Ravi Karandeekar's Kitchen and Bath Blog of Free Tips for Pune Real Estate

Elica - Italian home appliance brand, the world's largest chimney manufacturer, enters India

2010-07-07T07:45:00.000+05:30

The 350 million Euro brand, Elica (www.elica.com) will be spending 5 million euros in the next three years on establishing an India footprint that includes setting up a manufacturing plant in Pune.

“India is a very important emerging market of the future for us. We will set up a plant in Pune and will look at getting a 20% market share in the next one year,” Francesco Casoli, chairman, Elica spa told ET.

“This country has a population of 1.2 billion where 3,50,000 chimneys sell every year. The demand in China is for 8,00,000 chimneys a year. So we see better prospects here,” he added.

The kitchen hoods (chimney) market in India is worth Rs 500 crore. Of this, 50% is organized and growing at 20% per annum

To read more, please, visit The Economic Times

Green light - 2009 could be the turning point for eco-friendly trends

2008-12-29T20:59:00.001+05:30

Green works on several levels, market trend-spotters say. It blends concerns for health, the planet and, in these economically challenged times, the wallet

Products and builders doing eco-friendly are faring better, even in the ailing economy.

Every housing-related niche - actually nook, cranny and water closet - now has eco-trends. Many are readily combined. We've selected 10 of them for 2009:
To read more, please, visit - baltimoresun.com

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Nintendo Launches Personal Trainer: Cooking For Nintendo DS

2008-11-30T06:30:00.012+05:30

A new software title for Nintendo DS turns the world's best-selling portable video game system into an interactive cooking coach, complete with tasty recipes and video demos. Personal Trainer: Cooking for Nintendo DS contains more than 240 dishes from dozens of countries around the world. The DS Chef, a friendly electronic cooking instructor, walks users through each step to make sure every dish comes out perfect and delicious.

Personal Trainer: Cooking even includes videos of various cooking techniques, such as how to properly julienne vegetables. The touch screen interface helps budding chefs check ingredients on an electronic shopping list they can take to the grocery store. It also lets them search recipes based on ingredients, number of calories or cooking time. When a user's hands are too covered in the business of cooking to use the touch screen, the voice-recognition feature comes in handy: Just tell the DS Chef to move on to the next step or repeat the last one.

"Personal Trainer: Cooking is the first in a new line of Personal Trainer titles from Nintendo designed to help users enrich their lives and learn new skills in fun and interesting ways," said Cammie Dunaway, Nintendo of America's executive vice president of Sales & Marketing. "Whether you're cooking for yourself, your family or your friends, everyone in the household benefits from these tasty recipes for months and years to come."

Personal Trainer: Cooking also builds on the social aspect of food as well. Roommates can try out recipes together, or parents can involve their children in preparing dishes for the family. With a tap, users can even scale the quantity of their recipes based on the number of guests they expect.

Users can customize their favorite recipes. For instance, if a user thinks a recipe tastes better with a pinch of oregano, he or she can jot that note directly onto the recipe using the Nintendo DS stylus and touch screen, and it'll be saved for the next time the dish is prepared.

In 2009, Nintendo will build on its Personal Trainer series with Personal Trainer: Math and Personal Trainer: Walking. For more information about Personal Trainer: Cooking, visit www.PersonalTrainerCooking.com

Nintendo :: What's New

Reviews:

1) Nintendo Cooking Guide Review: Has Nintendo killed off the cookbook?

2) Nintendo - Cooking Guide: Can't Decide What To Eat? review

3) NINTENDO COOKING GUIDE: Gamers rustle up a masterpiece

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Wine Tasting Festival in Pune

2008-11-28T17:50:00.006+05:30

Pune Gourmet Club is organising the second Wine Tasting Festival in Pune on December 13-14, showcasing 13 Indian wineries that will offer free tastings of more than 50 wines with the purchase of an all encompassing Pass.

Winemakers and wine trainers will conduct wine appreciation classes. Celebrity TV Chef Parag Kanhere will hold 'Cooking with Indian Wine' shows twice a day on both days. Free cheese, olive oil and Dijon mustard tastings will be available. Gourmet finger food stalls will offer Kebabs, Sushi, Falafel, Cajun chicken and barbecue items. Debuting this year will be Gauri Nafrey's Champagne and Fresh Strawberry Sorbettos made on site by Ti Amo, Pune's Gelato chain.

The weekend festival being held in Rohi Villa Palace, Lane #7, Koregaon Park, Pune is expected to draw a crowd of 3,000 according to the organisers. It will offer visitors a unique opportunity to not only taste wines but also participate in several allied fun activities, and enjoy gourmet food. To read more, please, visit - IndianWineAcademy

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Anyone who does not have a toilet in their home will not get government loans or even crucial land ownership documents!

2008-11-16T11:41:00.018+05:30

Bizarre new diktat?:

I did not understand why Imtiaz Jaleel of NDTV calls "bizarre new diktat" and "a shocking extreme" to Chandrakant Dalvi's (Collector, Pune) initiative to implement "Nirmal Gram Yojana", a policy aimed at setting up one toilet in every household in Maharashtra.

This program was introduced five years ago. But only half the gram panchayats in Pune district have complied with it so far. A basic toilet costs over Rs 4,000 to build. Government also gives some subsidies. To meet the target, Pune district collector has to build two lakh toilets this year. So a week ago the collector introduced this new "undemocratic rule" to enforce sanitation. To read more, please, visit - NDTV.com: No loo, no loans diktat in Pune

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Rescue My Kitchen™ Contest Helps Home-Owners Fight Back Against the Gunk and Grime

2008-03-28T19:38:00.001+05:30

Celebrity Home Keeping Expert Helps Attack What Lurks™ in America’s Kitchens

Dirty dishwashers that haven’t been cleaned in months. Filthy fridges with leftovers from the holiday season and countertops cluttered with kitchen dust, grime and mildew aren’t chores we necessarily look forward to, in fact, according to a survey conducted by Summit Brands, nearly half of us avoid the dreaded chore of cleaning our kitchen all together.

As April looms and the spring cleaning season gets underway, don’t you wish you could give yourself a break and have someone do the dirty work for you? Thanks to Dishwasher Magic® and “Healthy Housekeeper” Laura Dellutri, consumers can enter the first-ever Rescue My Kitchen™ Contest that helps home-owners take back control of their kitchens with an emergency makeover.

Dellutri is on the hunt for America’s worst kitchen catastrophe and will transform one lucky winner’s kitchen into a more guest-friendly room—by eliminating the gunk that lurks within less visible, but odor prone areas such as appliances.

From March 18 through May 1, home-owners can visit, www.RescueMyKitchen.com for a chance to spend a day with Dellutri and her professional cleaning crew who will battle even the scariest kitchen disaster. The winner will also receive a full set of brand-new GE CleanSteel™ kitchen appliances and a year’s supply of cleaning products.

“The kitchen is the major hub of activity in many homes, and coincidentally, it’s also a breeding ground for bacteria and unappetizing smells when not regularly tended to,” said Dellutri. “I am ecstatic to roll up my sleeves and help someone tackle their kitchen code red through the Rescue My Kitchen contest.”

Dellutri’s Rescue My Kitchen Code Red Checklist offers time-saving tips to tackle those areas of the kitchen that are often neglected including:

Grimy Ovens: Skip the old fashioned routine by investing in some new oven liners that can withstand temperatures up to 550 degrees. When the goo drips on the liner just throw it in the dishwasher to clean. Time Saved: 1 hour

Dirty Dishwashers: Many consumers fall for the common myth that dishwashers clean themselves during the wash cycle. Dellutri recommends using Dishwasher Magic® to fight the hard water deposits, rust and food that can build up inside the dishwasher and impede performance. It’s the only dishwasher cleaner that disinfects while it cleans, killing 99.999 percent of E. coli and salmonella. Time Saved: 15-20 minutes

Odorous Disposers: Lemons may seem like a fix for odors, but they are not effective at removing waste buildup that can linger and cause odors to return. Dellutri recommends Disposer Care®, which cleans disposers in less than a minute and removes 99 percent of the grunge and grime that causes odor—even cleaning underneath the hard-to-reach splashguard. Time Saved: 60 seconds

Sticky refrigerators: Use dishwasher-safe, washable refrigerator shelf liners and you won't find yourself struggling with sticky goo that's collected on your shelves. Just throw the soiled liners in the dishwasher as needed. Time Saved: 30-45 minutes

Greasy kitchen blinds: For removing grease buildup from kitchen blinds, where sunlight makes it especially easy to spot, consider an ultrasonic blind cleaner service that will come to the home, take down the blinds, clean and reinstall them for a nominal charge. Time Saved: 3 hours or more

To enter the Rescue My Kitchen Contest applicants can log onto www.RescueMyKitchen.com to submit a photo and a 600 word or less essay or a two minute video online explaining why they need an emergency-kitchen makeover. Nominees can also mail in their essay and photo or video, along with a fully completed entry form available at www.RescueMyKitchen.com. All mailin entries must be postmarked by May 1, 2008 and received by May 8, 2008 to be eligible.

No purchase necessary to enter or win. Contest is open to Nominees who are legal residents of the 48 contiguous US & DC, 21 years or older and have exclusive ownership of their house or apartment and Nominators who are legal residents of the 50 US & DC, 18 years of age or older.

Contest begins March 18, 2008 at 12:00 AM ET ends May 1, 11:59 PM ET. Void where prohibited. For complete details, see the Official Rules, which govern, at
www.RescueMyKitchen.com.

About Dishwasher Magic®

Dishwasher Magic by Summit Brands is the only EPA-registered dishwasher disinfectant on the market today, removing hardwater deposits, rust and food build-up. It is the only dishwasher cleaner that disinfects while it cleans, killing 99.999 % of E. Coli and Salmonella. It is environmentally friendly and is considered a “green” chemical, and is safe for all dishwasher model interiors and plumbing and safe for use with septic systems. Dishwasher Magic is available at most mass retailers, grocery, hardware and home center locations across the country for about $3.99.

About Disposer Care®

Disposer Care by Summit Brands foams away 99% of the grunge and grime in garbage disposers that cause odors – even getting underneath the splashguard. It is easy to use, is more effective than home remedies and leaves a pleasant lemon scent. The product is non-corrosive, biodegradable and safe for the septic system, and is safe for pipes of all ages, including PVC pipes. Disposer Care is available at most mass retailers, grocery, hardware and home center locations across the country for about $3.99.

About Summit Brands

Summit Brands, formerly Iron Out, Inc., was founded in Fort Wayne, Ind. in 1958. The company has since manufactured and marketed leading household cleaning brands, such as Super Iron Out, Disposer Care, Dishwasher Magic, White Brite and Washer Magic. Summit Brands products are available at most superstores, grocery, home center and hardware stores. For more information or to find the closest retailer, go to www.summitbrands.com.

kitchen and bath Pune kitchen and bath blog Summit Brands Dishwasher Magic® “Healthy Housekeeper” Laura Dellutri GE CleanSteel™ kitchen appliances cleaning products Dellutri’s Rescue My Kitchen Code Red Checklist Grimy Ovens Dirty Dishwashers Odorous Disposers Sticky refrigerators Greasy kitchen blinds Disposer Care®

Home furnishings market in India

2008-03-25T23:40:00.005+05:30

The urban home furnishings retail market in India is estimated to be Rs 9,300 crore ($2.3 billion).

The market is expected to reach Rs 20,000 crore by 2012.

The institutional home furnishings market in India is estimated to be Rs 530 crore and is expected to reach Rs 1,000 crore by 2012.

Bed and bath contribute to two-thirds of the market (Rs 6,600 crore).

The curtain and upholstery market is currently estimated to be Rs 2,000 crore.

Only 6 per cent of the home furnishings market is currently organized. Most of the organised players focus on bed and bath.
Business-Standard

Say bye bye to cheap maids

2008-03-24T22:54:00.009+05:30

The 70,000-odd ‘kaamwali bais’ in the city have something to cheer about. If the state government has its way, these housemaids may soon get a fixed, minimum monthly pay, bonus, paid leave and flexible working hours.

The government plans to introduce a domestic worker welfare bill in the ongoing session of the state assembly ensuring stipulated benefits to housemaids in Pune, Mumbai and other select cities.
-The Times of India

Blue Moon. Bathing not in a tub but in a pool.

2008-03-11T16:54:00.007+05:30

The more water, the more space, the more depth the better.

With its square corpus and round tub the Blue Moon whirlpool looks like a pool; and with its water depth of 530 mm it feels like one, too – despite occupying an area of just 140 x 140 cm.

Immerse yourself in water with mood-setting coloured lights; the body is completely surrounded by water with only the back touching the tub, giving a pleasant feeling of weightlessness.

Bathing in a pool?....Letting yourself go?....Floating?....Pure relaxation?...It’s not easy to describe the feeling.

Suffice to say that Blue Moon is a unique bathing experience.
Duravit - Blue Moon

The Sims 2 Kitchen and Bath Interior Design Stuff - unleash the interior designer within, create a kitchen and bathroom of your dream

2008-03-11T16:00:00.005+05:30

Want to transform that boring bathroom into a romantic getaway, filled with charming bathtubs, calming lighting fixtures and beautiful basin sinks?

Eager to build the kitchen of your dreams, filled with sleek appliances on granite counter tops or romantic natural wood cabinets next to wrought iron stoves?

Whatever your style, The Sims 2 Kitchen and Bath Interior Design Stuff can help your Sims design the kitchens and bathrooms of their dreams with a variety of new furniture, décor, and outfits!
EA Announces The Sims 2 Double Deluxe and The Sims 2 Kitchen and Bath Interior Design Stuff

Simple Ideas For Your Simple Small Bathroom Remodeling

2008-01-31T18:01:00.001+05:30

If you’re combating a cramped bathroom, then it may be time to clean house. Small bathroom remodeling doesn’t have to be a big budget endeavor. Some creative design and clever building can help you utilize every inch of a small space and create the illusion of a big bathroom.

read more | digg story

Walt Disney's Dream of an Apartment Becomes Reality

2008-01-31T17:43:00.001+05:30

True Disney magic exists in every room, including the master bathroom. Yes, I said the "Master Bathroom"! The stained glass window above the master tub is called "Aurora – Young Woman at a Fountain", a replica of the original created by Louis Comfort Tiffany. The original resides in the Morse Museum of American Park in Winter Park, Florida. Approximately 1850 stars in the walls and ceiling create a relaxing and magical feeling. There is also a 'hidden Mickey' located in the stars.

read more | digg story

Do not throw away..make a place for every thing..prioritize

2008-01-04T18:19:00.001+05:30

An organizer says you don't have to get rid of all the clutter, just make it organized.If you think home organizing mostly involves throwing things out, Deniece Schofield is one expert who disagrees."I like to talk about finding more space without throwing things away," said Schofield, a national organizing author and speaker.

read more | digg story

No sense in world of scents

2008-01-04T17:50:00.001+05:30

HERE IT IS, the first week of 2008 and already I’m overwhelmed. By smells. Or scents. Or fragrances. Or whatever you want to call them. I’m OD-ing on the things. They’re everywhere. It’s not that I dislike the smell of scents, it’s just that there are too many of them out there these days and you can’t escape them.

read more | digg story

RPG Group to roll out speciality home solutions stores selling funiture, furnishing and home decorative items

2007-12-24T09:25:00.000+05:30

RPG Group’s retail flagship, Spencer’s Retail is planning to make a major foray into speciality retailing. The company, which recently made a soft entry with standalone consumer electronic outlets, is now exploring the option of rolling out speciality home solutions and apparel stores.

Flickr: Old Stove Round Up: Town of Ogden's photos

Typically, the home solutions and the apparel speciality stores will be set up over 10,000 sq ft. The home solutions outlets will sell furniture, furnishing and other home decorative items. On the other hand, the apparel stores will be multi-brand outlets with a greater focus on private labels.

Currently, Spencer’s runs four retail formats — Spencer’s Hyper, Spencer’s Super, Spencer’s Daily and Spencer’s Express. It has also rolled out two speciality consumer electronic stores, christened Spencer’s Electronic in Hyderabad and Pune.

Spencer's will be one more exciting option to HOMETOWN and @HOME in Ishanya in Pune Real Estate market.
Spencer's eyes foray into speciality retail-The Economic Times

kitchen and bath Pune kitchen and bath blog ravi karandeekar RPG Group retail Spencer’s Retail speciality retailing standalone consumer electronic outlets speciality home solutions and apparel stores furniture furnishing home decorative items multi-brand outlets private labels Spencer’s Hyper Spencer’s Super Spencer’s Daily Spencer’s Express Spencer’s Electronic Hyderabad retail Pune retail HomeTown interior and exterior store @home - interior store Ishanya, interior and exterior mall Pune real estate Pune real estate market Pune news

Pune scientist turns kitchen waste into methane gas

2007-12-12T02:47:00.001+05:30

Waste management is not just an urban phenomenon that must be tackled by each city’s administration. It calls for individual initiatives too. That’s the message Pune-based Anand Karve, director of the Appropriate Rural Technology Institute (ARTI) wants to spread.

To enable this to happen, Karve has found a process. “A family of five persons would require a four feet wide plastic tank of 1,000 litres, which would need to be fed with kitchen waste of one kilogram every day to generate methane gas. A tank of this size would cost Rs 9,000. The gas generated through this method can be piped into the kitchen and there would be no further need to depend on LPG,” he explains.

read more | digg story

A Watery Grave for Hotel Bathtubs

2007-11-17T01:17:00.001+05:30

Say bye-bye to baths—hotels are kicking them out of the can.

“Less than 2 percent of people ever use a bathtub in a hotel room—except at a resort,” says hotel consultant Michael Matthews, whose 40-year career includes marketing and managerial stints at luxury properties from Hong Kong to Big Sur. “The only reason to take a bath in a hotel room is when there is someone else in there with you. Otherwise, business travelers prefer to have their room outfitted with a gutsy shower.”

read more | digg story

Nilkamal's @home opens 2nd store in Pune, at Ishanya, Opp. Golf Course, Yerawada

2007-11-14T21:13:00.000+05:30

(IndiaPRwire.com) After the overwhelming response from @home Pune near Eternia, Wakdewadi, this glamorous home maker has now extended their venture to Ishanya India's Largest Design Centre and Specialty Mall for Interiors and Exteriors.

View Larger Map

Spread over a plush 20, 500 sq. ft, the store is inviting, warm yet attractive. Nilkamal Ltd., the most revered brand name in the molded furniture business across India, takes pride to introduce ‘@home’, an opportunity for a better living environment.

Being the brain child of the young & dynamic 2nd generation entrepreneurs, Mr. Manish Parekh, Mr. Nayan Parekh and Mr. Hiten Parekh, @home undoubtedly has a novel and contemporary approach.
@home - the complete home solutions store by Nilkamal Ltd. launches their second store in Pune

Flickr: LivingRm_natural_WilliamsSonomaHome by SFuhs.

The home solutions store from Asia's largest producer of molded furniture, Nilkamal's @home, has announced the opening of a 2nd store in Pune

2007-11-10T18:31:00.000+05:30

The new @home store at Pune showcases 20 living room styles, 18 bedroom styles and 20 dining room varieties, in addition to home accessories and soft furnishings. These products comprise imports from Turkey, China, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand.

According to Manish Parekh, director, @home, the company started its journey in the home furnishings business in 2005, with the opening of its first store in Pune.

@home is now planning on continuing the same by opening more stores across India, and plans to take its total to 16 by the end of the current fiscal. New stores are planned for Coimbatore, Surat, Thane, Faridabad, Ghaziabad and New Delhi.
:@home expands to 10 cities: domain-B.

Nilkamal\'s @home molded furniture Pune furniture market home accessories soft furnishings kitchen and bath blog China furniture Turkey furniture Indonesia furniture Malaysia furniture Thailand furniture furniture store Manish Parekh, director, @home Coimbatore furniture Thane furniture Faridabad furniture Ghaziabad furniture New Delhi furniture

Chris Pirillo: Electric Toothbrushes: Sonicare vs Ultreo

2007-11-09T09:18:00.000+05:30

Chris | Live Tech Support | Video Help | Add to iTunes

Luigi Colani's Space-Saving Rotor House [FM8579-29]

2007-10-19T23:31:00.001+05:30

hanse_colani_rotor_house_oc, originally uploaded by 大頭紀錄攝影研究所.

Designer Luigi Colani has created a space-saving house with a six square meter cylinder inside that contains a bedroom, kitchen and bathroom. The cylinder rotates left or right bringing the room you want into view of the main living room. There's a separate toilet and a small hallway, and everything is controlled with a remote.

read more | digg story

Mayor Toilet comes up with flush home plan

2007-10-17T09:46:00.001+05:30

toilet shaped house, originally uploaded by MojoJojo13.

Sim Jae-Duck was born in a restroom and now he plans to live and die in one - a $1,6-million toilet-shaped house designed to promote his tireless campaign for cleaner loos worldwide. Sim will open what is billed as the world's one and only toilet house on November 11 to mark the launch of his World Toilet Association.

read more | digg story

The digital kitchen is the control center for the connected home providing access to security, HVAC, lighting and the Internet

2007-10-17T08:39:00.001+05:30

The kitchen is increasingly becoming one of the most connected rooms in the house—from lighting and security control to LCD TVs in the refrigerator.As it is one of the most-used rooms in any house, do you know what your clients want in their digital kitchen?

The Internet Home Alliance’s Digital Kitchen Study (pdf link) has found that:consumers want six major innovations:
- a home control station
- an energy usage monitoring and control system
- wireless Internet access
- a recipe projection system
- a digital calendar
- a universal charging station.

read more | digg story

Philips Promotes New Power Toothbrush With Public Sinks

2007-10-17T08:10:00.001+05:30

a new survey finds that 54% of Americans would re-use their toothbrush after it fell on the bathroom floor and--steady now--9% of men admitted to re-using their toothbrush after it fell into the toilet! FlexCare comes with an integrated UV Sanitizer charger base that kills up to 99% of certain bacteria on the brush head.

read more | digg story

Everything you want to know about bathroom lighting

2007-10-15T18:21:00.001+05:30

How many of us may have realised our singing talents inside the cosy corner of our bathrooms or spent hours browsing magazines sitting in the bathroom, whereas some like to enjoy an extended warm bath. It has been found that we humans spend about 25-30% of our life inside the bathroom. Just like the rest of the house, nowadays bathrooms too reflect

read more | digg story