From NYC to Hamburg: How a Midcentury Gem with LA Vibes Became Their Dream Home

A Journey from New York to Hamburg

Marie von Behrens-Felipe and Roberto A. Felipe were drawn back to Germany by a midcentury architectural gem in excellent condition. After six years in New York, this young couple found their perfect home in Hamburg with surprising Los Angeles vibes.

Marie von Behrens-Felipe and Roberto A. Felipe with their daughter Zoe in the Hamburg house they restored.

The Pull of Home and Design

Some words can encapsulate entire outlooks on life; "homesick" is one of them, and Marie von Behrens-Felipe knows that feeling well. Commuting between her Hamburg home and New York, the model and influencer, who started blogging at the age of 12, fell in love with Brooklyn. She eventually moved to New York with her partner, Roberto A. Felipe, and embraced the pace and energy of the city.

Then came a pause during the pandemic, when the pair acquired a second home together in Hamburg—where Felipe, whose professional life with a start-up required him to commute between Kentucky, Los Angeles, and New York began to discover the charms of the northern German city. "In Hamburg, I learned to appreciate little things above all: the morning run along the Alster, the clean air, and the proximity to nature," he tells AD Germany.