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an and vintage crafts."To create a colonial style set-up, the

terrace area and the lawn can be en-hanced with marble or stone fountainsand statues. Large sandstone or marblegazebos help to create an outdoor enter-tainment space. The dome of the gazebocan have chandeliers supported with en-graved pillars. A black and white photo-graph of the family history tree can beused as one of the wall treatments and itcan yet become a conversation starter atany party or gathering," Rao suggests.Evoke an exotic vibe inside your homestoo, by using elements and pieces thatspell splendour.

Colour me vintage

Colours have the ability to tell the taleof any home. In this case, it is all aboutwalking through the corridors of timeand bringing back designs that are longlost. Capturing the warmth and charmof colonial interiors can be best done bychoosing the right hues.

For colonial homes, walls don't neces-sarily have to be all white but preferablyof lighter shades - sea tones of pale greenor blue look great against dark wood. Re-flective colours work best for such homes.

"Paints can be neutral tones like off-whites and beige colours, else one can

also play with wallpaper for accent walls.Wall paneling is another way of makinga place look colonial. Add interestingcornice designs to add to the look, youcan even paint cornice with a contrast-ing colour," says Shetty.

To add a bit more brightness to thehome, one can use contrasting patternson some sections of the walls by usingbright blue, orange or coral highlights.

Pretty things

Colonial style furnishings and decorelements such as folding desks, furni-ture made of mahogany, depth of coloursand otherwise contrasts splashed overthe home, give the interiors a certain luxefeeling. The new day colonial style homesare a combination of many sensibilities- the exotic influences meshing into anew- world adventure and old-world ro-mance with British practicality.

Cane furniture, black and white pho-tos from another era, opulent crockery;all make a home into colonial styled in-teriors. "Conventional shutter windowsand curtains are an essential part of thecolonial look. This look is carried in theentire home either in the kitchen, bed-room or living room," says Rao.

Adds Jesrani, "A lot of the local crafts-manship was embraced by the British.They also received a lot of local artisanalgifts such as carved silver and wood orhand-woven textiles like pashmina fromlocal royalty." Decorated with rustic andsome primitive decor elements, a homecan be transformed into a colonial para-dise. As Jain puts it, "If furniture is prose,accessories/curios are poetry. You canlive without them, but then, where's thefun?"

The past can be relived and revived.By using quaint relics, arbitrary en-gravings, symmetrical patterns, vintageupholstery, one can transform the homeinto a colonial abode; one which is sim-ple, yet, stylish.

Are rich bold furnishings and darkcolour tones your style? Go thetraditional route. Do you like styl-ish and decorative design but also wantfunction? Go the modern way. If you'reinto mixing and matching both tradi-tional and modern styles, contemporaryshould fit your taste. With options aplen-ty, it can get quite confusing to choosebetween the different themes. Hence, itis important to distinguish betweenyour stylising options.

Best of both worlds

"I find that the cotemporary designthat we see today is just a derivative oftraditional and modern design elements.For example, if we take something likea central courtyard, which is a promi-nent feature of contemporary design,it is basically an adaptation of the tra-ditional 'aangan'," says Pooja Girish, anarchitecture student.

Sadhana Srinivasan, CEO of a designstudio, says, "There is a vast differencebetween contemporary and traditionaldesigning. Traditional decor is homely,understated and non-jarring. Vibrantcolours are in vogue. Wall colours suchas vibrant orange, yellow, purple andgreen are some of the many colours usedbased on the ancient art of Vaastu Shas-tra. India is a country, full of diversity;so is Indian decor. It is luxurious, at-tractive and quite diverse with rich fab-rics, creative artwork, great accessoriesand solid teak furniture. Motifs of Gods,elephants and peacocks are still used toadd a distinctive Indian feel to the decor.

She adds, "Modern interior design ishallmarked by clean, straight lines and

an uncluttered look. It uses colours suchas neutral tones of grey and brown,blacks and whites in flooring, furnish-ings, lighting fixtures and textiles."

Contemporary gets popular

She also explains the design philoso-phies for either style, saying that tra-ditional decor is calm, orderly and pre-dictable and lacks a sense of chaos andwildness. This is a stark contrast to con-temporary design which is known to beunpredictable.

When it comes to applying either styletoday, V J Srinivasan, managing direc-tor of an interior decor and furnishingscompany, says, "Contemporary style isgaining popularity nowadays. Glossymaterials, glass walls and use of steelin furniture and fittings are becomingthe norm. All these elements closely fol-low what we see in western design."

Availability and modern twist

And what of each design style's avail-ability and economic stance? "There aremore items available for contemporarythan traditional design. Contemporarydecor is more cost-efficient and easierto maintain. However, traditional Indi-an motifs have excellent craftsmanshipbut limited availability and involvesgreater maintenance," says Sadhana.While traditional style gives way for arich, beautifully unique decor, the con-temporary style, which involves mod-ern elements, matches form with func-tion. What you will eventually see incontemporary style nowadays is a de-rivative of the traditional. "Rammedearth and bamboo as materials are get-ting really popular now. These were tra-ditional methods of design. Now theyare enhanced a little to fit the currenttrend," explains Pooja.

The past is always glorious, isn'tit? While we continue to walk up-hill towards a modern future, welove reminiscing the past. The old prac-tices, eras-gone-by, enigmatic lifestyleof people; it's a happy flashback. Colo-nial architecture, decor and styles thatonce dominated most homes, gave theinteriors a sense of richness andpanache.

Antique furniture, wood furnishingsand British designs can transport oneto another milieu from a bygone era.How would it be if you could relive thosetimes, all over again. Giving your homean old-world charm isn't all that im-practical. Here are some suggestions onhow you can go about it.

Past perfect

Everyone would like to surroundthemselves with charm, tradition andluxury. Colonial style homes invariablyspell opulence and class. A home own-er who designs his home with sophis-tication of colour and texture has a de-cidedly eclectic taste for the extraor-dinary.

Manjit Wadhwa, vice president (re-tail) of an interior furnishings com-pany, says, "Colonial style homes de-fine an understated elegance with his-tory and uniqueness through variouscultural and regional influences. Colo-nial styling can be both, rustic and so-phisticated, depending on what youchoose it to be. This styling has a lot ofpersonal touch to it; from hand-carvedfurniture, pastel, elegant, floral, na-ture inspired upholsteries to unclut-tered spaces even with abundance ofornamentation and beautiful colourscaptured in accessories and wallpa-pers."

Lap of luxury

Sit back, relax and time travel. Highquality, state-of-the-art designs, at-tractive accents and impressive de-tailing; vintage style furniture cantransport one back into the colonialworld of elegance. Pale hues and darkfurniture are usually reflective ofBritish colonial style homes. Aesthet-ically, these interior designing choic-es are the ones that give a definitivecharacter to your home.

"If the whole home or room isthemed vintage, one can stick to a par-ticular style - Victorian, art-deco, goth-ic, etc. If it is a modern home, a fewheritage pieces would add character,warmth and heritage. Also, well-cho-sen pieces stand out very well with amodern set-up," says Rajkumar Jain,director of a home furnishings firm.Timeless designs and styles can be usedsporadically or evenly in all corners orrooms of the house.

Raadesh R Shetty, founder and own-er of a custom-design furnishings firm,says, "Hand- picked furniture piecesrepresent the colonial era like a chestof drawers, four-poster beds, rockingchairs, etc. These are the perfect fur-niture choices for doing up a bedroom.Ornate dining tables with carved chairsare a highlight. Use vintage crystalchandeliers over the table to put it alltogether."

Happy feet and fabrics

'Detailing', 'specifications' and'grandeur', the British style homes weredesigned keeping these aspects in mind.In terms of linens, embroidery, colo-nial style influenced homes are simple,yet, have a certain boldness to them.The elements, finishing and intricatework woven into the upholstery de-signs, bedspreads, etc., all make up forinspirational living. These homes arecosy for those who reside in them; thesealso have an aspirational value attachedto them.

Elaborates Preeti Rao, director of aninterior design firm, "In colonial de-signs, the modern appliances such asTVs, music systems or washing ma-chines are replaced with antique andclassical material like self-dial phonesor vintage music systems. Use of can-dle-stands, trays, centre-pieces more-over adds a rustic colonial feel. Thereis an abundant use of whites in wood-en trims, walls, floors and furniture.The use of linens, rattan, cane, home-made quilts can also enhance the feelof that space."

Another important aspect of Britishcolonial style homes is the flooring.When one speaks of vintage designs,dark wood flooring tops the list. Forsome homes, where wooden flooringcan be an impractical choice, one canjuxtapose styles in terms of necessityand use-create stain or painted darkfloors.

Inside, outside

The English love drinking tea withsome crackers on the side. Indians too,have a strong affinity for tea. It is a timewhich is best enjoyed in the garden,terrace or porch.

"The English loved their tea. Gar-dens and terraces may have been ac-cented with fine porcelain tea setsand beautiful tea chintz or a block-printed tea cosy, tablecloths and tablelinen. Crystal chandeliers and belljar chandeliers were popular light-ing fixtures," says Aarti Jesrani, co-founder and creative head of an homedecor firm focusing on unique Indi-

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A T i m e s o f I n d i a P r e s e n t a t i o n , B A N G A L O R E , M AY 2 3 , 2 0 1 4 T I M E S P R O P E RT Y

Heritage pieces add warmth and character to a modern home

AN EXQUISITE LIVINGColonial style homes have one feature in common they are all grand. Heres a look at how you can transform your interiors to make them

look stylish and luxurious, writes Aditi Sharma

PHOTOS USED FOR REPRESENTATIONAL PURPOSES ONLYPHOTOS: VINOD KUMAR

TRADITIONAL,YET MODERN

When it comes to designing your home, its never easy settling on a theme. Murtuza Kapadia gives you the lowdown on what youre

in for when you make the choicePHOTOS COURTESY: NEERAS DESIGN STUDIO CREATION