin

by Franziska | Design, Products

For many families, decorating the christmas tree together belongs to one of many long cherished traditions, that one is looking forward to every christmas. Grandmas old ornaments are retrieved from the cellar, freed from dust and checked for cracks before they end up back on the christmas tree. Prior to this everyone needs to decide on the colour and in the end, like every year, eyeing the crumbling decoration, you notice once more: we should really get new ornaments for next year.

Those who want to revive old traditions and add some new unique pieces to your christmas ornament collection, will be happy to have found Edition Noël. Behind this label, seven ambitious and talented designers joined forces to create something special next to their daily work: handmade christmas ornaments. Their collection includes 300 Sets with 6 delicate, individual ornaments each. In the process, every designer let their individual creative focus flow into each ornament they made. The designers have backgrounds in illustration-, fashion-, jewelry-, textile- and product design, giving the ornaments a different style, one by one.

Berlin’s Iconic Subway Design as a foldable Chair & Table Set

by Frank | Design, Products

When product designer Stefanie Grau asked me if I would like to design a piece of furniture and become part of her newly formed grey collective I was more than thrilled to say yes. She had developed a set of chairs and a table that are fully foldable thanks to a high-tech fiber that connects all the parts. The idea is that when you fold the chairs or the table into its flat form they become canvases. So they are not only practical and easily stored, they can also become decorative items on your walls.

With a design so universal and minimal it really felt like the sky is the limit. Fellow collective members 44flavors created a quite colorful pattern, while Sara Parsons decided to go for a minimal design with lines and curves. Stefanie herself also designed a few sets going for subtle color surfaces and gradients.

For my own surface design I decided to do something very Berlin, giving a reference to one of the most iconic things we have here: Our yellow subway. I picked up the color palette and also created a version of the iconic blue and red seat pattern that incorporates yet another famous Berlin symbol (I detail which I dare you to find yourself!).

Interior Design Dreams come true at the Amazing Crocodile

by Stella | Design, Mitte, Shops

photo: Patrick Albertini

Berlin is, among else, a designer’s paradise. Like its people, Berlin’s interiors are just as diverse, with style that’s hard to pin down. The influences come from everywhere: from full-on kitsch, to industrial details, or the much beloved Scandinavian minimalism, the city is full of Tumblr looking interiors, always ready to pose for our #interior Instagram posts. The Amazing Crocodile, one of the most striking interior design stores in Berlin, is full of fun, elegant objects for all tastes, and a must when hunting for stunning pieces to make your living space come alive!

Imagine Berlin By The Sea

by Stella | Art, Design, Products, Stories

map: Carlos Borrell

I know, there’s only so much you can ask for from a place right? And considering that already Berlin is giving us SO much, it feels ungrateful to be asking for more. It is sexy, it is affordable, it is tolerant, it is fun. But still, there’s certain things Berliners crave for, these few things missing that would truly make it paradise, and us unable to ever leave it.

Like, for instance, I think, I don’t know if you agree, um, maybe we could use nicer weather? I don’t mean to sound unthankful for all the blessings this city gracefully bestows upon us, but we could do without these forever-winters. Of course once the frost spell is broken it gets to be really beautiful, it’s just not enough of that. Berliners show their fascination with the good weather, right when the first sign of it appears: ready to get naked and run to a lake, wearing smiles we definitely need to see more of.

Imagine Berlin as a Vivid Holiday Paradise

by Stella | Art, Design

illustrations: Bruno Pinto da Cruz

In our ceaseless hunt for cool Berlin art, we stumbled upon a project we loved and thought we’d share with you: Berlin-based digital illustrator Bruno Pinto da Cruz’s ISOMATIC. ISOMATIC is a sequence of architectural drawings, transformed by Bruno into illustrations, unveiling the scenery in different colors and shapes. Among other projects, our eye was caught by his awesome Kotti illustration, the beginning of a series that is going to focus on Berlin’s iconic neighborhoods. Kotti, through Bruno’s eyes, becomes playful and flooded with color; a little Sailor Moon-y looking, which made me love it extra much. Of course, it’s not the first time Kotti becomes an artist’s muse: In the past, among others, Kotti has served as an inspiration to illustrator Nicola Napoli, in his creation of various illustration series, as well as a toy carpet by Muschi Kreuzberg.

In his latest artwork he totally remodeled the Ku’damm area around Bikini Berlin, the zoo and the Memorial Church including water slides and zeppelin. How fun!

5 Hidden Contemporary Architecture Highlights in Berlin

by Guest Author | Design

photos: Laura Fiorio

The local architect Itay Friedman presents his top five lesser known but most appreciated buildings in Berlin.

Berlins’ urban and cultural experience is composed of numerous structures and architectural marvels, from museums to concert halls, clubs to historical structures, parks, and monuments to statues and government building. All together elegantly compose what we call and define as the rich Berlin urban cultural experience.

As an architect that has been working in Berlin for almost a decade, I find that so many unique and important buildings that contribute profoundly to our cities cultural and social growth in an unprecedented way go unknown and unrecognized.

In Berlin we can find great examples of the purest form of architecture, which unfortunately are not always in the limelight as mostly nowadays architecture is not measured and examined by its own merit but by the name of the architect him/herself.

As Tag der Architektur 2017 is upon us (a yearly event celebrating architecture), created with the support of local architects, foundations and led by the chamber of architects Berlin, I wanted to share my top five buildings that are mostly unknown and that I essentially love the most in Berlin. In my eyes, they represent uncompromised professionalism by colleagues with unwavering resolute to our field, that I am proud to work alongside in the same city.

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