There's nothing more appealing than a home put together with a careful eye for antiques, beautiful finds, items from one's past, as well as a shock element courtesy some contemporary furniture. Pune-based Sridharan and Vidya's home is one such. Housed in an apartment, the limited space does nothing to dampen the couple's creativity.The Sridharans' hail from Chennai, and their home carries a lot of design elements from the South.
The drawing room with its baitak, swing, antique wall pieces, while contemporary sofas provide the "shock" element
A close up of the living room roof. It is adorned with wooden rafters.Such a clever way to get the old world charm into amodern home! Lights are concealed in the bossing.
The Sridharans' lovely antique mirror corner. The wall around the mirror is exclusively dedicated to Krishna
The traditional South Indian swing in the drawing room has a colorful runner on it. A Ravi Varma painting and a beautiful brass pot arrangement add to the charm of this corner.
The Ganapathy in the niche is made of Orissa sand stone and weighs about 70-80 kgs. The Baitak converted from an antique rose wood cradle belongedto Vidya as a baby (wow!). The three Rajasthani musicians, the cushions and the two old storage boxes are quaint occupants of the baitak.
The puja room has a teak wood door with carvings and a faux brick finish at the top.The passage separating the bedrooms of the apartment (picture below) is another interesting corner. While the
annapakshi lamp is quite a common possession these days, this particular one (next to an "elephant" stool) was picked up by Vidya at an antique store in Trivandrum. This lamp is very intricate, and the detailing of the carvings on it (not visible in the picture, though) is quite exquisite.
This is a beautiful focal point in the passage between the bedrooms. The red paint enhances the beauty of the paintings, while the rafters and door heads provide an element of old world charm. The Annapakhi lamp takes center stage, next to the "elephant " stool.And finally, the balcony adjoining the living room, is quite a green haven. Like the rest of the home, it is not without its share of unusual furniture.
The wooden sitting piece with a bamboo mesh on it, was picked up from a
friend who was relocating, and had no use for it. I love the pretty red tiles, and
the green contrast provided by the plants. Vidya grew up in an old colonial-style home in Chennai, and attributes her tastes to this. Vidya is an artist, and her Tanjore paintings (another South Indian art) adorn her home, and blend into the decor quite well. She is an avid collector of Ravi Varma paintings, most of which she has picked up from an art gallery in Trivandrum.
Well, it takes courage to carry off several decor styles, and blend them together in one room, and the Sridharans' seemed to have achieved this quite effortlessly.
This is where Prof Ranjan and his team stepped in and put this unique bamboo to really good use in the form of furniture. 40 craftsmen and women from the community were trained to build new products designed by the NID, in the hope to catalyze further action in collaboration with industry and Government participation.
The Art of gifting!
Elephant and Lotus inspired design
Popular Bhangra inspired design
Parrot inspired design
Ever green Bollywood inspired design
The Holy Cow inspired design
The drawing room with its baitak, swing, antique wall pieces, 
A close up of the living room roof. It is adorned with wooden rafters.
The Sridharans' lovely antique mirror corner. The wall 
The traditional South Indian swing in the drawing room has a colorful 
The Ganapathy in the niche is made of Orissa sand stone and weighs about 70-80 kgs. The Baitak converted from an antique rose wood cradle belongedto Vidya as a baby (wow!). The three Rajasthani musicians, the cushions and the two old storage boxes are quaint occupants of the baitak.
The puja room has a teak wood door with carvings and a faux brick finish at the top.
This is a beautiful focal point in the passage between the bedrooms. The red paint enhances the beauty of the paintings, while the rafters and door heads provide an element of old world charm. The Annapakhi lamp takes center stage, next to the "elephant " stool.
The wooden sitting piece with a bamboo mesh on it, was picked up from a
Tamrus: Pickle and chutney holder, inspired by the shape of tamarind
FONT: Wine rack inspired by the English fonts
Batta: Salt n Pepper Shaker inspired by the obsolete weighing blocks
Switch Me: Salt and pepper shaker, switch between them with the press of a button
Matchlight: To ignite the perfect ambiance!
Top row: Silk Cushions with silver plate centerpieces, Vibrant & unique festival
Clockwise: Decorative enamel hand painted watering cans,antiques in an antique cupboard, an antique decorative chest, carpets and decorative boxes.
Top row: A birdcage made from bamboo, Hand painted Cocowood (Southern Philippines), lamps.
It’s amazing how unwanted things can get transformed into beautiful objects of desire when they land up in creative hands. Black Smoke, a furniture store located in Bandra, Mumbai retails furniture made of railway sleeper wood. The coarse, knotty wooden planks that have been used as a base for railway tracks for years get transformed into aesthetic décor objects and rustic pieces of furniture. The weathered and rugged look of the wood gives it a vintage appeal making it a hot favorite among the designers. Take a look at some of their collection.
Wine holders - aren't they appealing?
Sofa~I love the color combination here
Coffee Table~for your morning cuppa
Stool~For a tete-a-tete
He says, "These show up with alarming regularity in my work. But I don't subscribe to any particular formal style or language, and my work in bamboo looks very different from my work in metal."
