Tucked away on the North Sea coast in Cuxhaven, Germany, Sandra Maria Lörch and Tom Oehne have curated a home that seamlessly blends historic architecture with a vibrant, eclectic style. Their apartment, full of color, vintage finds and lush greenery, serves as both a personal retreat and a testament to their passion for interior design. This passion culminated in their book “Altbauliebe an der Nordsee,” where they share the evolution of their home and their connection to the surrounding landscape.

In this interview, Sandra and Tom offer insight into their interior philosophy, the influence of the North Sea on their design choices and the journey of bringing their book to life.

Your home has a very distinctive signature — how would you describe your interior style?
Definitely eclectic, colorful and full of greenery in the form of large houseplants. A mix of old and new elements.

What role do colors play in your interior concept? Are there specific tones that run throughout your home?
A crucial role. Each of our rooms is designed to have its own unique personality, with a different color scheme setting it apart. The colors are more muted and not overly vibrant. Our palette consists of green, pink and dove blue.

Historic architecture and modernity — how do you combine both to create a cozy yet timeless atmosphere?
We make a conscious effort to restore the historical charm of our rooms — for example, by adding landscape wallpaper. When renovating the kitchen, we wanted a more modern look while integrating some contemporary design elements. Some aspects could be considered “timeless,” while others are in constant flux. That’s what makes us feel at home.

What are your favorite pieces in your apartment?
Probably our large Art Nouveau wardrobe, which is a family heirloom. Other than that, some things stay, and some things go — we run a vintage shop that always needs to be stocked. Our favorite living elements, though, are definitely our plants.

Nature, water, coastal landscapes — do these influences reflect in your style or color choices?
Absolutely. We try to bring nature into our home. There are maritime elements that tie into our region, and we have a variety of native wild perennials on our balcony.

Are there any design or living traditions from Northern Germany that particularly inspire you or that you have consciously integrated into your home?
We love bright spaces, muted colors and a lot of Nordic ceramics. Wood, especially oak, plays a big role in our home. Our floorboards are made of pitch pine, which was very common in Northern Germany, just like the beautiful red brick facades with white windows in the Danish style.

How did the idea of writing a book come about? What inspired you to take this step?
Honestly, the idea came from our publisher, who approached us about creating a book about our life on the North Sea. Of course, we said yes!

What was most important to you when creating the book? Did you want to convey a specific message or feeling?
We wanted to document the evolution of our home and encourage people to embrace more color in their own spaces — especially in a world that often feels too gray. We also wanted to highlight the biodiversity on our balcony and inspire others to support greater species diversity. We are currently facing a global biodiversity crisis, and regardless of politics, it’s important to find ways to connect and build bridges.

Were there any unexpected challenges in the book project?
We were surprised by how much work went into it — it took a full year! Over time, we developed more ideas, took even more photos and refined everything bit by bit. Many of these ideas came from ongoing conversations with our publisher, Busse & Seewald. It was a huge learning experience.

How does it feel to see your home and your thoughts on interior design captured in a book?
At first, we felt a sense of relief when the book was finally published in August 2024. We are incredibly grateful for this project, and being directly approached by the publisher made it feel even more special.

Do you have a favorite chapter or moment in the book that is especially meaningful to you?
Each chapter has its own uniqueness, but the one about our balcony — "Our Favorite Room Is Outdoors" — is particularly close to our hearts. We love being in nature and are passionate about conservation.

What reactions have you received to the book? Has anything in particular touched or surprised you?
The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive. A special moment happened recently when we received a handwritten letter from an elderly woman in our region. That was incredibly moving. Many of our Instagram colleagues have also shared kind words and featured our book in their feeds.

Are you planning any further creative projects in this direction?
We are never truly finished, so we’ll see what the future holds! The creative process is always ongoing.

Follow Sandra Maria and Tom’s interior journey here & grab a copy of their book here.