One of the many facets of Berlin that people really love and cherish is the rough, urban and industrial style of the city. It’s something that Berlin has in common with places like Brooklyn or South East London. But combined with Berlin’s history, the division, the Soviet influence of the East, it developed a quite particular style that sets it apart from the other cities. Raw brick walls and concrete, factory lamps and Edison light bulbs, this is pretty much an aesthetic you will see all over the world. But Berlin adds old GDR relics, remains of the Soviet military, and remnants of old industries that were specific to Germany. The outcome is a unique mix of history, design, and patina that feels specific to Berlin.
In our newest guide, we want to introduce you to 3 shops that have specialized in industrial vintage design, all of which combine common aesthetics with more particular ones. We love all three of these shops as they capture so much an essential part of the style of Berlin. Enjoy!
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by Frank | Design, Mitte, Schöneberg, Shops
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.
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by Amanda Artiaga | Design, People, Products
The combination of wood and metal makes your heart race, you wish that steam punk had actually been a time period and “vintage” truly is your second forename? Let us hook you up with the Mekka of industrial furniture at the one and only “Urban Industrial”, the holy hall for everything antique, unique and extremely stylish.
The brand was born out of founder Jakob Wagner’s strong passion and unmistakable talent for collecting vintage furniture from shut down factories, skillfully refurbishing them and putting them up in his store for you to fall in love with. What used to be a ballroom opposite Volkspark Hasenheide at Hermannplatz now spectacularly serves as their showroom. Upon entering it impresses you with its large space, remarkably high ceilings and grungy looking walls. With the atmosphere truly mirroring the industrial style, making a visit resembles an experience rather than just a shopping trip.
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by Franziska | Neukölln, Shops
It’s Spring and you know what is one of the favorite rituals for Germans to do in Spring? Bringing everything back in order in the house. We also call it “Frühjahrsputz” meaning Spring Cleaning. Of course in Berlin this means finally bringing all the beer and Club Mate bottles that have piled up in the corner back to the Späti to receive some Pfand, changing out some Automaten photos from some ex lovers with new ones and bringing that stack of vintage clothes that become unfashionable back to the vintage shops.
But if you really want to be a pro about the Frühjahrsputz you also have to consider some re-styling and re-decorating. Because every year is different in Berlin and this should also reflect in your own four walls.
We teamed up with the interior experts of Granit who recently opened their first store in Berlin on Rosenthaler Straße in Mitte to come up with some interior ideas that reflect the spirit of Berlin. Granit hails all the way from Sweden and naturally the Berliners are eating it up as they love everything from Scandinavia. They offer interior products as well as household and office accessories with a very minimal, timeless and iconic design. It’s a total match made in heaven with the style of Berlin that has a quite raw, industrial aesthetic.
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by Frank | Design, Products
photo: Karsten Hintz
Probably the best thing about Berlin is the fact that it’s so diverse that no matter what you’re interested in, you can find a whole bunch of places here that will enable you to pursue your passion. Same goes for design – apart from such amazing examples of outstanding architectural thought like the Martin Gropius Bau or the St. Agnes Church, there’s also plenty of museums devoted to the subject, like the Bauhaus Archive or the Kunstgewerbemuseum. You can also get inspired by new initiatives of people who’re keen on creating beautiful and functional things, like the guys from Fundamental Berlin or LLot LLov. More about them and similar suggestions after the jump!
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by Michalina | Art, Museums
During my Art Direction and Design Studies I read a lot about timeless design. Is this a real phenomenon or is minimal design for instance just a passing fad and we only consider it today as kind of timeless? It’s definitely not as easy to define as one might think in the beginning. When reading more about „timelessness” and sustainable materials you cannot get around the most obvious one of all: Wood. There is a reason why it is one of the oldest and most commonly used, still beloved materials. It is even said that surrounding yourself with a lot of (mostly untreated) wood is good for your health and lowers blood pressure. Read on…
by Alicia | Design, Misc., Products
photos: Christoph Sagel
The Karl-Marx-Allee in Mitte and Friedrichshain used to be the prestigeous shopping promenade of the GDR. But after the wall came down – probably even before that – it kind of lost its appeal and now only hosts a couple of shops that are kind of insignificant (except maybe BoConcept). But now the street has a new pearl that we can’t wait to tell you about: Coroto is a brand new high quality vintage furniture and interior store that opened recently at Frankfurter Tor in Friedrichshain. The spot is a little bit unusual, but I am sure with a concept as beautiful and sharp they will find their audience and vice versa.
They describe their store concept as “Tropical Living” – we describe it simply as “gorgeous”. They offer a mix of high quality vintage furniture and interior objects with European origins from the 50s to 80s. All of them are in impeccable condition and beautifully refurbished. To bring the tropical element in they combine it with ethnical handcrafts, ceramics and home textiles from India and South America which works wonderfully. It was certainly a great inspiration to completely redecorate my entire house. Especially the ceramic lamps are to die for. Enjoy some fabulous impressions and the details after the jump.
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by Frank | Friedrichshain, Shops
One thing that is really amazing in this city: The options for design are limitless. Yes, we have a lot of mass produced products here as well, but we also have countless shops and labels that sell very individualistic and unique designs. This does not only apply for fashion, but also for interior and product design. Especially here in Mitte we have great shops, one of them being the showroom of sustainable design label Supergrau.
Their line of products has some truely beautiful and original pieces, all of them made of high quality, sustainable materials such as stainless steel and local woods. I personally love their lamp collection Furore that comes as a table lamp and a ceiling lamp in a variety of colors and materials. I’m also a big fan of the high chair Love15 that is like a slick designer version of the ones in front of the St. Oberholz. This coming Thursday you will have a great opportunity to take a closer look at the Supergrau products at their Christmas party in their showroom at Gartenstraße in Mitte. More imressions and details after the jump.
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by Frank | Mitte, Shops
I’m not entirly sure if a wooden notebook case is all that practical, but it sure as hell looks good! This wonderful design object is a product of Berlin-based interior and furniture designer Rainer Spehl who will open his new exhibition tomorrow at the A.D.Deertz shop at Kastanienallee as a part of the DMY Shop Day. Spehl has not only furnished this store but also other Berlin places like the well known boutiques Akif and Konk. You might also have stumbled across his benches and tables down the U-Bahnhof Alexanderplatz. More photos of his work and details about the exhibition after the jump.
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by Frank | Places, Prenzlauer Berg, Shops
