Time for a break: Gabriele Frantzen at the cozy fireplace. At her arm she wears the ‘Watch-Candy’ from her new collection. Her styling tip: consciously over the blouse!

Her jewelry is available in New York, London and Berlin. And she’s also regularly featured in Vogue, Elle or Madame: Accessory designer Gabriele Frantzen is ubiquitous and very busy. I meet the jetsetter in Munich. Cozily at the fireplace, we drink tea and revel in jewelry – exactly the right thing to do on a grey autumn-afternoon.

Colorful: Fur scarves are new in the collection, for example ‚Patchwork Phantasie’. “My accessories are often colorful, because the clothes are mostly worn monochrome.”

“I’m very lucky that I met Fern Mallis, who’s the founder of the New York Fashion Week, in the USA”, tells Gabriele. “She’s a real puppet master and an ingenious communicator.” And she wears the necklaces of Gabriele. And suddenly everyone wanted to wear those incredible-statement-pieces of the German designer – including fashion icon Sarah Jessica Parker. That was the breakthrough.

The designer got her idea of the lasso necklace from the favorite German pop song of her grandfather: “I want a cowboy as husband.” Funny!

Everything started with a small boutique in the Bavarian Olching, where Gabriele Frantzen operated a so-called multi brand-store together with her mother, who’s a learned tailor. At a time when the word didn’t even exist and the fashion imperium ‘My Theresa’ was still very small. “We had brands like Miu Miu and Prada”, says Gabriele. “This was new at that time.” But for what do you have the prettiest dress if you don’t have the matching accessory? “Wherever I was looking for it, I couldn’t find any.” Encouraged by her husband Jürgen, with who she’s leading ‘Best of 19’, an agency for fashion sales, Gabriele began to make her first valuables. Directly out of the material.

Beautiful: The new ‘Watch-Candy’ collection with a sportive band

Fashion-lover Frantzen, who’s the brand ambassador for the labels ‘Phillip Lim’ and ‘Alice & Olivia’, collected her inspirations for her designs in her daily life. “Women are continuously busy with their phones. Therefore the arm is getting into focus, especially the wrist.” And all of a sudden the idea for the new Wrap-Bracelet was born. “I consciously renounce trends. When everyone wears Isabel Marant vests, I definitely don’t want one.” Individualization and resistance are important to her – next to quality of the materials and the processing. Today the collection – which meanwhile also includes fur-accessories – is made in Germany. “China won’t be an option.” BvH

Color up your outfit

“Meet Gabriele”: At so-called trunk shows, like recently in the concept store ‘Apropos’, Gabriele Frantzen personalizes the bracelets of her customers. Those sales shows are part of the American sales culture and are getting more and more popular

XXL fox scarf ‚Click it –Moritz‘ with a practical click-fastener

Diamonds are a girl’s best friend

Gabriele Frantzen loves sustainable fashion. “I wear designs that outlast the season.” Her trousers by Odeeh, cape by Jil Sander, shoes by Lanvin and bag by Marni with the fur trinket “Cheerleader” from her own collection and a blouse by Fonnesbech, the favorite label of the Danish princess Mary

Contact:

www.gabriele-frantzen.com

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The Straußberger Platz in Berlin-Mitte

I ring the bell, the door opens and Müller welcomes me fawning. Müller is a truly cute, black-white-fury, French bulldog and is used to the current stream of visitors. Most of the guests, who are giving themselves the handle at Straußberger Platz in Berlin-Mitte, are refugees, who Mueller’s master grants his private rooms to. By now, the warm-hearted man already hosted 54 people from eleven nations in his 112 square meters design flat. “I actually have a screw loose”, describes Andreas Tölke himself and his willingness to help. “I don’t know the people. Who knows, maybe you’ll get assassinated in your sleep.” Andreas Tölke grins and sips at his glass of water.

Bulldog Müller presents his toy. Tölke discovered chair and table with green felt at Villa Harteneck

Tölke, who is a confessed dyslexic, studied social worker, experienced waiter and proven model booker earns his money nowadays as demanded journalist with portraits about people, art and architecture – inter alia for ‘Welt am Sonntag’ and the ‘Lufthansa Magazin’. The passionate writer finds interviews with actors tedious. “They already talk enough and don’t have to say something to everything”, finds Tölke, the storyteller. “Sarah Jessica Parker was one of the few exceptions, as she has something to tell. But I don’t want to ask Iris Berben, how she’s coping with her age.”

Andreas Tölke in front of the original DDR-cupboard by architect Irene Henselmann, whose husband significantly designed the Karl-Marx-Allee and besides drafted the Television Tower

When Tölke, who originally comes from the Weserbergland, moved into his apartment at Straußberger Platz ten years ago, the area was dominated by vacancy. Nobody – and certainly nobody from the East – wanted to go there. How can you actually live here? This was a question even his estate agent asked him and noticed the background noise by the steady traffic stream. You get used to everything, says Tölke. By now the rents at Straußberger Platz increased twice and there’s a long waiting list of architecture fans that would love to move into the former showcase of the DDR. The longest, connected housing ensemble of the Karl-Marx-Allee already has a landmark status for a long time.

The living room: the big sofa by Armani Casa stands opposite the daybed. The floor lamp is by Serge Mouille, the table by Noguci, the pillows by Calvin Klein

Three rooms, kitchen, bathroom are the involvement of Tölke’s refugee-approved hideaway, which welcomes the guests in an entrée with a size of 18 square meters. 3 and a half meters big walls and double doors, originally obtained details like parquet flooring and Bakelite-handles: “Where does this still exist?” rejoices Tölke and pensively looks at the Berlin Television Tower, which rises directly in front of his window and looks especially attractive in the noon sun. And he admits: “For other apartments I’m definitely filthy.”

The sight of Benno Kraehahns ‘Namenloser Frauenakt’ (listless act of women) probably irritated one or another refugee: “I explained them, that here, nobody is upset with the sight of naked women.” At the kitchen table are chairs in a DDR design, a “stolen Panton-Version”. “There are no pressed table linen,” explains Tölke his men- and dog household. “And as long as I don’t have my dream table by Saarinen, the creased blanket will stay on the table!”

Tölke also fell in love with the house community that consists out of 120 neighbors. Here everybody knows everybody, one greets and one talks with each other. There’s a little exchange platform on the heating in the corridor. Things somebody doesn’t need anymore make someone else happy. From sweets to books or Christmas decorations. His hospitality towards refugees mobilized the neighborhood. Doors also open now for asylum seekers. “It works”, summarizes Tölke. “And it doesn’t cost a lot of effort and collects karma points.” BvH

Collecting karma points

This is Müller in front of his – sad to say – empty, but therefore chic, luxury feeding bowls by the designer Paul Smith, who personally sent them to Müller

Office-atmosphere

“This looks like a Bauhaus-furniture, doesn’t it?” comments Andreas Tölke on his black desk. He found the 70s lamp at a flea market, the chair ‘Softpad’ is from Eames

The legendary ‘Wingchair’, above an quarrel by Carla Primera

“The revolutionary trash is from China”, explains Tölke the ceramic figures. “Nowadays for sure a lot worth, but back then I got it for a very low price.”

“I allow everyone onto my Recamiere – exceptionally. But only as long as I want it to happen”, says Andreas Tölke. “I have to admit: I love luxury.” Next an ‘Artemide’-lamp in front of a picture by Munoz Balda

“I love luxury.”

Room with a coveted view: The Berlin Television Tower

Mister Tölke and Müller bed themselves in their bedroom on a modell by Ligne Roset, the sidetables are from Lambert, the table lamps by Tobias Grau

Above the ‘Swan-Chair’ in the corridor by Arne Jacobsen an aquarell by artist Oda Jaune

Art by Jörg Immendorff and Pjotr Nathan

Picture with pistol right next to Oliver Mark, on its left you can see works by Uwe Arens, the 50s lamp is a discovery from Munich

Also the apartment doors are original obtained in the house at Straußberger Platz

Contact and Infos:

beanangel.direct/

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