Lisa Dormann and Mirko Jürgens live in a quiet area of Bremen in Germany, within walking distance of the lively Viertel district with its many shops, cafés and bars. Lisa and Mirko love the smell of freshly ground coffee, their record player and the thought that, from December, a tiny new arrival will turn all their interior plans upside down. Welcome to the 80-square-metre foonihouse.
Lisa and Mirko, you named your account "foonihouse". Tell us more.
Lisa: "Fooni" actually became our pet name for each other early in our relationship. That's how our username became "foonihouse"; we wanted it to be personal.
This is your first home together, and you've lived here for a year and a half. How did your home become foonihouse?
Mirko: We started with a few old pieces of furniture from our previous flats. As we're both interested in interiors and luckily have compatible taste, those first pieces were soon replaced. We mixed materials such as metal and wood and combined new furniture with vintage pieces, which gives our flat its particular character. It's always important to us to create a cohesive look, include design classics and gradually turn our flat into a personal, cosy home.
Lisa: Our idea when furnishing the flat is to create a place where we feel comfortable and enjoy spending time, for example when we get home from work. That matters to us.
Your home certainly feels warm and personal. We can sense the atmosphere even in the photos. How does your home feel to you? What does it smell like? What do you hear?
Lisa: To us, our home feels loving and cosy, with all its details and accessories. Flowers on the large dining table often fill the room with a fresh scent, or we light incense sticks.
Mirko: But it's important that the scent isn't too strong and feels natural. When we wake up together at the weekend, we also love starting the day with the smell of freshly ground coffee. Coffee is a shared passion. We try new beans and roasts and make cappuccinos or flat whites with latte art at home using our espresso machine.
Lisa: As it's an old building, you can also hear the floor creak and crack here and there. That's part of it for us and has a certain charm.
Just like your record player, right?
Mirko: We love our record player. Putting on a record and starting it yourself is a completely different experience from streaming a song. Listening to music in this classic way helps us slow down.
Light also seems to play a special role for you.
Lisa: Yes, from the start. It was important to us to have lots of daylight in every room. The sun rises in the living room and dining room in the morning and then moves round so that by late afternoon and early evening it's in the bedroom and kitchen.
What role does lighting play for you?
Mirko: We use our lights deliberately to create warm, cosy light. That's why we have lots of indirect light sources that don't dazzle or disturb the atmosphere. Several small rechargeable lights that you can move around whenever you like work well for this. As the saying goes: "Never use the big light." It's also important to us that the lights fit in well with the interior when they're switched off, and of course that we like them.
Lisa: The lights also act as decoration and complete the look of the room.
We also see lots of contrasts in your home.
Lisa: Yes, we find a mix of natural tones with a little colour very cosy. Of course, it mustn't become too colourful or kitsch. But we couldn't imagine an all-white flat. That's why we work with different materials that go well together. We want our home to feel personal and lively, not too sterile. You're answering our questions while on holiday in Denmark.
Is Denmark worth a visit?
Lisa: Definitely. We love the country not only for its beautiful landscape and miles of sandy beaches. We also find lots of inspiration for our home here. There are many flea markets and indoor flea market halls, and we love browsing them. That's where we found our Louis Poulsen PH5 light last year; we fell in love with it straight away. As well as lights and decorative pieces, there's also a lot of furniture. We're always on the lookout for new treasures.
You told us that a very special interior project is coming up soon. A baby is on the way.
Lisa: Yes, we're expecting a baby in December. It's a whole new chapter for us. It will certainly not only
turn our everyday life upside down but also bring changes at home. Toys and baby furniture will soon be moving in alongside our favourite pieces.
We're excited for you. Thank you for talking to us, and all the best for your future as a family of three.
