At Home with Leonie
We visited interior blogger Leonie Eberhard in her apartment in Hamburg Harburg, which she fills with flea market finds, IKEA classics and other vintage treasures. In our interview, Leonie reveals her strategy for getting her hands on the highly coveted pieces on eBay Kleinanzeigen, the challenges she faces as a self-employed mother, and how she deals with them.
Vida: Moin Leonie
Leonie: Hello, nice to have you here.
V: Yes, finally. I think after the fifth try. One of us or one of you somehow always had Corona. We made it now and are in your beautiful apartment in Harburg. Maybe a few key data about the apartment in advance.
L: We live here on 140 square meters. It is an old city villa and we live here now for 2 years. Stucco ceilings, floorboards, double doors and simply our home.
"Stucco ceilings, floorboards, double doors and simply our home."
V: You're especially known on Instagram for finding, putting up, and showcasing special vintage finds. Where do you find these pieces?
L: Classically on eBay Kleinanzeigen and the pink sofa in the living room we bought at an auction house, which is also a great idea.
V: Is there a certain strategy? Do you look for specific pieces?
L: The important thing with second hand buying is to really look every day. What happens to you most often is that things are already gone. You have to be as sly as a fox and to save your search terms. Especially if you're looking for "70s interior" or for "vintage IKEA."
V: We are in a room that you have not yet posted so often or not at all on Instagram. In your son's nursery, where there is now also a beautiful Kelim Gashgai from us. Tell us a bit about how you approached the decor here?
L: It took a very long time, because of course you also want to wait for the child's personality and that was my main strategy. I looked at what kind of child I actually have, what he needs and how he plays. After that crystallized, I built a little retreat for him where he can read or where we can cuddle and from the colors I kept everything pretty neutral because I also don't want to impose my personal taste on him and try not to go into the classic role and color images. That's why it's more gender-neutral. We used this room before as a passageway, as an in-between room and a study, and we kept a few elements. For example, that shelf over there. That was actually my standing desk. Clearly this is a child's room, but maybe I'd like to use this in a different way someday and then I can find the old use for it.
V: What do you think are the biggest pitfalls for parents decorating the kids' room?
L: Impractical furnishings. If you make sure things are pretty but not practical, the child can't use their own space. The point is to create a place where the child doesn't have to rely on my help to get to his toys or books or move around the room on his own. This is the only way to encourage independent play. If you keep that in mind and also set up the room in a practical way, then it's quite a good solution for both parties.
"Es geht darum, einen Ort zu schaffen, in dem sich das Kind eigenständig zurechtfinden kann und nicht auf meine Hilfe angewiesen ist."
V: Another question that interests me for personal reasons: How can you combine self-employment with a 16-month-old baby?
L: I found my way into self-employment when I was on parental leave. So that all came at the same time. For me it was about the question: how do I manage to be a mother, still keep myself in focus, remain part of the working world and reconcile family and career. The logical next step for me was to find a form of self-employment. In our case, I have created a time window for myself through childcare in which I can work, but also clearly have the afternoon to spend with my child. I think everyone just has to find a way to accommodate everyone. It's completely different for everyone. It's important to think of it as an ongoing process. What worked 3 months ago might not work now, and then of course there are days when I have to work all day. Then my husband has to step in. It is sometimes very exhausting.
V: Yes, and I think above all that you are always in the process of making a compromise every day, which often excludes you. You usually find a compromise for your child, for your partner, for your work, and that doesn't include yourself in the least. Where is the time for yourself? Have you found a solution for that?
L: No, not really yet, to be honest. What I have established now are the few routines I have during the day, I make time for those. When I was getting ready for bed at night, I used to be in a rush and did it within 5 minutes because I thought "Oh no, what if the little one wakes up now? Then I'll have to go back to him" No! That's my half hour in the evening. If there is something with the little one, my husband takes care of it. I put on some music or a podcast and celebrate that a little bit. That's my time with myself. I think right now, the only way it works for me is if I create little islands in my day where I check in on myself. I just take care of myself.
V: Was there anything that particularly surprised you as a new mother? Something that no one told you before? Anything you specifically want to say to another mom-to-be.
L: The romanticization of the role of the mother. This thought: oh, I'm going on parental leave and there I'll be at home with my child and when he's tired I'll put him down and then he'll sleep. No.
V: Because the truth is?
L: The truth is: my child doesn't sleep if I just put him in a bed. He's a contact napper, which is why I carried him in a carrier for a year. Every child is different and it's really work. It's beautiful work and you get an insane amount back, but it's also extremely exhausting to physically adjust to another being all day. So I actually lost my body for over a year and that really surprised me.
V: Back to the apartment. Is there anything you'd like to change as a next project? Something that maybe you haven't communicated like that yet. Something that you have in mind that you're dying to get to, that we might see on your Instagram soon?
L: Yeah, we're still in the process of redoing the bedroom a little bit and there's a lot going on here in the house overall. So we're possibly still expanding here. I'm working flat out on beautiful concepts for more rooms and that could come in the near future.
V: We are very excited about that. Thank you for having us. It was a great pleasure to meet you.
L: Likewise. You are great - that has to be said. You work together and it's simply the brand that you find great in terms of the product, but there are also people behind it and it's even nicer when you get into an exchange.
V: We can only agree with that. Many, many thanks.
L: Thank you.