WHITE NOW

White has always been a scary prospect for me - both in personal attire and home furnishings -  simply because I am clumsy by nature, in addition to suffering from serious bouts of carelessness,  which invariably  means that white never stays pristine white on me or around me . And believe me I have tried curbing my genetic inclinations, but no matter how conscious I am and take infinite care, somehow from forces in action unbeknown to me, I always end up spilling something or other, marring the snowy whiteness.

And just like things you know you can't have, being dressed in white from head to toe, looking ultimately cool and put-together day in day out is one of my ultimate fantasies.

 I remember when my son Dan was in year 2, a new boy Alex joined his class. The class teacher, knowing my son as the shy, quiet one - asked him to buddy Alex for a week. Before the week was out, the boys became inseparable in class and on the playground - and I got to know Alex's mum at pick and drop times, a petite, pretty Irish lady always dressed in pristine white, who had three other younger kids as well.  I always marvelled at her ability to stay white, cool and put together despite drooling babies and sticky fingered toddlers always in her vicinity. But what rendered me really speechless was the inside of her lounge which I got to see on what became the first of many play dates of the boys - it was all white, white carpet, white settees, white lamps and white walls and that with four children all under the age of eight! It turned out that white had been her colour of  choice even before marriage and she had decided long before the babies even came that she wasn't going to change her life to suit the kids, the kids could bloody well learn to live her way and surprisingly, they had - there wasn't a grubby hand print in sight anywhere! Since then I learnt, white interiors need strong, confident and stubbornly headstrong personalities to be successful- nothing less works.

I admire people who are confident enough to carry all white design themes inside their homes and in their wardrobes - I can only manage snippets of white in mine.

KEY UP, KELLY!

I have been watching the new series of Dragon's Den and one of the newest dragon on the block is Kelly Hoppen. It is good to see Kelly after such a long time, she looks wonderful for her age and still has her sharp wit about her.


I first heard of Kelly some 15 years past when feng shui and zen living was a fad sweeping though the design circles and every other designer had something or the other to say about it. Kelly was one of those who not only embraced the trend whole heartedly but also appeared in many TV programs, magazines and coffee-table books advocating simple, no fuss almost sparse living spaces devoid of colour.


I must confess, I like calm interiors, but I can't stand blandness in living spaces, because then it gets too clinical, too devoid of personality - so even though she became a big name back then, I never caught on to her style simply because it didn't resonate with me - But over the years my design ideas have evolved and matured as they are likely to do for any one who is on a design quest - the journey itself teaches you many things - and I was very interested to find out how Kelly's style  has evolved over the decade and how her designs stand today.

To my utter surprise, her designs haven't changed at all since back then-  time has stood still for her this past fifteen years, its as if she is too afraid to move away from her success recipe - and try something other than what she has always done. Its still beige and taupe all over - blandness is still rampant and advocated over any sort of colour.

Kelly, I think its about time you got keyed up on colour and use it in your designs - calm, harmony and zen can be achieved using coloured palette, you just have to look around you to know this - nature is the most calming of things to be surrounded with and nature is not bland - its more than beige and taupe.

PURE PASTELS

There is something so pure, serene and calm about pastels - even the strongest and loudest of colours, the ones that if they had souls would be shouting from the roof tops, talk in hushed tones as pastels. They seem to take on an almost ethereal, elegant persona, where they exist to blend in, not stand out and yet in doing so somehow make more of an impact than their solid, concentrated form.

That's why I love pastels - a room with pastels incorporated as a main backdrop or as accessories is a room halfway on its way to success - the other half of course depends on the decorators foresight and ability to pull different elements of the room cohesively together - whether they use the backdrop of  a pastel wall colour  or scattered accessories to do so.

 A common mistake people make while decorating with pastels is having too many different pastels in a room together -its almost as if they cannot  decide which pastels to stick with and end up using all - I have been inside such rooms and standing in these rooms I always get the uncanny feeling of being inside a marshmallow jar! Sweet, but sickeningly so.

Elegance is what you need to aim for and the key is to creating elegant rooms with pastels is restraint, restraint and (more) measured restraint. Less is more - use less and you'll have a more sophisticated, lasting desired impact.

Enjoy what these homeowners have done with pastels in their homes... and be inspired.

 

 

LIFEs LESSONs LEARNT LATE

When you get to a certain age, thoughts of mortality become a near constant, if not constant reminder.  Suddenly you find increasing number of friends - some you grew up with and shared many signpost moments of yours and theirs life -  have serious health issues. Nearly all conversations with your parents involve visits to hospitals, doctors and medications.  People who were your rock, your generation, are dealing with loss of parents or spouses and are increasingly vulnerable needing your support. It is a poignant realisation that death looms ahead - not only for your near and dear elderly but for you as well.

  Thoughts of life ending is a strange feeling to harbour - sure, it makes you fearful  - the unknown always does - but most of all it makes you question a lot of things you do on a daily basis - little things you sweat over that do not really matter in the grand scheme of things - and even more than that it makes you want to really live like you have never lived before, enjoy, savour every moment spent with those you love and those who love you back. It makes you thankful you have today in health and what really matters turns out to be very different from what you think mattered. Lethargy and boredom falls off and life becomes much more about doing and experiencing, savouring every moment to its full.

A life lived well is the most any of us can hope for - and a life with a purpose is one lived well. The purpose doesn't necessarily have to be achievement of a lofty ideal or divine enlightenment for that matter - the purpose could be as simple as loving and caring for those around you, every little helps is truly an understatement, something we constantly overlook in our quest for a life lived on grand gestures - If your life can make one moment of another person's brighter, lighter and easier - then rest assured, your are living well!