Home is where the inspiration is.

Announcing the winner of the giveaway posted early last month.  Canada based architect and entrepreneur, Liza Skaria's answer  bags her  this limited edition print signed in verso :

A detail of make shift , plastic and canvas tents that house pilgrims at Kumbh city, Allahabad.

On the subject of homes and what they mean to us,  a couple of conversations I have had with friends and readers recently brings me to today's  post..

In which what one surrounds oneself with finds organic and subconscious expression in what one does sometimes.

Its going to be a series of quick collages I posted to a secret Pinterest board recently.  One that a fellow blogger friend the inimitable Archana Srinivas of Rang Decor encouraged me to put together. Archana needs no introduction, but this much has to said, she is a major motivation for mine among a score of other blogs like ours . Read her lovely blog here.

That my  home is an expression of what drives me internally is something I  knew intuitively.  But to realise how much took this little exercise.. 

One morning for me, and an evening for Archana who currently building her nest in Minnesota, USA, many steaming cups of tea and a free wheeling chat about work inspiration and `style' prompted me to look into my work and  and inspirations.

With some thinking I juxtaposed work from the Photo+ series I launched last year against vignettes from my home and work, in collages and came to a realisation...

Like every book read, ever word written, every movie seen, every place traveled what you photograph, and what you curate as an environment around you has a say in who you are and what your inspirations will be. It matters what you say with your home..!

Have  shared the mood-boards I created for Archana with you via these hurriedly put together collages. Do leave me a word if this resonates with you at any level ( of agreement or disagreement both ) at all!

Color studies : in brown and blue.

Launching a  line of art work  ( photo +) that deals with layers of materials and techniques,   has done a few things to me and the way I  approach my photography. It forces me to think accross disciplines. For the first time the image is also a starting point for a larger story. I am learning to see things accros a broad spectrum of things without compartmentalising. 

Images objects and stories come together to make a memory.

In 2008, I curated a small object based exhibition that appropriated household objects from expat Indian homes based in Hongkong ( pictured below). 

The experience of working with a large number of migrant  families and their stories of movement, dislocation and nesting in a foreign country was eye opening. The power of the domestic space in defining identity and  the immediacy of a possesion however small was a revelation.  My fetish for objects and material goes farther back, but this small exhibition encouraged it tremendously.

There was an intense desire on my part at that stage to work with objects and possessions. I started collecting  materials. Letters, postcards, photographs and the like.  

With Photo plus that desire to curate across media has gradually taken shape. There is a long way to go yet.

Late last year it struck me to apply a simlar approach to the blog. Talking homes, decor, interiors and lives still,  yet in different ways and definitely with more engagement with the subject.

I have made small beginings already. Today's post is yet another effort in more involved blogging. 

A series of posts will follow suit.

Today, I pick a color based modboard  for browns and blues. 

A combination of the contrasting elements of the earth and sky creates unearthly poetry..It's chic, contemporary and timeless, all at the same time. Here is a little brown and blue from  all over, other  homes, closets, the Photo+ work table, some of my photography and my own home.

Will come back with more since there is a lot more to say, until then I hope this make sense...

   

Photo credit : Pinterest. Among a lot of  wonderful oriental and Cuban interiors is also an outfit from my favourite designers, Payal Khandwala's previous collections.  A big fan of her fantastic sense of color and a very boho take on cuts and styles. 

A mood board created with an assemblage of color based objects, illustrations and photographs  from my studio and home.

Details from the mood board..

An Arastan shop in shop at Goodearth, Raghuvanshi Mills.

Arastan. The Bangalore base home and artefact label is unfortunately closing down soon. [A post about them was among a long list of to do's which never got done for one reason or the other unfortunately.]

One of Jodhpur's many blue houses. The  old quarter of the city is a symphony of blue and earth. Check out a more detailed post here.

When the dining table is off duty.

Browns and Indigo in the bedroom, plus and minus orange and rust as accent colors.

Hand built pottery in the kitchen.

Photography from Jodhpur livens up a mostly earth canvas of objects.

Finally a few images of a silk cushion I hand embroidered a while back from the archives..

At home and work: studio and home tour, Anek Designs

I had a coloful Diwali in 2013 thanks to the wonderful designer collaboration with Anek Design's wonderful Kanika Bhal (read the story here ). Kanika's ecelectic design sensibility that is a trademark of her line of decor products flows just as easily and copiously into her domestic and work spaces. Posting a few images from around her studio and lovely apartment in Mumbai.

Two words braced on top of a door ledge pretty much sum up her work for me

And here, in a small but dear little studio in Goregaon Mumbai,  Kanika creates her label Anek Designs..

"It is a very functional space. We were lucky to find neat and clean nook right at the edge of a basti" Says Kanika describing her workshop and it's neighbourhood.

I am amazed at the neat organized interiors encountered within..

The small yet  airy and organised space takes me back to anpther space..

 Barely a few hours back , I had sarted the morning at  Kanika's  airy and charming apartment in Malad.

There is hints of Kanika's love for textiles every where in the house. The space brims with color and craft in every corner..

A  humble sweet platter  very cleverly used as a trivet  for serving snacks on the coffee table.

Or a long kalamkari cushion in earth colors on a stark blue sofa.

Kanika's chunky potli neckpeices adorning the top of a cupboard in her study..

A key organizer  at the entrance of her home..

A simple arrangement of objects and fruit  top a dining table.

Shadow puppets hung on a string..

Or a simple yet stunning curtain made out of  colorful scraps of left over fabric..

(I have a good mind of returning to this beauty here in an upcoming post, but more about that later)

Infact colors and weaves are abundant in this home..

And getting back to the workshop, there is piles and stacks of colour and more weave!

In Kanika's signature potli and scrap key chains..

In scraps of kantha materials. ( Kanika has been working with kantha since 2010, and in the time to come, she intends to offer all textile craft traditions from India and a few from abroad.)

In a wide variety of natural textiles Kanika likes to work with..

In the kalamkari range that she launched recently. ( Anek's  kalamkari  based patterns are commissioned from a national award winning weaver  based in Andhra Pradesh)

And last but not the least in a bunch of yummy cushions I splurged on in while a visit to her workshop!

It has been enlightening and inspiring knowing  Kanika. There is much  she will offer via Anek in the time to come, starting with a range of pure silk and woollen products. Do keep an eye on her facebook page.. I  have mine glued too!

Designer Diwali!!

I am in the mood for color. Lots of color.   Fuchsia, orange and turquoise, that's how much color.  Throw in sheeny shiny mirrors and a dose of vintage fashion and the festive is already added to the festive season!
Only this time it comes with a twist. It is among the first of what I am hoping will become designer collaborations.  How to up cycle an old garment you cannot bear to throw away?

Kanika Bhal of Anek designs shows me how ... 

Spring cleaning a while back I came across this funky kurti I was very proud to posses a few years back. Now a bit frayed and a little weathered it has been in retirement for sometime. Only  I could not get myself to give it away.

Looking for ideas to do something with the garment, I  thought of Kanika. A textile designer and entrepreneur who's work I have been in love with since I first saw her inventive work with traditional textiles.

A phone call, a quick trek to her cute little design studio in Andheri, Mumbai  and restless wait!
Until just a few days back, right in time for Diwali,  I receive this package of a kurti transformed as if by magic..

Then snazzy ethnic top ...

Now, fun funky accent pillows!!

The garment has come a long way indeed.

Five pillows, one batua and it does not end here! I have been kept waiting for a surprise which is till in the making ! How much fun can one sqeeze out of a single garment ?

Kanika explains her choices of color and detail, " I picked Rani ( it should be the Indian national colour) as the main colour and added orange and teal to compliment. Rani was present in the original printed kurti as well, so I just picked up on it. I used my signature potlis along with traditional Gujarati triangular trims 

to add detail and an element of fun. I made the cushions in assorted sizes so that they can be used in various settings."

And  here are three ways of glamming up a corner of the house, vintage fashion style then:

Against a neutral crisp white..

Cool boho turquoise love...

  Warm and punchy festive splash..!

The limitless goodness does not stop here. There is also a delightful little pouch made from left over fabric. Set against the warrior princess tray from another powerhouse of talent, Vineeta Nair it makes quite a picture. Non?!

Here are Kanika's  tips  to use when taking on a project like this :

When working with old textiles:

Be sure that the base fabric still has some strength left, else it will tear soon. 

stitch reinforcements may have to be added.

The pieces must be dry clean/ spot clean only to make them last longer.

Its a great way to recycle your favourite pieces so go ahead and raid your closet now!

So there, the hoarder in me is punch drunk at the moment. Do check out Kanika's incredible work  here. Still to come on the blog, a home tour and a  morning spent at Anek design's studio. Until then, please leave your comments and stay with me!!!

1,2,3 Tablescapes, By Pavitra Rajaram

Its that time of the year again. In Mumbai, raucous sound of drums and trussed pandals have heralded the arrival of the Gods a while back.  The noise and gaiety of it all will last well past November.  An invitation to a decor workshop at this juncture may or may not mean too many things  given that so much is available online and offline.. ( Thanks to pinterest,  the world always looks like it's drowning  in picture perfect celebrations any way). Only this one was organized at the flagship store of Goodearth,  in Mumbai, and was going to be a ticket to hear designer and stylist

Pavitra Rajaram.   The time just had to be made!

T he well attended afternoon organized by Essars Learning initiative, Avid Learning had over 55 participants jostling for  pearls of decor wisdom Pavitra generously and very entertainingly  doled  during the course of the three hour workshop.  Turned out even those three were not enough and she had to breeze through her very thoughtfully researched and well put together presentation in order to complete it in time.

What goes into making mood boards, why make them? Colours, what shades? decor trends, table-scapes, entertaining at home an endless list of delicious conundrums.

 Engorged with information and thankful for the tea, participants were treated to three delightful table-scapes laid out with the approaching festive season in mind. Without further ado here are a few pictures from the afternoon.

Watching Pavitra and her team at work was like watching master juggler/ magicians at work as they  put together three entirely different looks together in a matter of minutes.   Although it is hard doing justice to their work with mere pictures, you will do well to open this link  here in another window before you go on with the rest of the post ..! :)

Have a good time table setting good folks, and do come back for lots more to come from  girlabouthome's Diwali post list. Watch this space !!