A Glorious Glass Spaceship in Berlin
High amongst the clouds of Berlin sits the glorious glass house, or ‘spaceship’, of Hannah Krutmann; author, creator, talented stylist and proud pooch owner.
We met up with Hannah to discover the quirk amidst the corners of her unique home in the sky.
Hannah Hannah Hannah! Your home, it’s beautiful. Tell me, what’s the neighbourhood like?
My neighbourhood is quite lively and vibrant. My apartment is surrounded by cozy bars, delicious hummus places and the sweetest Arabic desserts (which is very tempting for me AND my dog Olav - he loves “street food”). When you’ve climbed up the 5 flights of stairs to my home it’s a very peaceful feeling to be out of all the hustle.
When did you recognise your love for interiors and how have you honed your style? Has it evolved since moving into your Berlin ‘spaceship’?
I’ve had a thing for styling, interiors and fashion ever since I was a kid. I started dressing myself and restyling looks from my storybooks when I was still in kindergarten and spent hours rearranging the tiny furniture in my doll house. During my years of studying I’ve often lived in furnished sublets, shared rooms or 1-room apartments with friends or had generic dorm rooms, so I mastered the art of making a place my own with only a few things: indirect lighting, colourful cushions and blankets and quirky little treasures on the wall. Before the ‘spaceship’ I lived in a gorgeous tiny apartment with a loft bed so this apartment is my first real playground for actual furniture. I feel like my style hasn’t really changed in years but this flat finally gives me the room and freedom to translate my wet Pinterest dreams into reality.
The best spot in the apartment?
The most spectacular and unique spot is the glass dome living room for sure. It’s pretty cool watching the sunset from your couch or having the space to dance, do yoga or host friends here. But I have a lot of favourite spots! We have a cute quiet balcony that I enjoy, the bedroom is lovely as you can see the stars through the skylights at night and we have the coziest little couch corner in our guest room where I actually chill a lot.
“If I achieve the sweet spot where my gaze feels equally relaxed and pleased as well as stimulated and inspired I know I’ve designed a room as my home.”
How do you define home?
Home to me is mostly a feeling. I am a rather impatient person and home to me means a place or state of relaxation where I feel cozy and no strong desire to go out and distract myself. Being surrounded by inspiring objects, books and memories definitely helps. If I achieve the sweet spot where my gaze feels equally relaxed and pleased as well as stimulated and inspired I know I’ve designed a room as my home. For that it needs quirky details and personal objects for me. I love minimalist interiors, it’s a beautiful aesthetic but they don’t tickle the feeling of being home for me. Yet, when a place is too packed or the colours clash it makes me feel restless and cramped. Home also consists of people for me. I enjoy living with my partner and my dog and only 5 minutes from my sister.
So of course, your living room gets a lot of attention, (it was how I found you!) but thankfully you’re an all round dreamgirl so I hung around for all the other Hannah content. You’re such a busy lady! How do you juggle all your projects?
Oh, thank you, this means a lot to me! Phew, yes good question. I easily get inspired and enthusiastic about things and have a hands-on mentality so I often end up doing A LOT at the same time. I am honestly trying to work on that and practice saying “no” more often. I think though, the reason why I manage to juggle the work for the Almost Magazine I co-founded a few years ago and our storytelling agency and now also wrote my first book (Everyday Magic, 2021) is that I have partners in crime like my sister Marie, who is part of all these projects. Sisterhood, also with other women, is a force that nourishes me and motivates me everyday.
For me, the pandemic felt almost like hibernation. How has the kinship between you and your space changed? Did you have to make any extra allowances for your creativity?
Yes, hibernation describes it quite well! You can’t imagine how many times I thanked the universe for being in this apartment and not my previous tiny one in these times. Being able to get direct sunlight, have some space to workout and move freely was so precious. In the beginning I was really frustrated though by everyone saying how much more time they had for cooking and reading since (also lucky me!) I was quite swamped with work and felt like everyone constantly expected my availability. I eventually learned to set some boundaries and picked up books again and well, yes, wrote my first one. For that the time was really perfect, I have to admit!
“I enjoy that there are no rules about what I can share on my account so the work on the magazine blends in with interior styling, sustainable fashion, astrology, witchcraft or my menstruation. I guess this is why it comes to me so easily, it’s snapshots from my brain.”
Your online aesthetic, tone, and vibe is just as gorgeous as your IRL one and you often cross pollinate your projects across your social accounts. What is your relationship like with social media, and how on earth do you keep up!?
The thing I really like about social media (especially Instagram) is that it’s such a fun mix of topics and that I get to curate what I want to see more of. I regularly check all the accounts I follow and decide if they are still inspiring to me and make me feel good - if not I unfollow. I recently just unfollowed around 800 accounts. I have liked them at some point but they’re not what I currently want to see anymore. And that’s fine. When I converted my old VW bus Penny Lane I followed a bunch of vanlifers, at the moment I am more into following psychology accounts and having a diversity in the accounts that pop up in my feed. I really like following inspiring women, who share anything from interior hacks, vintage fashion stylings, over astrology and feminist content. And that brings me back to your actual question (sorry for the detour!) I enjoy that there are no rules about what I can share on my account so the work on the magazine blends in with interior styling, sustainable fashion, astrology, witchcraft or my menstruation. I guess this is why it comes to me so easily, it’s snapshots from my brain. Although I have to say the more followers I gain the more I make sure my content is authentic and personal but never private. I think that is a big difference to make for creators and consumers of social media content. You easily feel like you know someone or things about their real life since a lot is authentic and personal but in the end you should remember it’s only curated snapshots and not their actual life and not their private life.
You often collaborate on projects with your sister, Marie. It must be so much fun! What’s the dynamic like between you two?
It is a lot of fun for sure! On the one hand we’re quite different: I am easily excited and impatient and want to do everything. PLUS everything at the same time! I usually don’t mind making myself vulnerable and going all in. Although Marie is the younger one, she’s more considered and careful than me. She is a great critic and fantastic in showing others how to make their own voice louder. I still remember a festival we visited together with a bunch of friends 10 years ago. I was quite tipsy dancing on the roof of a van when she shouted up to me what a bad role model I was. Then she also climbed up on the car but she just sat down and enjoyed the view. I think that describes our dynamic quite well. On the other hand, we are very similar in our struggle to say “no” to projects, we’re both recovering perfectionists and quite stubborn Capricorns.
You have a distinct love for essential oils, crystal healing and keeping your eyes on the movements of the moon. What is your favourite ritual of all?
Yes, I love creating little rituals to remember my cyclic nature and our connection to mama earth and the universe. It’s so easy for me to get caught up in day to day work stuff or tiny details, so connecting to the moon for example helps me to zoom out and gain perspective again. One of my favourite rituals is to meditate about my intention for a new month during the new moon phase and then write that intention down and create a colourful grid with crystals around the intention. It’s basically creating a beautiful interior element charged with magic — what’s not to love about that?!
Olav the rescue pup, spill the beans. He’s gorgeous.
He’s the best! I fell for him about 3 years ago when I saw a short video of him in a shelter in Portugal on the website of an animal rescue organisation. Back then I was in Portugal anyway because I wanted to start a farm there with some friends so I went by the shelter. One week later he was on a plane with me back to Berlin. He is the biggest empath I‘ve ever met, he sleeps on his back with his front paws in the air, he howls heartbreakingly at every passing ambulance and he behaves as if he thinks he’s a cat. I love him so much.
Finally, will you let us in to some of your fave pieces from your home?
1. My grandma’s floral wing chair
My beloved grandma, who was a feminist witch who loved writing and herbalism, used to chill in this chair with her dogs. I basically do the same now while thinking of her.
2. My He-Man protector
I love thrifting — especially in Stockholm where I lived for 3 years for my Master’s in Fashion Studies. That’s where one rainy afternoon I found this guy. Since then he's been my official protector in every flat I moved in since — still reminding me of my 17 square meter student housing.
3. My rabbit lamp
This rabbit has moved with me about 10 times and makes a new place immediately feel like home. It’s been my only real piece of furniture for a few years. Its light and cuteness will always remind me of first kisses and housewarming parties. If this bunny could talk….
4. My crystal collection
My crystal collection started as a kid with the first crystal I got from my grandma. Since then I’ve thrifted and found beautiful additions for my rituals and clearing the vibes in my home.
5. Moroccan pillows
I’ve traveled a lot but my trips to Morocco have been some of the most emotional and intense ones. Everytime I brought home some rugs, pillows and poufs. Their vibrant colours remind me of the smell of orange blossoms and my dear friends and travel buddies Hannah (another one) and Magda.
6. My disco ball!
I am a big fan of the 70s and this disco ball reminds me of the festival I dedicated to friendship and threw before I turned 30. All the people I love dancing under trees in the light of a disco ball — this is the feeling I recreate every day that a ray of sunlight hits the ball in the living room.
