Bold, Colorful, Avant-Garde Berlin House Photos

Name: Megan Low, husband, kids, and dog
Location: Berlin, Germany
Type of home: House
Size: 1,800 square feet
Years lived in: 8 years, owned

Tell us a little (or a lot) about your home and the people who live there: Our home is part of a suburb of Berlin. Four years ago our home was struck by lightning, just around the time I started studying interior design. We had a huge fire, and after it was put out, we had either fire or water damage in every room of the house. Thankfully, we were able to rebuild and replace everything that was damaged, and I used this as an opportunity to put my interior studies to use. This whole process helped my to find my voice as a designer. I’ve learned that the more I allow myself to do the unexpected, the more the creativity flows.

Murals and custom furniture have become a central aspect to all of my designs. I love designing and painting murals all around my home. It brings in color and pattern play in a most original and unexpected way. And because I’m always planning projects that require furniture or lighting that either don’t exist or I am unwilling to buy, building my own customizations has helped me put a home together that really isn’t like any other.

I am an adventurous person. I would have to be to travel across the world and move to Germany for all these years! I’m an American ex-pat and my husband is German. So we are a true multicultural family. My husband is generally conservative when it comes to design, and I like to be bold and make statements. I always say that if any of the neighbors have it, I don’t want it. I rarely have trending pieces in my home, and my goal is to create spaces that withstand the test of time, in the same way that Bauhaus has done so over the decades.

Describe your home’s style in 5 words or less: Bold, colorful, avant-garde, and murals.

What is your favorite room and why? My favorite room is the living room. Right after the fire, during the rebuilding phase, I visited an antique dealer to buy a wardrobe for one of the children’s rooms. After I decided to take the wardrobe, I asked if he had other pieces I could see. He took me all through the warehouse, and on the way out I saw a very large oil painting stuck behind other smaller paintings. It was love at first sight. At first I was hesitant to buy it, but I made up my mind and messaged him later the night. Now it’s my favorite part of the living room’s design, and a piece I’ll keep forever.

What’s the last thing you bought (or found!) for your home? The last big thing I bought for my home are the IKEA curtains I’ve hung downstairs. Each window has a set of opaque curtains (to lend privacy but let light through), and some beautiful yet simple beige blackout curtains.

Any advice for creating a home you love? Don’t ever worry about what others are doing. Follow your instincts and let yourself go. Don’t inhibit your creativity. Learn to follow where it wants to lead you. In my experience, this results in a smoother creative process and a much more satisfying end product.

This submission’s responses and photos were edited for length/size and clarity.