Mera ghar mera ishtyle

Colour splash

2009-07-09T23:26:00.009+05:30

Sometimes I feel

my house looks like a motley tunic

with colours thrown everywhere.

Be it the curtains, wooden bangles,

cloth bags, watch boxes or my jewellery...

everything has to have that element of colour.

That's a shot of my dressing-table.

There are no brass-pulls or carved knees

to boast about.

All it has are some hues here and there.

That Fossil watch box is one of my favourite ones. I use it

to store my earrings.

Blue, blwe or bleu?

Red from the north-east

Return to Magenta - on the little deck

Glory of the Snow

2009-06-30T17:48:00.009+05:30

When we moved into our new house

we got a hanging pot of chionodoxa (also called Glory of the Snow)

to adorn our balcony.

With the advent of the rains we get to see

the blossoms aplenty.

Though these flowers are not

sturdy enough to be put into containers

I guess there's no harm in trying it out.

And so I did.

Now on my dining table...they don't look bad at all.

Monday whites

2009-06-29T10:31:00.005+05:30

Beating the Monday Blues with some white hues

(wow! that rhymes)

It's the beginning of the week again.

Using the special energy of white in my house.

White Gerberas in an aluminium tea mug in Kerala.

This mug is used in roadside tea stalls

across Kerala to pour tea from glass to mug to ensure a certain amount of cooling.

Carnations arranged in a stone mortar,

picked from Crafters Antique

Creative Kismet - Regina's Blog

2009-06-26T22:29:00.004+05:30

One day, as usual I was flickring around.

Suddenly in the new uploads section something interesting caught my eye.

It was a business card holder that was made out of an

empty mint tin. I trailed the picture to a blog called Creative Kismet.

The blog belongs to Regina, a thirty-something mother of two,

who also is a registered nurse and one of the most creative people I 've come across.

She inspired me to hunt for a mint box which I never did find.

So instead I settled for a similar looking crayon box and I am looking forward to

making that business card holder (though I don't own a business ;))

Some of her works:

My favourite section on the blog is 'Recycled Crafts'.

Stuff that one can do with pillow cases, door knobs

and neck ties.

And if you wish to own any of these, here they are at Creative Kismet Studio

Point Click Home

2009-06-24T09:57:00.004+05:30

Point Click Home has some good ideas if you are thinking of doing up the kids' room.

Contemporary, modern, classic or eclectic?

Take your pick from these creatively designed rooms for your brood :)

My picks:

minimalistic and warm with pink tones

and this one for the wall with the maps

Mwah! And this one too

love the blues here and that whole logged feeling

For more ideas look here

Images from Point Click Home

The effervescent Bougainvillea

2009-06-23T17:58:00.006+05:30

The ever effervescent bougainvillea

has always been a great choice for boundary walls, box gardens and flower arrangements.

A little house in Kushalnagar, Madikeri

These thorny vines of the paper flower bloom throughout the year and

is not fussy about everyday attention.

A monastery in Madikeri

But these flowers do make a huge difference in your backyard, pots, decks, patios and courtyards.

Outside the sales office of the Botanical Garden in Ooty.

Crafters Antiques

2009-06-23T13:52:00.002+05:30

That's Crafters Antiques for you.

and here's the biggest varpu in the world

a board game with the lucky red seeds that can double up as a centrepiece

Susan Sargent Designs

2009-04-22T14:23:00.003+05:30

A little teapot in hues of purple, orange, blue, green and red

bird-themed bowls

Mette Lange

2009-04-22T13:52:00.003+05:30

The June 2007 edition of Inside Outside familiarised me with an architect named Mette Lange.

Originally from Denmark, Lange and her husband have made India their second home.

Their beautiful abode, the Kiranpani House was featured in the June 2007 issue of Inside Outside.

These are some images of the house that overlooks the Tiracol River in North Goa...Enjoyy!

The guesthouse...I wouldn't mind being a permament guest here.

For more images log visit Lange's website. Also peep into the Moving School.

If you have it...frame it :)

2009-04-19T10:36:00.003+05:30

I don't like plain-looking empty walls. They make me sad.

You could add life to your walls by putting up wall-hangings, pictures, brackets with stands...anything that will make the walls smile back at you :)

Post-it notes

2009-04-19T10:23:00.007+05:30

I was wondering if there was a blog on 'Post-it notes' and look what I found...

There is a blog on post-it notes. Visit the blog and you'll be amused. It's called Things We Forget. Next time you are in Singapore, hunt for them.

And this is a post-it note feom me!

HAVE A BEAUTIFUL DAY!

Exhibitions...

2009-04-16T12:50:00.008+05:30

a good place to buy some inexpensive home furnishings,

crafts, fashion and accessories

therapeutic

show off your creativity by

mixing n matching.

pick up planters and durries (rugs)

hand painted

glass

enjoy styling your house

breathe in the colours

no hole in your

pocket

Tribal Route

2009-04-13T17:09:00.004+05:30

A few days back I met an enterprising lady called Mamta. While we got talking I learnt that she is one of the Partner/Business Manager of an outlet called ' Tribal Route', that sells 'carefully selected and hand-crafted' merchandise.

Tribal Route is located in Versova, a beach-village in suburban Mumbai. The store is run in quaint little cottages away from the maddening sounds of the city. You can drop in and have a look at the various products they have in store - studio pottery, decor, dining, candles, frames - or maybe you could sit and have a warm chat in their majlis courtyard.

I haven't had the opportunity to visit Tribal Route though I did glance through their website. Soon I'll be going there in person. Meanwhile check them out here:

http://www.tribalroute.com/

http://www.tribal-route.blogspot.com/

Monisha Bharadwaj

2009-03-30T17:44:00.004+05:30

I have always felt inspired by this lady. I don't know if it was because we shared the same passions in life or is it just plain adulation, but somewhere I admire her for her cookery, her writings on home decor and her ardent love for dance.

I became conversant with Monisha through her book 'The Indian Kitchen' - a book that I consider a bible on Indian pantry.

Later on I discovered her books on Indian homes. Books that lend you a peek into the origin of traditional Indian home decor.

2009-03-30T15:59:00.005+05:30

Bottles make for good vases and plant holders.

Pothos in an old Antiquity bottle.

My work station

2009-03-06T15:45:00.006+05:30

Now that's a part of my kitchen.

A calendar gifted by a dear friend, a small mortar that makes up for a planter,

a brass glass (my aunt gifted that to me a when I was five) that doubles up as a spoon holder and a dash of green

Spice bottles neatly arranged on the rack :)

Crafter's furniture

2009-03-06T15:41:00.003+05:30

At the shop

At home...

Brownies...

2009-03-06T15:36:00.001+05:30

Brown wall paper in the living room.

I think this is my favourite place in the whole house. It's a ledge that has lot of scope for styling. That's a lamp that we picked up from a furniture exhibition, a few of our favourite books, a picture in a wooden frame and an indoor plant.

2009-01-30T13:51:00.001+05:30

A little bit of green here and there

Hyper City Purchases

2009-01-30T13:40:00.003+05:30

Colourful cushion and bolster covers at reasonable prices. Wonderful shopping experience if you are planning to change your home decor.

Rajasthani cushion covers

2009-01-30T13:22:00.003+05:30

Chillaxing...

2009-01-30T13:15:00.002+05:30

The drainage pipe (designing blunder on part of the builder) painted in orange now looks more beautiful and bright.

About the house

2009-01-10T09:53:00.004+05:30

The house is built on an 1100 sq.ft area on the fifth floor of a new building. We have a beautiful deck that serves as a tea-lounge in the morning and a party area when we have friends over. Me and Raj always wanted a home rather than a house (like most people). Before starting work on the house we managed to visit a few of our friends who had done up their houses wth the help of interior designers. And to be honest we didn't like any of them becuase the house never said anything about the people who lived in it. In plain words, they were not personalised homes. We were apprehensive about hiring a designer as we felt that he would not be in a position to execute the decor in the manner and style that we had in mind. But we also knew that a designer would make things simpler for us as he was more resourceful and aware compared to us. Thus we hired a designer duo. But there was a condition...no designing, only execution. And we are glad we did it. The house has turned up exactly the way we wanted it.

Being a home-maker I am always thinking and rethinking of changing little things here and there in the house, little things that make a huge difference. Fortunately, Raj too loves picking up tiny knick-knacks for the house. But I admit, sometimes he goes overboard :-) We have got so many Chinese dolls in the house that I have lost count. I am not complaining.

My kitchen is my favoutrite place in the house. I love cooking. I'm not blowing my own trumpet, but I do it pretty artistically and fast too...and don't know why the food comes out well too. My kitchen is also my active photography area. It's one place where I do the maximum changes in decor. I have this hobby of collecting bottles - wine, spices, whiskey - if the bottle looks good, I preserve it. Then I use it for holding flowers, plants or whatever that suits best.

Every corner in the house is important for me. I find it beautiful for one or the reason. Now this blog is going to be full of pictures of my house, some other houses, home decor, cutlery, plants, gardens, books on home decor....in short, everything to do with a home :-)

I am back

2009-01-10T09:28:00.005+05:30

It's been a pretty long time since I posted something on this blog or any other blog for that matter. The reason - well, I got to move into my new house. It's looking beautiful. And starting today I think I will start uploading pictures of my house on this blog of mine. There is more to the decor , but as of now I am happy uploading the pictures that I took when we had just set up things.

The living-room

That's a couch and console from Fabindia. The centre-table was picked from an exhibition. And the chair is from Crafter's Antique.

Pots from Gaia

2008-11-23T18:25:00.005+05:30

Custom-made furniture from Fab India

2008-11-23T00:40:00.002+05:30

Now, we weren't aware of this. It was only when we visited the store in search of a particular couch that we found out thta Fab India does custom-made furniture. It's too late for us as we are almost at the final stage of completion. But the word has to be spread. They have an amazing collection of side-tables, lampshades, coffee tables, chairs, dhurries, table mats, crockery, upholstery, futons and mirrors. Yeah, thi is apart from their clothing range for men, women and kids.

Fab India can do up your house (in India) if your order exceeds Rs. 1,00,000/-. The best part is yet to come. If you liked one of their designs but would want to go a slight variation, just let them know. Thay have artisans who will do the needful. Had we known this earlier, by now we would have settled down in our new house :-(

Nowhere near completion

2008-11-20T11:18:00.003+05:30

I'm not updating the blog any more because the house is not nearing completion. It'll take another 2 - 3 weeks before we can finally move in. To add to our woes the workers have already started damaging things that we got from Crafters Antique. A beautiful chair that we'd picked up from Jew Town is absolutely damaged. Just hoping that they will mend it.

The Door

2008-10-03T10:52:00.002+05:30

This door will soon get replaced.

That's how the house looks like now...

2008-10-03T09:42:00.008+05:30

The living room. Fortunately no one lives here.

Stylkist.com

2008-09-29T21:26:00.001+05:30

This is a new online store that I discovered. They have some pretty neat stuff on home decor. Do check it out!

P.S. Slightly on the expensive side (after all it's silk).

Green Somethings

2008-09-23T12:48:00.000+05:30

Staying in Mumbai? Looking for planters? No time to walk around lanes hunting for a planter that would evoke your aesthetic sense?

Hmm....here they are. Green Somethings. An online store that can take care of your small indoor and outdoor gardening fancies. They also do the planting for you. What more can you ask for? You just need to pick your favourite(s) from the catalogue, pay online and promise yourself to attend to the little green member in your house. By the way, Green Somethings will deliver your stuff at your doorstep. And did I mention that they have kitchen herbs ?

Kara Ventures

2008-09-22T21:39:00.002+05:30

A few enterprising women got together with a mission. A mission to revive the dying handloom industry in Kerala. The result - Kara, Weaves of Kerala.
I came across their website while I was in the process of doing my new house. As I was very keen to have handloom curtains that resembled the neriyathu sarees of Kerala, Kara ended my search at their online shopping store. But there was this inscrutable urge to prod a little further and to trek down to the place from where these weaves originated. I travelled from Mumbai to Kochi and from Kochi to Kanjiramattom. Waiting there was Indu Menon, Sreedevi, Suryakala Satish and Lakshmi Menon. I was bowled over by their sheer zealousness and childlike excitement while exhibiting their creations. Elegant off-white drapes with intricate weaves in gold adorned the windows of the little ancestral property from where these women were operating. They took pride in showcasing the works of the handloom weavers who were once part of the dying handloom industry. And the stuff what they have is what I was looking for. I must say...worth all the toil

They also have the traditional Kerala towels, torthu, alongwith cushion covers and hand towels.
I am imprressed. Aren't you?

Recycle

2008-09-11T13:38:00.005+05:30

This is an appachatti that my mum had been using for more than two decades.

Now she got herself a new one and so I get to keep this, for floral decoration.