Some couples build worlds as shelter. Pauline Ghassemi, known as Pauluschka, and restaurateur Arash Ghassemi build them as gathering places. Between fabric, light, music, and conversation, their relationship becomes infrastructure, something that carries more than just the two of them. Fresh from their honeymoon, with February’s last romantic residue still in the air, the question isn’t whether their lives overlap but how they do so: what does it look like when two distinct aesthetics begin to negotiate a single wardrobe?
Curious to trace that dialogue, we asked to step inside their wardrobe. The occasion arrives alongside the launch of Birkenstock’s Highwood Moc Lace Low, a silhouette grounded in the brand’s long-standing devotion to function, craft, and a quietly subversive gender-neutral philosophy. With its balanced and sophisticated silhouette, it seamlessly adapts to various styles and occasions. The parallel feels natural. For Pauline and Arash, sharing clothes is less a theoretical stance than a daily choreography of swaps, gentle thefts and style diplomacy, all of which they unpack for us below.
When and where did you first meet, and what did you assume about the other based on how they were dressed? What turned out to be right or wrong?
Pauline: We first met in Hannover, the city we both grew up in, in March 2018. I remember exactly what Arash wore that day, though I do not remember assuming anything really based on his style but rather on his appearance as a person. He seemed very confident. I am not sure if his outfit mirrored that or maybe it’s just me thinking about him in skinny jeans, a parka and a loop scarf now. Also there’s a hairstyle we call „Seiten auf Null“ in German. He had that hairstyle and I found it super sexy.
Arash: It was during the daytime in a club space where we were working on decorations for a party series our friends were organizing. The first thing I assumed was how brave and confident she was, because she was wearing a mullet… A mullet! After that first interesting impression, I would say I really liked the way she dressed, which always felt so effortless and cool.
Whose style has changed more since you got together, and how?
Pauline: 100%, it must be Arash’s style that changed more since we started dating. I think he just generally got more curious about getting dressed and all that comes with it.
Arash: I know what she’s going to say, and I’m going to be a gentleman and leave it at that.
Designing clothes and curating hospitality both shape how people feel. What feeling do you think the other is always trying to create for people?
Pauline: Watching Arash at work when he is in his flow of making people happy on their nights out, must be one of my favorite things. He’s brilliant at making people feel seen and special. With everything he does he always wants to create a feeling of belonging and I must say it works. It’s beautiful.
Arash: The way we see our work is very personal, and we create things basically for our own needs. It just happens that people like what we like.
What’s one item in your shared wardrobe that technically belongs to you, but emotionally belongs to them?
Pauline: To be honest it is probably every single pair of pants. I am having a hard time finding pants that fit me perfectly. Arash is the opposite. So as much as I want to believe that the pants in my wardrobe belong to me, they emotionally totally belong to Arash.
Arash: I own a perfectly soft flannel shirt from Our Legacy that emotionally belongs to my wife. It does hang in my wardrobe though.
Are there any garments that particularly reflect your family roots?
Pauline: Culturally not so much but emotionally very much so. We own many, many pieces of clothing that belonged mostly to my grandparents. Every time we are home my granddad allows Arash to go through his closet and basically private-shop his closet. I own quite a few pieces of jewelry that my mum gave me which is very special to me. Our family is quite present in our wardrobe.
Arash: Not really no. I am not dressing traditionally Persian in any way but I do own quite a few pieces that belonged to family before.
If Pauline and Arash prove anything, it is that style can be shared while identity stays resolutely one’s own. Birkenstock approaches design with a similar clarity. The Highwood Moc Lace Low, engineered with its signature multi-layer footbed and shaped by generations of expertise, provides the framework. The grip-enhanced bold outsole reinforces this philosophy: flexible and durable, designed for solid traction on a variety of surfaces. Dedicated to craftsmanship and driven by purpose, it evolves into a reliable companion in the pace of modern life.
The new Highwood Moc Lace Low in suede comes in four seasonal shades—Carafe, Gray Taupe, New Navy, and Pink Clay—and is available in sizes 36–46 at Birkenstock stores, on birkenstock.com, and at select retail partners.