Category: REVIEW

Property Review: NVT Life Square

I visited NVT Life Square, a villa project by NVT Quality Lifestyle Pvt. Ltd., this past weekend. It’s a project I’ve been meaning to see in person for long. The project has been in the limelight for receiving multiple awards as the most premium villa property, so it piqued my interest. This post is an objective review of the property from two perspectives: plan and location. I’ll not be getting into approval details, pricing etc. NVT Life Square is a villa project located about a Km off Four Points Sheraton, on the Whitefield Main Road. Project Details: Area: 5 acres No. of units: 65 villas Type: 4 BHK Combination of twin/row houses and villas Built up area: 3565 sq. ft on a plot area of…

REVIEW

These Two Design Elements Are Your Secrets to a Timeless Home

The theme for World Interiors Day (IFI WID) 2018 is “Design Without Borders”. IFI WID is an annual event hosted by The International Federation of Interior Architects/Designers May every year. In IFI’s words, “Borders may provide structure, but they do not define us. Borders and boundaries play an important role in determining how we understand the world and our place within it. Literal and symbolic borders guide our thoughts and inform our actions.” WHAT “DESIGN WITHOUT BORDERS” MEANS TO ME: The concept “Design Without Borders” requires applause as the whole idea is to encourage creative professionals transcend barriers that limit their thought and execution. For me, it means all of these things: — experiment with newer materials that are less harsh on the ecosystem like the…

REVIEW

No AC, No Problem. This is All You Need to Stay Cool This Summer.

I woke up in the wee hours this morning to the distant wailing of a baby. The clock read 4:23 a.m. The subconscious mind told the body to go back to sleep for another hour when the alarm was set to go off. The peace didn’t long last before I woke up again to a clearly uncomfortable baby. I pulled myself out of bed. A few hours later, my new neighbor walked in a sleep-deprived, disheveled avatar. She wondered if we had an air cooler to spare. You see, they moved in a few days back and were unprepared for this heat onslaught. I wasn’t surprised. After all, we went through a similar ordeal only two years ago. The winter-to-summer shift happens as if it were at the flip of…

LIFESTYLE

8 Clever Cleaning Products You Can Buy Online Now

This post is born out of my cleaning regimen. I spent the first half of this past Saturday cleaning part of the house: this included dusting, washing, squeegee-ing, and wiping down with clean microfiber cloth ceiling-to-floor glass windows, throwing out expired items from the refrigerator and kitchen pantry, and wiping down bathroom counters. I still have so many items to cross off the list like the monthly organizing of wardrobes, cleaning the ceiling fan, scrubbing kitchen floor..well, the list goes on. Followed by cooking an elaborate three-course lunch. And boy, was it exhausting! I am sure if you are as obsessed about cleaning, you will relate to me. Sometimes, I feel having the right tools for the right job makes it a lot easier- like your…

REVIEW

Riva Carpets

As soft as a feather, As smooth as a glider, As warm as the sun, As firm as a rock, As pleasant as smile, As beautiful as you. Inspired and adapted from Lenka’s Everything at once – one of my all time favorites. These words also describe this beauty that arrived in the mail today. Our home is a slowly evolving one with each piece lovingly added over time. That way there is always something to cherish and look forward to; it keeps the freshness intact. As much as an online person I am, when it comes to certain things such as rugs, comforters, and bed sheets, I prefer the old-fashioned see-touch-feel-and buy way. But, this 4″ by 6″ carpet took me by surprise; neither…

LIFESTYLE

Siemens Dishwasher Review: Is it useful for Indian dishes?

A review of Siemens dishwasher and if it is useful for Indian dishes and kadais

LIFESTYLE

Furdo: Review

Editor’s Note: ** Updated in 2019 for relevancy** I have been reviewing every service provider that we have worked with over the course of moving into our new home. This one has been long pending. Circa 2015. One lazy Sunday afternoon in July. Someone sent me the link to Furdo. First reactions: the concept was novel; the theme names were catchy; designs interesting, and cost reasonable. Furdo Pricing and When did I avail their service? July 2015: One thing led to another, we decided on the theme and signed up for their design at a cost of Rs.11,400 including service tax by that evening. The team got in touch with us over the next couple of days, asked a few questions to formulate our expectations and understand…

PRODUCTS

Oasis Tiles: What Makes This Brand So Popular?

In this post, I talk about how to choose the right kind of floor and wall tiles for your home, the different types of tiles available in the market, and what makes one a best choice for every room. I use Oasis tiles as an example here to illustrate the right choice. One of the often asked questions/email queries from the readers of the blog is on tiles. You may wonder why a common topic such as tiles would pique the interest of so many people. Often, the seemingly simple ones are the ones that take up the most time when you are building a home. The questions I get range from the obvious such as how to choose tiles for a bathroom to how much…

FURNITURE

Creating a statement piece of furniture with Asian Paints’ Wood Tech Studio

We finally moved into the new house. It’s been two weeks. This was the first weekend in months when we had some time (a few hours) on our hands with nothing to do. That was a strange feeling. After you’ve been running around tirelessly for months for everything from hinges and laminates to painting and furniture, there is a sudden vacuum. Oh, we are not all done. There are still many, many pending items to be crossed off from the list. But, this momentary break is essential. In the meantime, Asian Paints got me excited about something I have been wanting to do for a while. One of my long pending projects has been to revamp a TV cabinet to give it a new look.…

REVIEW

Goldilocks: the classic fairy tale retold

“If you want your children to be intelligent, read them fairy tales. If you want them to be more intelligent, read them more fairy tales.” – Albert Einstein The title of the post is intriguing, isn’t it? What do you reckon this is about? Take a guess. Of course, it’s a story with a twist. Fairy tale to modern day. One wonderful thing about becoming a parent is you get an opportunity to relive your childhood with your child; see the world through their eyes; believe in Cinderella and Rapunzel as you read to them every night; conclude that dragons exist and can be eaten, and that every story begins with once upon a time and has a happy ending where they lived happily ever after. Reading to my son every night…