What is your most favorite place in your apartment/house? Are you a green-loving person?  Do you dream of a home with a backyard, a vegetable garden, front lawn, and a courtyard full of potted plants?

I love to start my day sitting in the balcony with a hot cup of tea and newspaper. And, I prefer to do it before the family wakes up.  Those 10-15 minutes of blissful silence in the company of plants. But, the same look can get boring; so I rearrange plants every once in a while or add something new.

A few tricks that’ll work if you are striving for a new look to your balcony without spending much:

1. Rearrange - Move all your pots to different corner. Change the order in which they are lined. Try various combinations until you hit a satisfying one. Take some inside the house.

2. Paint - If you have smaller terracotta pots, don the paint hat. Take out your brushes, get into the mood of the season, and splash your pots in an array of colors. Nothing more eye-catching than a colorful cluster.

A KC Das Dahi Handi turns into planter

3. Get some new ones - Have a few seasonal plants. Most of my plants are the same. But, I always have two to three empty pots filled with potting sand for experimentation. Every season change is a good time to discard what didn’t turn out well and replace it with new ones.

4. Add curios - Get out some curios from your corner table to the balcony. I moved a three-legged chinese frog from my side table to the balcony recently.

5. Decorate your walls- The walls need not be bare. Draw a little something like worli art or small colorful butterflies on the walls. Or fix candle stands at varying heights; light them in the evening. Look in your attic for unused old decor pieces like wall hanging gifts of Ganesha. Get them out.

Here is a pictures of my balcony’s new look with the freshly painted terracotta pieces.

Rearranged pots

Painted terracotta

This is a guest post from interior designer Elaine Griffin. I had featured Elaine in December.

Today, she shares some decor tips for shopping off-price retailers. What good is a post without eye-candy for inspiration. The tips are complemented with a few images of Soul Homes complex designed by Elaine from the March edition of Elle Decor.

1. Hit the store early and often.  It’s true that new merchandise comes almost daily.  And dahling, when you see something you like, buy it at once – you can always return what doesn’t work out, but short of robbery, you’ll never get your hands on it again if someone else snags it while you’re making up your mind.

Simple but elegant room..love the colors

2. Hit the road, Jack(ie).  If you fall in love with something that you need multiples of but can’t find them in your store, check out the others nearby (or afar, if you’re really smitten).  There’s a great chance that its twin is lying in wait for you, since merch tends to be fairly uniformly distributed in the region.  And again, time is of the essence.

Pot as a stand

3. Think out of the box and go beyond the obvious.  Sure, a seven-drawer chest looks great in a bedroom, but it would also be stunning in a bathroom (maybe with a candlestick lamp on top for a little evening glow) to hold towels, beauty tools, and luxurious lotions and potions.  Ditto for a Chinese ceramic garden stool perched next to your tub.  Tiny bejeweled enamel doodads destined for dressing tables are divine as elegant dining table objects.

Add zing to bathroom with misc furniture

4. Overindulge in accessories.  At these price points, I encourage it!  Change throw pillows seasonally and at your every whim.  Switch out your tablescapes at the drop of a hat.  Alternate shower curtains weekly.  The beauty of budget buying means that you can spend less and get more.

Vases, pots, flowers - you name it, it's there!

5. Fall in love with the lamp, not the shade.  After you save a bundle on the lamp base you love, you’ll have $$ left over to splurge on a separate shade for it that better suits your style.

A tough one - I like both

6. And finally, don’t just look at style, look for the labels.  I love scrutinizing price tags, drawers, stamped details and other discreetly-placed markings to find out all I can about an item.  Because sugar, I am speaking from experience knock your socks off.

Summer is almost here, in India. These tips are evergreen and with Sale never out-of-fashion in stores these days, I’m sure you all of us will benefit and save a few moolah.  Thank you Elaine.

Photo credits:

2,3,5 - Elle Decor (Adam Chinitz)

1,4 - Help USA (Todd Plitt)

Mosaic is the art of fitting together small pieces of colorful tiles, stones and other objects to form an image or a pattern. Mosques, monuments, and buildings of cultural and spiritual significance in the Middle-east use them liberally. In fact, the recently opened Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi, the largest in the world, has a 18,000 sq-mt courtyard in marble mosaic.

The Abu Dhabi Grand Mosque

Closer home, this is something you can pursue as a hobby.  Fevicryl’s Hobby Ideas has a started kit containing mosaics, a board to stick on and a glue medium. Mosaics have the inherent quality to bring color into a room. The piece of art need not be very big but it can still transform and bring freshness to a boring room. Create your own pattern with the kit and see how it goes. Once you are familiar, set yourself free and try your hands on wide range of things from the pots in your garden to trays in the kitchen and photo frames. Leaving you with some images for inspiration:

On a pot

Isn't this funky?

Mirror with jewelery

This one’s a mirror with a lot of detailing using jewelery, beads, and tiny tiles. The creator runs an etsy shop that has more of his breathtaking pieces I simply loved. Most importantly, I think they are reasonably priced. With a little effort and by giving up  some napping time, maybe you can come up with something extraordinary like this.

Image credit:

The Abu Dhabi Grand Mosque  - Gulf News / Financial Times

Pot - Facebook

Shoe - Flickr

Mirror - Flickr

Any regular viewers of Vir Sanghvi’s Custom Made series on NDTV Good Times here? I happened to see the last five minutes of a episode on Friday night and liked the custom made candles on display. But, missed getting the name of the designer.

Anyways, I spotted an elegant range of scented candles on Facebook called Illuminati Candles that I wish to share here today. According to its creator Lauren Paxton, these are gel scented candles with an average burning time of 9 hours.

This one left me starry-eyed

With blue beads

Dolphins

I think it’s an idea worth trying out if you have the gel candle making kit. The hobby ideas kit won’t work because it’s not transparent.  With fancy assorted glass containers and different colorful objects used for suspension, you can have your own range of scented candles for a party.

Images:

Lauren Paxton on FB

I sincerely believe some of the best talent in this country lies hidden in the rural parts - away from the world because of minimal marketing and almost zero online presence. Treasures like intricate terracotta pottery, blue and white ceramics, large wood carvings or paintings on silk are sold at exorbitant prices in famous handicraft shops such as Poompuhar in Tamil Nadu or Cauvery in Bangalore. One thing typical of these folks is they are content with what they create, at the price they sell totally oblivious of how much money their creations make in the cities. So, it’s a pleasant surprise when I come across someone business savvy enough to at least make an attempt to reach out to the world by hiring a basic web designer to let us know they exist. And, that helps. I know there are many companies in the Western belt (primarily Rajasthan) who make a killing because they export in bulk. That’s organized business for them. I’m talking more about the talented, unorganized ones all around the country who have a hard time making a living.

I spotted these terracotta candle stands from RM Terracotta and was impressed by his product line. I called up the gentleman for a price list.  Though he has an e-mail address listed on the website, he insisted on sending the price list by speed post.  Never mind, I loved what I saw and had to share it..so here you go.  Yea, I have a weakness for anything pottery, ceramics … bright ones at that.

Candle Stands

Wall Hanging Vases

Look at the detailing in these wall hanging pots.. it’s more folksy. I’m not sure if he customizes for you but it would be nice to create a entire scene around the pot - like Worli art.

Candle Stands

Some more cute li’l candle stands.

Image Courtesy:

RM Teracotta

Hope you had a great weekend. With family visiting us, it was  an extended one for us and I had the opportunity to visit a few home stores as well.  The sale at Home Town is worth checking out for ideas though they are at least 60% over priced.

Some of the readers of this blog have sent in design queries that I’ll be answering this week. Please feel free to pitch in your suggestions.

The first one in this series is “Should I buy ready made curtains or get them stitched? If stitched, why?” A superficially simple question, but interesting to answer.

A few factors that will help you go the ready made or the stitched way:

Apartment/house: One vital information that’s missing in the question is if it’s an apartment or a house.  If it’s a house, the chances of getting a ready made curtain are rather bleak unless the windows and doors are of a standard size. I recently visiting a house where the windows were 30 feet tall. Seriously. The windows in the living room ran across the height of the ground floor and first floor.  And, I don’t think you get ready made curtains for this dimension.

If you are an apartment dweller with limited money and time,  then readymade ones will suit you better.

Choice and color of fabric: The choice is endless when you get them stitched. Earlier, one’s choice of fabric was limited to cotton, but now curtains in synthetic/silk are available in most general home stores including Lifestyle, Fabindia, Home Stop, Home Town, and @ Home. And, don’t forget the numerous exclusive furnishing stores such as Linen n Drapes, Drapes Avenue or Just Linen (all these stores are in Bangalore).

Readymade curtains in any shop are very limited and may not suit the decor of your room.  It would be a tough task to find one with matching or contrasting colors for the wall paint or something that complements the furniture in the room.

Styling: The styling of ready made curtains is standard - either pleated or those big metal rings currently in vogue.

Price: Sheer curtains start at Rs.140 per metre. You have fabric starting from Rs. 150 per meter going up to as much as one can imagine. The stitching charges depend on the style. For pleats, it is around Rs. 5 per meter and for rings with support, it’s around Rs. 6.5 per meter. Again, the rates may vary from city to city.

In short, you can have the curtains that suit your walls and furniture by getting them stitched. You also have the option of mixing two fabrics for a single curtain (a plain top with a printed bottom) and such - just get creative and have fun.  Stitching is made easy as most shops have in-house tailors who take the measurement at your house and deliver. Of course, the only downside is the waiting time of a week otherwise it’s the way to go.

I’m back with the second part of our 3-part series on value-picks from UAE’s home decor stores during this year’s Dubai Shopping Festival.The malls across the Emirates is a shoppers paradise. Amongst the notable ones are the individual shops in Mall of the Emirates, Ibn Batuta Mall, Century Plaza in Jumeirah, Homes r Us in the Mazaya Center, and Mercato.

Unlike the first part, this edition will feature will designer brands stocked in the souqs.  Ready to join me for this visual treat?

When I think of a quirky and retro range, Artikel comes to mind. The decade-old New Zealand-based company has been coming out with an exclusive collection of furniture and accessories that are stylish and intelligent. Once you see the vintage styled product line, I’m sure you’ll agree how cool they are.

Chess Candles

Home candle makers: Any ideas on how to get the moulds for these chess pieces?

Table Mats from Artikel

Can make for some interesting conversation at the dining table? Sights to see, memories of travels, countries to go, and much more.

Banana Bowl

And then, there’s the banana bowl. Honestly, isn’t it spooky? Artikel is in Mall of the Emirates.

Embossed Tumbler

This embossed tumbler is from Genevieve Lethu, a France-based international product company specializing in tableware, kitchen equipment and cookware. With stores all around the world, they retail through Mercato in the Emirates.

Photo Courtesy:

Artikel

Genevieve Lethu

A wedding anniversary, a birthday, and the day for professing love world wide - all fall in the month of February. In other words, the house is smelling fresh of flowers and bouquets all round the month.

My husband used to be once called a ‘florist’ dearly by friends for the amount of money he spent (umm, invested!) in buying flowers. I’m not fond of red roses, so they never find a place in our flower arrangements. Rajnigandha is a personal favorite. Yesterday was Valentine’s Day and much to my surprise, this year, my husband walked in with a huge bouquet containing a dozen Rajnigandha sticks nestled in pink and white roses held together by lavenders.

How do you forgive/forget and bury a argument? Flowers have always done the trick for me; they are also a cheap and instant way of decorating and bringing cheer into a home. As the bouquet was huge, I split into two today and filled the vases.

Rajnigandha

Rajnigandha sits atop the center table in a beautiful glass vase.

Roses in a copper vessel

Roses

While the roses are in a new copper vessel. I picked up this copper vessel (usually used for last rites in the South or for drinking water) from a large stainless steel retail store called Ratna Stores in Trichy for Rs.110. I’m into thrift decoration these days - in tune with the times. If you’d agree, most magazines last year, screamed of headlines such as decorating on a budget or how not to let recession get in the way of doing up your home.

I add a little sugar to the water and change the water every day. This way it lasts for 4 days. How was your Valentine’s Day? What’s your trick for making fresh flowers last longer?

Painting a house can be a nightmare. Strong odor, head ache, dust, throat infection are some of the things we associate with painting the interiors of a home. It’s one of those things we like to postpone as much as we can for the sheer hard work involved. In India, though, it is a relatively easy job as one contracts the entire scraping-painting-cleaning process.

My perception of painting changed dramatically last month when we got my parents’ 1350-sq-ft apartment painted while living in it.  The ceiling and walls were done up in new colors and the house got a new look in two days. Apart from the discomfort due to scattered furniture and restricted movement inside the house, it was a pleasant experience. Thanks to the odorless emulsion range from Asian Paints.

Our contractor suggested we go with Royale Luxury Emulsion as it is odorless and gives a satin finish. I’m glad we took his advice. Royale Emulsion is at least 30% costlier but it is money well spent. The shine and silky finish is evident. What appealed the most to me was that it is water-based. In simple terms, you can thin the paint with water and need not use a thinner that most oil-based paints require. Since it’s not oil-based, cleaning is easy too and the floors don’t get clumsy.  All you need is a piece of wet cloth to remove the stray paint. The emulsion for the doors and windows is also water-based.

The new look  (excuse the clutter) :

Dining Room

This shade is called Mango Mood. As it’s water-based, you don’t have a wide choice of colors to choose from. Royale Emulsion is applied using a brush instead of a roller to get that satin finish. If you’re game, get a liter of paint and re-do your study. It will be a fun weekend project.

I’m back in action after a month-long hiatus. So you can expect a string of posts on Dress Your Home over the next few days. It was a packed month with shopping, home decoration/renovation for my brother’s wedding, and more shopping.

One of the first posts I’d like to do is a reminiscence of the wonderful artifacts one sees at the home decor stores in the Middle East. Every time my parents come visiting, they bring a treasure of knick-knacks to adorn the home.

The Dubai Shopping Festival 2010 is on currently. The month-long shopping extravaganza which began on Jan 28 will end on Feb 28. In a three-part series, I’ll list some of the stores you can stop by if you’re there.

PAN Home Furnishings at the Ibn Battuta Mall

Glass Vase

Don’t forget to check out the table and floor lamps collection. Table lamps are anywhere between 30 and 50% cheaper than what is available in India. Sure, transporting them back can be a hassle so travel light from here with enough empty bags.

Sia - Home Fashion

Candle Votives from Sia Home

Flower Vase from Sia Home

House of Brahthi

Every piece of furniture in the store is a classic.

Antique Blue and Gold Leaf arm chair

I loved this rust green mirror with intricate metal carvings. Price is available only on request, so it definitely doesn’t come cheap

Mirror

And finally, The Warehouse store at Jumeirah Plaza.

Link Courtesy:

Furniture and Mirror