We All Want to Come Home to This German Apartment

Lindsey Mather
Updated

Illustrator and goldsmith Jessica Herber's life is in major flux right now. This month, she's making a big career move: relocating her jewelry shop, Stadtelster, to a larger, more central storefront in Weimar, Germany, where she also lives. "The days are really stressful. We're getting up very early to renovate the new store, then we're continuing to work at the old store, and then after that, we're going back to the new store and working there until night. Later, we immediately fall asleep," Jessica says. Now more than ever, her one-bedroom apartment, which she shares with her boyfriend Julius, a carpenter currently getting his master's in architecture, is her sanctuary. "For me, it's really important to have a pretty, comfortable home to calm down and relax, to get my energy back if there's no free time in sight," Jessica notes. Here's how she created an oasis within 1,000 square feet:

A handcrafted touch: The dining nook in particular is a showcase of Julius's handiwork; the solid wood table, benches, rectangular pendant light are all his creations. "We are saving a lot of money by building our own furniture," says Jessica. "Or I should say, my talented boyfriend turns my ideas into reality." A jungle's worth of plants lines the perimeter: "I wanted that corner to look a bit like the old winter gardens with big green plants that you see, for example, in old English buildings." And let's not forget Jessica's illustrations—a cluster of framed works hang in the living room.
Special vintage pieces: "We rarely buy new furniture," says Jessica. "Instead, we love to find unique pieces at flea markets or on the internet to fit our specific ideas. Nearly every piece has its own story." Their Knoll Antimott sofa was a "lucky find for little money," while the old buffet in the kitchen was gift from Julius's grandmother. ("It's perfect for our tiny kitchen because it has plenty of space for plates, glasses, kitchen equipment, and so on," Jessica says.) They snagged their handsome String shelf system online. "That was a cheap darling of fortune we found on eBay. The owner took some bad pictures of the shelf and it was not assembled. But we had an idea of how it could look. We were brave enough to take the long ride and we were rewarded with a beautiful shelf that was way cheaper than its real value."
Lots of paint: Jessica is all for painting an entire room a bold hue, but their kitchen was so small that she feared floor-to-ceiling coverage would feel oppressive. Instead, she painted just one wall a cheerful baby blue, which she says reminds her of their vacation home in Sweden. Then there's the moodier shade of blue in the living room. "It's mainly our relaxing area, so I wanted a color to calm us and look noble at the same time," Jessica explains.
Updates to the little things: Jessica and Julius searched flea market after flea market for vintage Art Nouveau door handles until they had enough to replace all the standard chrome-plated ones in their apartment. In the kitchen, the couple switched out the similarly blah cabinet handles with simple oak wood pulls handmade by Julius.
A less-is-more approach: Given that their bedroom is especially tiny, Jessica chose to forgo the typical nightstand setup; the wide windowsill behind their bed does the job just as well. She kept it unencumbered by curtains, installing a minimalist roller shade instead. The couple is still on the hunt for the perfect bed frame, but in the meantime they gave their temporary one a little makeover. "It had some cheeky details, like the upper section was totally ornate and the four corners had balls on top of the frame, so we removed all that," Jessica explains.
Extending the apartment outdoors: Jessica fell head over heels for the balcony when they first saw the apartment, and it is where the spend much of their time in the summer: eating breakfast, basking in the afternoon sun, sipping wine with friends. They planted tomato and pepper plants with their fingers crossed, and the happy vines have turned the railing into a wall of green. Jessica swears it has nothing to do with a green thumb—"the balcony is very sunny, so that helped a lot," she says.
A work space away from it all: One room in the apartment is reserved as Jessica's studio. "I draw on the big Eiermann table in the middle of the room," she says. This is also the only space where Jessica didn't go the blue route. "I wanted something warm and different from the other colors," she explains. "I liked the idea of seeing this beautiful mauve tone while I'm in the living room, because we always keep the door open to connect these two rooms and create a more generous space." (The little wire sculpture on the wall is by Tatjana Farkas. "Of course, as a goldsmith, I chose the hand with the ring.")
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