What do you do when something catches your attention? I’d blog about it, how about you? Play Clan is not new to me but it resurfaced on my radar again this Saturday night while flipping through the Aug. issue of Good Homes magazine and during a rendezvous with a time waster called FB. Play Clan passes all the tests that a modern design lover looks for. Kitschy. Tick. Eye-catching design. Tick. Tickles your funny bone. Tick. Shop online. Tick. Affordable. Maybe. A few of my favorite picks. I’m going to be honest here when I say that I L.O.V.E.D the design of events and announcements on their FB page much more than their products. I mean who wouldn’t love these? It’s all about perspective – who gives shit and who takes shit? Disclaimer: This is not a sponsored post and I cannot vouch for the quality of the products or…
Sometimes unplanned weekends are all the more fun. Just on a whim, when I go to know last Wednesday that Monday was a holiday for my son, we decided to go to Hyderabad. Booked tickets on the bus, made reservations at a hotel at a great location, packed lightly on Friday evening and off we went on a two day holiday. Recipe for a great weekend: one day of exploring the city and one day of catching up with friends you haven’t met in years.
It’s been over 25 years since I last went to Hyderabad and this was a first personal trip for my husband and son. The highlight of the trip was that it coincided with the end of Ramadan and festivities were on to celebrate Eid. I’ve never seen Bangalore celebrate Eid on such a large scale. After a while, it felt little awkward as if something was amiss if I didn’t see a “Irani Haleem” sign board every 50 meters. There were a few streets that completely took us by surprise – a street full of paint stores, one just for wedding invitations, another for hardware and electrical stores and yet another for just flowers – flowers of all kinds, sizes and colors, and fruits.
There was so much chaos and yet it looked so organized. As we meandered our way through the old city to the Museum, the contrasts of two cultures existing effortlessly side by side was hard not to miss. This is why India is secular: it was along drive from Golconda Fort to the Museum and I dozed for a few minutes. But, while driving through one of the narrow lanes, I woke up startled by the ringing of the temple bells. The temple was flanked by a mosque on one side and a famous haleem outlet on the other. Most of the old houses have not been renovated, at the max, just painted. So those small windows, painted wooden doors secured with a chain iron lock on the top, and STD-ISD-PCO (it’s hard to see these in Bangalore) signs, was a treat to the senses.
Sunday, we met up with old friends and had lunch at Nautanki Gali – which is what this post was supposed to be about. But, I digressed. There’s nothing much I can describe in words about the restaurant other than that it was everything Indian(rural), kitsch, adventure, happiness, colors of life, street food ( spicy chat and sinful chocolate fountain desserts), celebrating life, making memories and indulgence – all packaged into one. Over to pictures:
A view of the hallway leading up to the dining area designed as a thoroughfare with steel balti seating for waiting guests and bright street-like painting on the walls.
A closer look of the art work with some funny captions. Inspiration comes from the graffiti on the streets, back of trucks and auto rickshaws around the country.
It’s Friday and I’m making plans for the weekend. How about you? With no signs of monsoon, how does the idea of spending Sunday afternoon under a big banyan tree, listening to some live soulful music, treating your visual senses to great art and letting your kids play with mud and plant some greens sound? It sounds like a perfect happy Sunday to me. There’s food, pottery, plants, beer, and bbq – in that order for me :) How’s it for you? Image courtesy: Kitsch Mandi Noetic Nirvana by artist “Gautam Nair” Mesmerised by the painting by Gautam Nair. Why not meet the creative minds behind such many more fascinating creations in person? Kitsch Mandi is happening at Palace Grounds this Sunday after 1 p.m. All your favorite green stores will be there like Indo Greens and Green Essence. Renowned artist Shilo Shiv Suleman is conducting a workshop on how…
Do we have any diligent readers (read: obsessively checking Google Reader for new posts) of Apartment Therapy here? If yes, you would know that a good chunk of posts are about restoring or transforming old furniture through painting and replacing the hardware. Images of antique, worn wooden cabinet/dresser/table painted into white or turquoise blue are swimming in my head now.
For me, when it comes to home renovation, there is nothing more satisfying than giving a face lift to old furniture. To discard the old and buy new stuff is easy work, don’t you think? There are a few odd pieces of furniture in every house such as a chair, cabinet, side table that look aged. A polish or a new coat of paint will do them good. I want to get started off with a old cabinet first. It’s about six years old and in good working condition. It has lost its sheen so I’m toying with the idea of retaining its natural finish with a coat of lacquer or doing something radical like painting it in a bold color combination of white-lime green or white-turquoise blue.
I’ve been looking around for ideas and there are quite a few interesting ones that I would like to share.
For a ethnic, Indian theme, bright colors such as fuchsia, red or violet are a good choice to complete the look. However, if you have a monochromatic or minimalistic theme, a single of furniture in a dashing color will look out of place. In the picture below, for instance, Kishani Perera has used a good mix of ethnic elements like hand-carved open book case, painted trunk as center table, cradle-styled chairs, and printed cushions. All the accessories blend well with the bright orange colored walls.