We Germans have a thing about bags. For us bags are highly functional objects and never meant to be frivolous. Bags are form not fad. Bags are not a fashion accessory, they are a "tool." Now, don't get me wrong, color, shape, material and overall look play a big role when buying a bag-but they are considered second to "functionality." It starts early. Here my brother and I with our very first bags, our kindergarten bags. It took a while to find the right ones, I remember...

In my opinion there is one German brand that has managed to strike a great balance between form, function and innovation and that is BREE. I grew up with BREE bags. BREE bags use the best leather, the best hardware and they last forever.

I am still unpacking from Germany, but wanted to start sharing some of the beautiful things + designs + crafts and brands I discovered or re-discovered on my last travels; share what I brought back to "sweet home" Chicago this time around. Let's start with my father's ashtray...!

August apples, bowls of steaming potatoes, perfectly soft boiled eggs, a wooden rocking horse, my nieces sharing a sausage, our favorite childhood puzzle, my mother's typewriter and her collection of russian nesting dolls...a castle, a small town and a river that runs through it...that's home, that is where I am coming from.

Carved in stone. Details from the Frankfurter Cathedral.

On our last day in Germany, a beautiful sun laden fall day, we went to the city of Frankfurt...

Our first visit: The “Dom.” Build out of red sand stone the Frankfurt Cathedral was constructed in the 14th and 15th centuries on the foundation of an earlier church.  Gothic. Haunting. Humbling.

Since my sister asks me to hold off on publishing any wedding photos here until she edits them ( ! ) I wanted to at least share the pretty ladies that where at the tables...

Besides our BINTH "Devoted" candles every table had these gorgeous water glasses and bottles from the Elisabethen Quelle  in Germany. Their company motto is: „ Der Anfang aller Dinge ist das Wasser; aus Wasser ist alles und ins Wasser kehrt alles zurück“ (Thales von Milet ca. 650-560 v.Chr.) Loosely translated that means: “The beginning of all being was water. Everything is water and everything will be water again." So there you have it. Fire and water. Another beautiful union.

Talking about something white and beautiful...here a photo of something white and fluffy that excited me today...What we call "Meringue" in the US we call "Baiser" here in the motherland. And for once, just once, the Germans have clearly super sized the Americans...YUM!!!!

Hey little sister...Well you know the song. And you all know by now that we are back in Germany photographing and being part of my little sister's wedding. The last days have been a flurry of activities...I particularly loved learning how to button her into the amazing wedding dress, a beautiful white concoction...which she claims is not white, but champagne colored. Her custom tailored suit for the civil ceremony is undeniable and undebatable RED though.

My mother has become the beholder of all family treasures and the keeper of all secrets. Today, on our last day until we come back in October she pulled out the old family bibles and told Jarek and I where our creative spirit was born. Her grandfather, Karl Grawe, a humble hardworking farmer from Pomerania by day, was a delicate painter and calligrapher by candlelight. She told us that nobody understood how he did this-because his hands were as big and as rough as bricks. Here some of his sketches done in 1883, his writings and the beautiful record keeping of those times...Yes, this too is were we are coming from. We just never knew.

The George Hotel in Hamburg. British themed and German operated....think of this Hotel as a Club House that works. ( Barcelona chairs and a big deep sofa in the fireplace room just of the lobby-perfect to cuddle up in for those long distance calls home) Pleasant colors, (dark greys, rich browns) smart designs, solid wooden floors and modern art that brings a touch of whimsy-but never too much of "theme." Jellyfish sconces. Phillip Starck "Lounge Gun Floor Lamps" (Enlight-don't fight.) Eames rockers in white, fluffed up with British flag pillows. Looks just like home. Well, almost. But it shares the same design principles: form with function, seriousness with a wink. Located in the St.George neighborhood, a block away from the Alster-I like this place.

The port is of Hamburg was founded on May 7, 1189 for its strategic location. It has been Central Europe's main port for centuries. It is majestic. And busy-with cargo ships coming in and out, cranes awaiting to lift containers like lego bricks (the square ones) off boats the size of cityblocks. Tourists are buzzing around. Locals are gathering on the shores to watch the sunset. Waving at the incoming. Behind the docks is the "Captains Walk"-an ally of the smallest, humblest, yet most precious houses overlooking the harbor. This is were the captains retire after a long life at sea. The perfect balance of life and work. Nature, industry and humanity. Beautiful.

The Alster is Hamburg's soul. Created by damming part of the River Elbe in the 13th century, the lake and its little canals that take you through the residential backyards of Hamburg is now an integral part of the cityscape. (Hamburg has more bridges than Venice, Italy by the way...) The "Alster" covers an area of 160 hectares and is almost entirely surrounded by parks and trees. We met our friend Det, a photographer from Hamburg. I went to school with him many years ago and after catching up on 18 years of gossip we took a paddleboat ride; floating through the "white city." Then stopped for ice cream and sodas. A perfect day.

Hamburg. This is where I am this week. An amazing town...And before I share stories about the stores and designs that struck me and the people I met I wanted to share this...the plain and simple tourist take on Hamburg the second-largest city in Germany (second to Berlin) and the seventh-largest city in the European Union. The city is home to around 1.8 million people. The port of Hamburg is the third-largest port in Europe (third to Port of Antwerp and Rotterdam), and the eighth largest in the world. Hamburg's official name is the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg and Hamburg is also a city-state meaning it is one of the sixteen States of Germany. Now you know.

When taking the train from Hauptbahnhof Hagen to Hamburg today-I thought these "sculptures" were very, well, helpful.

Altena in Westfalen. This is where I grew up-in the woods, the valleys and the clearings of the “Sauerland.”