Privcap - Outlook 2013: Start-ups in NYC

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Kutchchy Ethos

The charms of Kutch are embedded into its art. Against the backdrop of the white crystal deserts and the yellow grasslands, the Kutchchy people stride in grace with their bold colourful embroideries. We can see this in their clothes, over their walls, on their beds...almost any place around. Overall a fantastic mishmash!

There are two distinct forms of art which are typically seen in the interiors of Kutch - Lippan Art and Kutchy 'Bharat' meaning embroidery.

A Gleaming Amalgamation!

Among the many Jat communities in India, Kutchchy Jats are nomadic, separated from their fellow families in Pakistan. They rear cattle, breed camels and indulge in exceptional artwork. Through some family connections, we had a good chance to meet a Jat family deep into the Dhodro village. When we entered their courtyard, we noticed a cluster of round mud houses painted white with bright carved doors. They had thatched roofs and looked like the ones in fairy tales. We later learnt that all mud houses, commonly known as 'Bhungas' belonged to one extended family and each sub family had its own 'Bhunga'. Wow...we were impressed because as soon as we entered one, it felt cool as if entering an air conditioning room. Not only that, it glistened with magnificent patterns and murals with mirrors embedded in them. The whole feeling of a warm welcome, the unruffled ambiance, freshness and the gorgeousness of these homes touched my heart. I couldn't help writing about it.

While trying to apprehend so much about how beautiful the 'Bhungas' are, I noticed how neatly everything was aligned and arranged. Looking at my baffled face the 'sarpanch' or the village head explained that murals on the wall are called Lippan. They make simple patterns with a generous use of mirrors and earthy colours. Usually mixture of donkey or camel dung and clay is used to make Lippan murals. It is hard to believe that donkey or camel dung can create such alluring work.

Thread and Countless Mirrors All over Kutch, we saw a spectrum of colours. Locals wear bright colours so that they can be spotted easily in the wide deserts. They have several types of embroideries like Kambari, Niran, Kherk belonging to different tribes in the region, etc. These patterns are known to be the most advanced and intricate. A lot of them indulge in skirt work and coverlets.

Typically, men set out with cattle while women embroider. These ladies prepare for tocher for their little girls. One such exclusive style of needlework that caught my eye was distinct from the rest. Apparently, it is known to be from Sind in Pakistan. There were rugs folded neatly which had small triangular pieces of coloured cloth stitched on the outer side with the actual embroidery being at the centre. This resulted in small and detached design from the interlaced woven fabric that stretched above the surface of the base cloth. I know it may be difficult to visualize what I just wrote but perhaps a picture might do some justice to my explanation.

I wondered how it must feel to have your entire life revolving around art. Its almost like you live, breathe, create and worship such a gift. I observed how women gossiped, took care of their children who chased goats while their hands moved swiftly over their needlework. Such incredible and perfected work was a boon! Hail to Kutch...inspiration unlimited!

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Home of Eternal Triangles

High ceiling, open terrace and airy was how I would call this home. As much as fresh it was, it needed to be spiced up. Breaking walls, opening windows and refurbishing furniture is what I thought about when I saw it first. A long stretch of space had to accommodate living and dining area. The living area opened into the dining and then the terrace. At one glance, it seemed like a room which didn't quite end soon! The trio that lives here demanded openness and simplicity. A room full of furniture was not their style. I wondered how and where I should get started. The kitchen and dining area needed to be attended to first by breaking the mid-section wall. This would make more space and make the kitchen more accessible to the dining area. So there went down the 10” thick wall and the house looked bigger already.

Now I had a long wide space to work with. The family wanted a low seating in their dining area since they like sitting low and enjoy their meals. At the same time, they wanted a flexible dining table which could accommodate 10 people and yet be stored away only when 3 of them had their meals. So, we decided to make a huge dining table which could be detached into 6 different pieces. So for everyday meals, the family uses 2 tables and stacks the remaining. All 6 are used when they have company. So the 6 piece dining table yet needed tinge of unusual grace. Using browns didn't seem like fun. So we picked up the theme of eternal triangles and painted them on 2 tables. Duplicated the same on the opening of the kitchen entrance. This area looked charming as ever!

The dining had a futile cabinet pushed into the wall. We carved out a notch as per our requirement and sealed the rest. I wondered what I could do here since I wanted this place to look unique. This family had abundant old copper and brass urns and tins. They were keen on getting rid of them since storage was becoming difficult. I was increasingly happy to see them and asked if I could use them which meant drilling holes and converting them into lamps. So the urns became lights which hung gracefully with copper chains and got adorned by traditional brass bells. A mellow light inside them looked dazzling and romantic.

The dining area was not yet done. In the excitement of all these beautiful embellishments, I pleaded them to dig out more things which they didn't remember they had. Then slowly more and more antiques surfaced. They had forgotten most of it and almost did not believe what they inherited. So the junk according to them became a huge part of their décor. I arranged shelves abstractly and set all the antiques perfectly on these platforms completing the look of the dining area. We also converted a water container and a traditional water heater into side tables which became a part of this room. As far as I think, this is the best part in the house!

I could not neglect the living space which of course was the first place when you entered the house. Again, the family was ready to replace their bulky sofa with something trendier. It took me a while to convince them about retaining this piece because it was made with the finest teak wood which is impossible to procure today. I promised them to refurbish it so that they don’t get bored with it anymore. Later after some work was done on it, we realized we have saved a lot of wood from the remains on the sofa. The best part was, this wood was used in every bit of the furniture that was made new, like the coffee table and divider. Let me explain, this part of the living space needed the motifs of the eternal triangles to balance the dining area since it was the same extended room. We built a pretty coffee table with the wood salvaged from the hand rest of the sofas. The piece turned out to be remarkably pretty and took the attention of the living space.

The rest of the living room got converted into a simple space. An old wall cabinet became new where we displayed a beautiful sculpture of Buddha. We made a settee to make the place look cozy and keeping in mind that the family enjoys sitting low. A slider was made into the settee so that 2 people could sleep there if need be. The sofas got compact and prettier. We also converted the 2 chairs of the sofa set into stools with lower back support. This really changed the look of the living room. Two warm table lamps were placed on each side of the television set. The whole place looked cozy and welcoming.

The family wanted segregation between the dining and living space yet I had to maintain the openness. So I decided to make a floating divider between the two. We cut rounded quadrangles and squares and secured them into each other which hung from the ceiling. Even the bar on which we hung the divider was salvaged from the sofa! Every bit of the remains of the sofa made its way through various things in the house.

Lastly, I had to give my last bit of finishing touches. These came in by attending to the walls of the living space. So, with our remaining wood we decided to glue it, paint it and make it into something cool and special which would suit this space perfectly. Keeping the theme of triangles and quadrangles with fresh blue and tomato red toning it down with whites and browns, we completed this work just in time for the arrival of the Ganesh festival.

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Lively-wood & Bhoole Bisre @ F.A.T Bazaar @ Malaka Spice!

Second time this month! Its been super busy yet I thought I should stop by my blog and announce something very cool! Lively-wood is participating in the F.A.T Bazaar @ Malaka Spice in Koregaon Park from Oct 5th-7th! For peek-a-boos, check some pictures below -

Don't forget to log on to Facebook! http://www.facebook.com/malakaspice And yeah, how could I forget this?? Me & a buunch of my friends called Aditi & Tanu have started something new...a venture we have all dreamt off! I officially introduce Bhoole Bisre...The Re-Store Reviving simplicity from the past and flouring & using it into new lifestyle is how we see ourselves. Check us out on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/BhooleBisre As usual, pictures below!

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The Treasure is all Mine! :)

Do I sound greedy? Naah naah...its not the greed. It is a feeling just like for a sailor finding treasure on a lone island...have you ever felt like that?

Wandering around the city sometimes for work or while just walking along the road could be very beneficial. It has been for me a number of times. This month I decided to dig out my treasure and recollect every piece I picked up all along my way...

In Pune, we have this wonderful yet crowded place where you get a lot of thrifty stuff. Or let me make it simple, the name says it all, "Joona Bazaar", meaning sale of old stuff! Old is gold, right? So Bipin & I decided to go and see if that is true.

We walked through the stuffy lanes and loud vendors just hoping to come across some interesting old stuff. We saw people selling tarps and coins, some discounted bags, old furniture, etc. We decided to go a bit deeper into the narrow lanes where people chewed tobacco, some sipped tea and some chatted in clusters. Thats when we spotted something spectacular and unique!. A 55 kg brass trunk with stunning embellishments found a 100 years ago...and after a small research on this, I figured no such piece has been created in the recent 75 years! And there was no way we were going to leave it behind! We negotiated a good price and though it was still on the higher side, we bought it.





In the same place some other time, with my friend Aditi, we walked through the crowded dusty lanes. This time a little girl of about 10 years was selling some smaller antiques. She didn't have more than 20 pieces of unique trinkets in brass. I bought a strange retro-rustic water container with a face of a cow as its spout. It was pretty and perfect for my living room! Further, I found a pair of intricate brass shot glasses with Meenakari work. Pieces of art I should say! Bipin was in for a surprise that day and it adds to our collection of shot glasses.





I know...you might be a bit bored of my stories of Joona Bazaar, but believe me...it is the only place I like to shop! My next stop was in Hubli...no no, don't worry, I didn't go there to see antiques, but to meet a very dear friend Siddharth. Since he'd shifted to Hubli, we decided to travel there to see him. In the heart of the city is his beautiful home with a fortune of antiques, I guess a collection from his ancestral times. Thats when I took some pictures of chairs which they use daily. I thought, how lucky! :) Loved them and wanted to bring them all to Pune!



Then came an awesome coincidence! My mother was walking past a shop where they basically sell everything from second hand furniture to newspapers and even coconuts. She spotted a fine-looking old teak wood cupboard. It was bulky yet simple and carved aesthetically! She called me right away, paid the guy to reserve it and asked me to come along immediately. I bought it, refurbished and use it as a filing cabinet...Thanks to my mother, its at home now!





A friends's friends called me one day and suggested me to stop by his home which was going to be demolished soon. He wanted to get rid of his antiques which I found very weird but nevertheless, I had a chance to buy them off him. I picked up a long churner which was traditionally used by women to whip buttermilk. These women stood tall and churned a huge pot of buttermilk which today we buy in tetrapacks. :) Whether I whip it myself or not, I do have an ancient churner at home! :)





The same friend also had just one window grill made with beautiful Sagwan or teak wood. Gorgeous as it was, I picked it up and transformed it to a blue chandelier I have in my studio!



Another of my very exclusive treasure is the "Taala" or a huge, heavy, ornate lock! It has such beautifully carved keys which work so fabulously. I was off to coastal Karnataka to a small town called Gokarna for my cousin Sonals wedding. Gokarna is known for its deep blue sea, an ancient temple of Shiva and a lane full of deity accessory shopping! In our spare time, while the bride was dressing up, we wandered around the city, one store had this 'taala' hung on a cabinet. We asked him if he could sell it to us and he replied, "why not?" :)



So many people, experiences and places are involved in my collection of these aged treasures...love them and I hope this collection adds on..

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The 3 C's I call them - Cushy, Comfortable & Cozy!

What makes living rooms, bedrooms or any other room comfortable? Have you ever thought how boring a sofa could be in dull beige or too bright a red or simply a gaudy print? Well I have seen such lifeless rooms! When I see such places, I feel why could they not make it a little better...that too without any effort! Let me not increase your anticipation, I was simply talking about those things which dress up the sofas or beds or even the floors. Those cushy things which bring comfort and warmth! Pillows & upholstery..of all types and shapes!

This time I won't be blabbering much since a lot of you know how to use them. Not much explanation goes behind how and what to really do! So here is a little post with more pictures and less talk! :)

The Living Comfort

Home Sweet Home
I keep changing my pillows, cushions and my upholstery from time to time! This time red ruled in my living space!





Pretty Cozy & Inviting
My little friend Meghna has a home in the middle of the fields and yet in the city. When I designed her home, it was all about maintaining the freshness and prettiness of her style! The frilly pillows did their bit!




Bold & Bright
Though orange is not a colour I would use much on upholstery, I quite like this place. It is a home of an acquaintance who believes orange is a spice of life.



My Travel Diaries

Reflection of Goa
The pastel blue, fresh white sofa and the splash of bright bold pillows looked smashing in one of the beach side hotels in Goa! Loved it!



Zanzibari Treasures
My trip to Africa and into the island of Zanzibar, was like bringing back treasure of good memories, and so much inspiration t0 make new things. This bench with batik upholstery looked bright and gorgeous! How simple is that?



Mosaic of Turkey
Along with the Turkish mosaic, comes rich colours of the pillows with its coziness! I loved this lobby in our hotel in Istanbul!



Paradise they call it - Hawai'i
This is long time back when days were different from now. The Big Island as it is called where the active Volcanoes live came this traditional bed throw and patchwork! It resembles the Applique work from the state of Gujarat.



Bedrooms that make a difference!

The Dance Galore
My dancer friend and her beautiful bedroom, rich with colour and traditional fabric enhanced it even more. A tint of blue, yellow and red pillows got their way along the headboard of her white linen sheet!



Green that pleases
A Bedroom with an ease of green helps you relax. Here the bed is been embellished with only 3 pillows to break the repetitiveness of the greens to make it a bit chirpy.



Musing Clicks

Sometimes there isn't much of a reason to click! Bright colours, bold prints, catchy stuff makes you snap pictures! So..here are some!







Aha..so did the cushy stuff change the perception of boring sofas and beds? Hope it has..and hope to see that change in yours!

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