This Gay “hipster Grandpa” Is A Worldfamous Fashion Icon With One Simple Message

Gunther Krappenhoft has achieved a lot at the age of almost 80. He never said he would be famous. Even eight years ago, he didn't have a smartphone. But now she has 176,000 followers on Instagram and posts long, positive posts about authenticity with great testimonials. The German Wikipedia page simply describes her as a "style icon" and urges her followers to "be yourself."

Gunther works as an elderly eccentric on the streets of Berlin and stands out like a bird of paradise in the city's black techno uniform. He wants to show the youth that you can still love life, be happy and cool with age.

She doesn't believe in dresses only for special occasions. "As you grow older, your outlook on life changes. I only wore beautiful clothes on special occasions, fine and expensive china or expensive perfume on very special evenings. Now all this is used every day," he told his Instagram followers.

His book Just Be You is about the value of individuality. "You have to have the courage to be true to yourself," she told LGBTQ Nation . to smile

Clothing has always been a part of that expression for Gunther, but it was an experience that gave birth to today's style.

It all started when he was waiting for the subway near the Kottbeiser Tower in Berlin's lively Kreuzberg district. A passing photographer snapped the picture, and it made news reports around the world, appearing on taxis and in advertisements from New York to Tokyo. He was called "Berlin's oldest hipster" or the grandfather of hipsters.

Her natural style immediately caught the attention of Japanese fashion house United Arrows, who hosted her first runway show. "I have not always been interested in fashion, but my personality, my feelings, my emotions have always been included in my clothes."

Gunther's life was shaped by this happy coincidence. A boy from northern Germany never expected the kind of life he's living now, and it took him a while to get there. He originally wanted to go to New York as a cook on the famous Hamburg-America line, but was told he would have to wait in West Berlin until reassigned. Standing in a city divided by the Berlin Wall spoiled me. he didn't go "Parties go on all day and night, 24 hours a day, especially in weird scenes."

At the time, Gunther wasn't very committed. Despite the wild partying, he's settled in for now. Hipster gay grandpa married a woman at the age of 29 and had a child with her. He denied his sexuality and longed for a normal family life and fatherhood. "But I met someone who turned my life upside down," he says. However, he does not regret. "It was a very painful process. It's not always the case now." Being gay was illegal in Germany at the time, a Nazi-era law that remained in effect until 1994.

But Gunther was not alone. he had a relationship with his family and even started a support group for men in seemingly unique situations called Gay Dad. It was nothing special. "We've helped other people embrace their sexuality and live as gay people and at the same time live with their families and take care of their families." After the divorce, he became a single father for a while, raising his own daughter, although he says he is still in close contact with his ex-wife.

His third life as a straight married and then gay single father began when he was walking around Berlin visiting friends and two young women stopped him and asked, "Would you like to come with us to Bergen?" His decision, leaving his friends and entering a world-famous nightclub changed his life.

Gunter described the day as an almost religious experience. “I was there for eight hours, dancing like there was no tomorrow, and I wasn't as free and happy as I was for those eight hours. I met people in the dark, it was like a revelation."

Since then, he has been a regular at Berlin's most exclusive nightclubs and often stays up past his bedtime. "The club is my collection," he said.

From chef and husband to father, model, clubber and gay writer. Is Gunther planning any other hobbies or changes in his life? He refused to answer. "Every day I live a new life and I don't think about the future, that's wise at my age."