If you should have another question, feel free to send me an email: akiri.kitty@gmail.com
When did you start your blog? In December 2008.
Why did you start blogging about fashion? I guess it was inspired by reading other beautiful fashion blogs and then wanting to do something similar myself. Also, LOOKBOOK.nu inspired me first to take pictures of my outfits, then I started this blog to share a couple more pictures than on lookbook.
What camera do you use? I used to take pictures with an Olympus E-500 with a 50-150mm lense. Now I use a Nikon D5100 with a 50mm 1/1.8G lense and a Tamron 18-200mm zoom lense and an occasional super wide angle lense.
Who takes your pictures? The very talented Volker Pietsch usually takes my pictures. Before that, my sister used to take my pictures and sometimes we still work together on some special projects!
How old are you? I was born on the 20th of May, 1987 so how old am I exactly? By the way, I'm proud to be Taurus as star sign!
How tall are you? I’m 174 cm tall, that’s about 5’6’’ I think.
Where do you live? I was born in Hannover and moved to Berlin 2 years ago. I really love Berlin but I’m planning on moving to London in the not-so-far-away future. Having lived there for a year before I moved to Berlin, I just feel I need to go back to London, being British at heart for as long as I can think. I have also lived in Istanbul and Belgrade for a while, both of which I desperately want to visit again!!
What do you do apart from blogging? I’m an elementary school teacher in Berlin Weißensee. I studied English and German Literature as well as Creative Writing and hold an M.A. of Arts in Education degree.
I also do a lot of other things in the social media as a creative assistant, freelance journalist + photographer and a lot more. I connect brands and shops to new social media and do live event coverage as well.
I also write whimsical songs in my free time, sometimes play open stages and record my music on my phone. Someday I want to record them in a studio and everyone I know will have to listen to my songs, haha!
Which places have you visited already? I’ve been abroad a lot, but only in Europe. I’ve been to most European capitals and some smaller cities, too. I would love to go to Asia, North America and New Zealand, though. That would be amazing!
What inspires you? People who are self-confident and beautiful and know how to carry themselves. Creative people inspire me a lot, too. Musicians, artists, creatives, actors and writers are incredible people to hang out with. Basically, everyone who loves life and is inspired by it is a huge inspiration in itself.
Specific people you look up to/admire? The talent and wit of Oscar Wilde. Forever. J.R.R. Tolkien. Also a lot of musicians that I couldn’t list here. Too many. John Lennon and David Bowie are my heroes of course!
And artists René Magritte, Vincent Van Gogh, Salvador Dalì (I love my expressionists). Oh and film people like Hitchcock, Kubrick, Murnau, Lang, Burton, Jackson…. oh boy, is that all only men?
Well, I also really really love Alexa Chung and Lana Del Rey!
How would you describe your style? Well, I wouldn’t, but if I’d have to, I’d say mostly between romantic and rock’n’roll. A bit weird, really. But also a bit cute. Rock'n'Romantic!
Your fashion essentials? A leather biker jacket, some skinny blue jeans, a plain white teeshirt, a good pair of heels, a nice pair of black boots and a Chanel bag.
How many tattoos do you have? I have 5 tattooed spots in total. One on the upper left arm (Tarot card sun and stars), two on the lower right arm (an ice cream cone and Carmen Miranda), one on the upper left leg (bunnyfish) and a big one on the lower right leg (black and white roses, waves, lilies and leopard pattern). They do have a very big meaning to me, yes, but I don’t want to elaborate on that. It's private.
How do you keep your hair so nice and shiny? I don’t really know. I use a cheap shampoo and conditioner but sometimes I use a mix of lemon and egg and keep it on my hair for a couple of hours. Sometimes I mix this with colourless Henna for extra shine, too. I also dye my hair dark brown every two or so months.
My natural hair colour is a very bright auburn/ginger.
How do you stay fit and in good shape? I eat very healthily. I try to eat only fresh food, lots of vegetables and fruit, some whole grain bread, very little to almost no meat and almost no sugar. I LOVE LOVE LOVE sweets but I only eat them on very very special occasions like a birthday or Christmas. I also drink a lot of water, it’s the best way to stay fit.
I also live on the 5th floor, which is a great training for my legs since I don’t have an elevator. I love to go swimming and running and I used to tap dance, but it’s impossible now due to a bad injury in my ankle.
Some tips for Berlin visitors?
Food: Bergmannstraße in Kreuzberg has some lovely cafés where you can eat lovely little things and have a nice cup of tea or coffee.
If you like eastern European food, go visit Oranienstraße in Kreuzberg. There are a lot of Indian, Turkish and other oriental restaurants located in that area.
There’s also some fabulous Asian restaurants in Mitte (around Rosenthaler Platz and Hackescher Markt) like “Transit” or “PanAsia”.
Bars/Nightlife: My favourite bar is the “Orient Lounge” at Mariannenplatz near Oranienstraße. You can have amazing cocktails there, lounge in the cozy cushions and smoke some fruity flavoured Shisha there!
Afterwards you can go to another bar in the area or, if you feel like dancing and like easygoing people and a slightly alternative atmosphere, check out SO36. They have the funniest 80s parties where you never leave before 6 a.m.!
Mitte also has some nice places to go out, like the SchokoLaden near Brunnenstraße (they sometimes have open stage nights where you can play your own songs!) or the lovely new CCCP at Rosenthaler Platz. They have the best White Russian and some stuffed animals in the window ;)
During daytime, take a stroll down Viktoriapark with an amazing view over the city once you’ve reached the top and then visit the “Kleidermarkt” vintage shop on Bergmannstraße or the “Bonnie und Kleid” vintage shop in Gneisenaustraße. The Landwehrkanal is a great place for walking on a sunny day, too. You can sit down by the water with a beer and just enjoy the afternoon with many other Berliners before going for dinner at one of the restaurants near the Admiralsbrücke.
