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Germany’s hidden fashion and design spots

In 2011, Lady Gaga was so intrigued by the “Pepita” fabric that she appeared on the US talk show “The View” fully clothed in the print. Not only was she wearing the print all over, from her shoes to her sunglasses and hat, but the grand piano she was playing was entirely covered with the fabric, too! That Pepita print was first created in Bramsche – a quaint town famed for its traditional clothmaking, just to the north of Osnabrück! There’s the “Tuchmachermuseum” where travelers are able to see first-hand age-old machines at work while learning about all of the 18 steps involved in the clothmaking process.
Blue printing has a tradition that goes back 300 years. In Thuringia and in Erfurt, this old Thuringian craft has experienced a revival. Ms. Weiss, a master indigo printer and craftswoman, is one of the last in Central Europe to print her own designs traditionally by hand (using blocks) and to dye with indigo. The products made by Ms. Weiss (table cloths and scarves) are on sale in the indigo printing workshop.
Fashion design is one of the most popular courses of study in Germany’s oldest city, Trier. For lovers of creative fashion, the Neustrasse – with its many studios and stores by young fashion designers – is the ideal starting point for a stroll. Shakira wears it. Kim Wilde and Madonna wear it. The jewelry by Miranda Konstantinidou now has famous fans. In 1986, the fashion designer from Trier founded a company in a small workshop which ever since produces handmade fashion jewelry and fashion accessoires under the name “Konplott”. By now, Miranda Konstantinidou employs around 1.200 people. The jewelry is sold in more than 900 stores worldwide, a visit to the store in Trier’s Konstantinstrasse is definitely worth it though.