Showing posts with label The Homes of my friends. Show all posts
Showing posts with label The Homes of my friends. Show all posts

Monday, 9 January 2023

A Home Tour of colourful proportions

Came to this blogspace after years. Importantly, because I felt the need of space to say what I want to say (not ideal on Insta). And, possibly, also as the circulating hormones of a brand new 2023 are in play. 

Cutting to the chase, onto the tug of space that inspired me today, we are just back from a holiday in KL, Malaysia, graciously hosted by our friends Vernika and Anshu Nahar, their kids Ira and Viraj and Bagel, their darling fur-ball. Their home is located in the quietly posh Mont Kiara, (often stylised as Mont' Kiara), an affluent suburb at the northwest of downtown Kuala Lumpurconsisting mainly of high-rise residential condominiums and office complexes, with a robust ecosystem to support all daily and social needs. 

Their home-apartment, that they invested in and moved into recently, is spread over 4000 + square-feet of space, in a layout that lends as much credence to the living and kitchen or utility spaces, as to the  well-appointed bedrooms, lobbies, balcony and landing areas. For someone used to the pigeon holed expectations of Mumbai-living, it was a delirious entry into this home.

My attempt here is to share the rest of the drama of this home, in photos— the drama as much in the choice of colour on the walls, as in the choice of upholstery, contrast and detailing, and in the staging of art & artefact— a collection that they say, they are keenly building.

Mixing feminine flourishes with chic elegance into a vibrant, kaleidoscopic living space. From dramatic pops of pink, delicate tape trim details, jewel tones and florals, plush velvet, to lacquered, oriental console and sideboards, porcelain garden stools placed casually, embroidered throws for contrast and cosiness, to gorgeous Srinathhji on Pichwai -welcoming you at the entryway. Yet, the best part about this home for me is the sparse, uncluttered quality to the interiors, the unhindered flow of energy and vibe it lends to its spaces, despite the deliberate riot of colour, texture and form.

Eclectic, bold, brave and thoughtful.  

As always, I am ruing the many corners and rooms that I did not click photos of. Nonetheless... enjoy the visual splash!






















Saturday, 23 July 2016

Gorgeous weekend #Throwback HomeTour (Prismma splashes Amar & Geetika's home colours!)

The link to a HomeTour I contributed to Prismma couldn't be accessed and so here's a visual-throwback of the beautiful Noida home of my friends—Geetika and Amar <3<3. This visit dates back a bit and I reckon it's time for a next visit :).
Screenshot of the published HomeTour

 

Entrance lobby
 

The bold red velvet upholstery makes a grand statement




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Thursday, 10 September 2015

Greenscaping a Welcome

They say घरकी मुर्गी दाल बराबर and it has been very real for me (in fact for my eldest sibling, my dear DiDi). 

I pen and curate this site and am always game for that infusion of inspiration from decor ideas, genius and creative twists aka treatment to spaces be it homes, exteriors, resorts, anywhere at all. In the same vein, I've forever been in awe of what my sister has been doing so beautifully with greens and landscapes for almost a decade now (www.facebook.com/Arishi-Greens-226453180739698/timeline). Arishi Greens (as some of us know it) has so gently grown into a venture of the heart, labor and creativity.

Today's post, however, is more pointedly about the unequivocally creative welcome lobby of her home in Lajpat Nagar. Every-time I visit (which is once-a-year) there would be a certain something new; another unique grouping of various art, craft, green-life; or an entirely genius twist to all notions I have of a welcome patio. And this time I decided I MUST pay homage to her 'special welcome space' on this space and share with you all, my Peeps.

While you're at it, notice the small happy details, the mood 'flavour' created by the different sizes and colours in grouping, notice how potting greens in simple, everyday, make-do-genius cups 'n pots brings the 'charming' to life! and Mind you, all the greens and landscaping are her own!

I so wish to export her to do one such transformation to my welcome lobby (if I ever have one)!

See, swoon, salivate :)




My absolute favourite 



The landing of the stairs; at the entrance to the lobby











All pictures copyrighted to www.limegreenwalls.com

Thursday, 11 September 2014

An Indian Summer In France : A Home Tour

Many youthful summers, many evenings loitering the local colony parks & lanes, many Autumnal days & nights during Pujo - year on year- were spent together with her. Ritu, didi (my big-sis), me and a gang of some others (who I am missing terribly as I write), had totally inseparable growing-up-together years, replete with escapades, incidents, some accidents, beguiling and widely discussed crushes (at times on the same boy), sharing of beds, food, sarees & clothing, shoes & secrets and just about everything else that early and teen years are romanced for! The perfect pre-20s of our lives which would not be half as memorable or wild without each other.

Cut to 2014, and I write this post today as a commemorative of our French summer soiree, and the last phase of that vacation spent in the absolutely idyllic city of Nantes, located on the Loire river, in the west of France. (In 2004, Time named Nantes as "the most liveable city in Europe").

Ritu (Ritu Bernaerts now) lives here in Nantes, with two lovely daughters Fiona & Ilona, stunningly gentle & genial Nicolas (her husband), and graceful Twix (the first cat I ever tried to love)!

And she lives!  Ritu and Nicolas have built their cherished home in this urban isle, in its untouched 18th century-character-quarters,  known as the Feydeau quarters. Unlike centuries back, the Ile (Isle) Feydeau is today joined to the main town and to the Ile Gloriette where the river Loire freely flowed back then. (Ile Gloriette of today is a grand parking area giving way to a local market on Saturdays, very much a colourful & vibrant dry/wet market of fresh produce, nick-knacks and all variety of essentials). 

The Feydeau quarters are built mainly in limestone, with ornamental faces framing the facades and wrought-iron balconies, inner courtyards and vaulted staircases. The pomp of these houses are classically expressed as they stand white and serene against the centuries-old milieu.

And visualise this! As you enter one such apartment inside these stylish French Quarters, a blast of India surrounds your senses, almost overwhelmingly - a platter full of colours, engravings, wood, textile, art, craft, sheer warmth & radiance and dotted with stories personal, Indian & French ! 

I'll let the pictures speak for it.


Ritu's favourite seat in this theatre:)






Read the story of the Sewing machine, below
Of the many stories contained in this household of treasures this one is my favourite. In Ritu's own words "My Grand mom's USHA sewing machine which I got shipped from India...When one of my French friends saw it she gladly donated her Grand mom's SINGER sewing machine-table lying in her attic for a long time. The machine & the table fitted perfectly!! Indo-French relations you see..."

 



This beautiful piece of art on leather is a collectible from India, handed down from Nicolas' Great-Great-Grand mom

Love those tomato red covers on those couches

 





An inherited piece from Nicolas' Grandmother

   
Carved ornamental faces that frame every doorway and hang over each balcony... surreal !




The centuries old fireplace : heartwarmingly beautiful despite it's purely decorative functionality today

And meet Mr. Twix, the most French of 'em all







India lined on shelves






The story continues :


We learnt that restructuring the historical city for urban living took nearly 20 years (since 1926), especially to fill-in the parts of the rivers Erdre and Loire that flowed round the ile Gloriette. The areas where the river once flowed is today recognisable in the strips of lawn bordered by granite.  

Where the renovation story gets legendary is that the architects forgot that the houses are built on sandy foundations, and years later, as a result the Feydeau quarters don't stand straight ! Standing crooked, unaligned, though later-on reinforced for their stability, built mainly in limestone, the majesty of these houses indicates the importance of the city's former commercial trade status.


Tilting, unaligned gorgeous Feydeau Quarters

The balconies indicate how distinct each floor was; the ground floor was for commercial use only and is dominated by arched windows and reception rooms. Above were the refined & decorated private apartments. 
Ritu's patch of green - a balcony of potted greens, veggies and herbs 
The facade characterised by ornamental faces and wrought-iron balconies
Classic ceilings

Original tiles at the entrance of the Quarters

These cobbled lanes have braved centuries of walking & trampling by people, horses, carriages & cars
Look who we found, lived here! 'Twenty Thousand Leagues under the sea'

Nantes slave trade port
The opulent life-style in 18th century Nantes was guaranteed by 2 main sources: Africa and America. Ships built and fitted in Nantes ran the triangular trade between France’s number one port at the time, the Guinean coast and the West Indies. The principle was cruelly simple: buy Africans and sell them on for sugarcane to be refined in Nantes. This is how colonial products like coffee, cocoa, pepper, indigo and exotic wood came to be unloaded along the quayside of Quai de La Fosse and île Feydeau. It was here, in particular, that the shipbuilders built up their dynasties, leaving behind magnificent examples of the city's architecture

The isle evokes the extravagant way of life the maritime traders led in the 18th century, when the port of Nantes was the biggest in France and one of the most important in Europe.



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