Usha's Home In The Hills

 The steep path up to the cottage, lined with fruit blossoms

Thanks to Thanksgiving, this month has that air of counting your blessings and sending a quick mental thank you note to the stars above for all that is good in your life. For the things that seem destined and for those events that are serendipitous. For chance meetings and instant soul connections. For the dreams, wishes & hopes that finally got actualized. For having the courage to let go of things, people & places not meant for you. And for me, more than any year, I also feel a deep sense of gratitude for the work that I have chosen to do and for this now-not-so-little blog of mine. Apart from the happiness & the amazing creative opportunities it has given me, it has also made it possible for me to know and meet some incredible people over the years. Complete strangers, many of whom are now an integral part of my life. Usha, is one such special person. I had blogged about her lovely studio & apartment a few years ago, and since then we have been in touch. From appreciating each others work and aesthetics, to finding common ground in our love for animals, we also bonded instantly over our passion for the mountains.

Usha's painting in progress, in her sunlit studio 

This corner of the living room, overlooking the valley and distant snow clad ranges, is my favorite corner!

As Usha started building her beautiful cottage in the Himalayas, I followed her daily joys and trials that come with following your heart and building a dream home ground up. She had invited/cajoled/scolded me many a times to make a plan to visit her, and finally, during my visit back to Gurgaon this Diwali, I spent an absolutely brilliant weekend with her. The exhilaration of driving on my own, for the first time, on those curves and bends and the highs and lows of hill roads, is an experience to remember! Crossing tiny villages, asking for directions every few kilometers and keeping fingers crossed that I don't take a wrong road, for if there came a moment where I would need to reverse on those narrow uphill roads, I basically would have no option but to abandon my truck of a car and walk the rest of the way. Yes, I had that scenario all planned out in my head. Thankfully, apart from a few minor hiccups [like ignoring the cut off from the highway and merrily singing & continuing for some 80 odd kms into the heart of Punjab before the realization hit and the u-turn was taken], the drive was a breeze. 

 

Wild flowers on the table on the porch and late afternoon sunlight in the living room

Usha's bedroom with handmade quilt and her art 

The striking Shiva painting has also been done by Usha 

Every little thing has been carefully selected and restored by Usha. Gorgeous chair in the bathroom
 

 The welcome hug from Usha and the welcome leap-lick-drool-cuddle from her gentle giant of a dog, Henry, was the warmest possible. As we walked up the steep path to her home, the stunning cottage revealed itself! Usha's home, all of stone, brick and old wood, sits snugly between pine trees, tall wild grass, and the most fabulous view of the valley. Designed by her daughter Vibha, the home feels personal and unique in every sense. Usha's excellent design aesthetic makes its presence felt as you enter the home - every little corner, each piece of furniture, lamp, furnishing, even the bunch of dry weeds in a vintage jar - are put together so beautifully that my aesthete's soul seemed to have found it's heaven. A home filled with sunshine, books, art overflowing in each room from the artist-in-residence, self-designed handmade heirloom quilts, warm rugs, fireplaces, vintage deco knick-knacks, french cottage chic furniture, wild flowers in unexpected vases, hot food and good wine, and a personal extra large body warmer of a dog - what more could you ask for when in the mountains! I could go on about how beautiful and seemingly effortlessly chic Usha's home is, or I could do better and share these images with you. I couldn't stop taking pictures, even as Usha said, oh but the house is yet to be finished. It's a home I would move into, without changing a thing! 

Antique four poster bed in the studio for siesta 

Artist's tools and her work space 

The sheer beauty of a simple rustic window corner in the kitchen

 

Central island in the cozy warm kitchen. Favorite place to hang out during the day

 

The delightful guest bedroom had a deck that looked out to the lights in the valley at night 

A chinoiserie art work at the entry foyer to the bedroom

 

Usha's love for gargoyles is evident with this little one in her studio and a massive one right at the entry of the cottage, sculpted by her niece Deveshi Sehgal.  

Oh, I loved the play of light through the day through the beautiful rooms..

Usha has the knack of picking up the most beautiful distinct objects and making them look good together! 

The three days were spent in long walks & treks, chatting with the villagers, polishing off finger licking good local delicacy at the local ayurved's home, picking up kitchen tricks from Usha [now that I cook for myself in Goa, in my lovely kitchenette, I am discovering a love for cooking], sitting around the central island in the warm & lovely kitchen and cooking, eating, drinking, listening to music, sharing stories and chatting. Oh, how much we talked! I spoke about serendipitous soul connections and right there, in the hills, I found one in Usha :)   

We exchanged notes on the weather as she sat drying chillies and corn kernels

Going searching for the cat with a recent litter of 4 kittens!  With Usha, village kids and the local ayurved, who also doubles up as the night watchman. I requested him to pluck these flowers which were high up on a tree, and later, they found their way to the kitchen, dressing up the table for dinner.

 

Good ol' wine from the local fruit orchards warmed us up in the night as cold winds roared outside

I can not end this post without talking about Usha's work. Usha Hooda is an artist, aesthete, interior designer par excellence. She has been working for years with áari' karigars (embroidery craftsmen) to design and produce one-of-a-kind textile masterpieces. Some of Usha's art and interior design work can be found on her page on facebook. She has recently been featured in Architectural Digest, among many other publications in the past. She can be reached via facebook or via her email.

Tree Of Life designed by Usha and executed by Aari karigars

An absolutely wonderful trip ended on a high note with me reccying a pretty little cottage for myself further up the hill. I can not wait for the day when I am able to move bag baggage and cat to my mountain abode, after I have spent a while and some in my sea side abode. There are many stories and gorgeous pictures from my jaunts within Goa that I have in my bag to share with you - watch this space!

This view. Sigh.

[All Images & Story: Bhavna Bhatnagar - An Indian Summer. Featured Usha Hooda's Home]

The cat that launched a post

I chanced upon the above pic on facebook, and couldn't get my laptop's mouse to move forward. While the mouse was transfixed by that fur ball, I ooh-aahed over the pretty little setup. I knew I HAD to see more of that cat, as well as more of this home. I dashed off an email to the mistress of both, Chondamma Cariappa, the uber creative brain behind Sole Sisters, and over a couple of weeks, as we exchanged cat stories and pictures, she put together a tour of her lovely eclectic pad for us.

Chondamma is  a Creative Director with Bates Advertising in Bombay. Originally from Coorg, she has travelled all over India along with her dad who was in the army. She is now a resident of Bombay since the last eight years.

~ Chondamma on The Sole Sisters ~

"The Sole Sisters was inspired by an album I have on facebook called 'fetish'. Each time I travelled, I put up pictures of shoes I bought from various parts of the world. This led to discussions and comments from friends, and I decided to create a larger platform - The Sole Sisters, a blog dedicated to women who love shoes!"

~ Chondamma on her style and home space ~

" My style is constantly changing and evolving. But, more often than not, Pop Art is something I draw my inspiration from. I absolutely love bright colors and graphics. And I have been tripping on print on print/mixed patterns for a while now.

When I sat down to design the current space, one things was pre-decided. Limited budget. I reused and reupholstered old furniture in interesting paints and fabrics. And threw in more colors and patterns in the form of cushions. Random patterns and colors came in together and started co-existing nicely. All things random is what I would like to call it."

And finally, the cats!

" Bubbu, the fur ball was abandoned a few years back. I was looking to adopt a cat around that time, and that's how Bubbu came into my life. He is one of the best things that has happened to me. He is gentle, never complains and is the most easy going baby. Recently I got him a live toy. His baby sister is Kikki, and she bullies him crazy!"

Hello Kikki! And, this is how your brother Bubbu launched a post :)

Thanks C, for sharing your warm casa and your purr babies with us!

Oh, before you folks leave,  a quick announcement

I dillied and then dallied some more

But finally, I am on twitter! 

Still figuring out how the tweet world works

But I am there, peeps!

Go join me, follow me, and such

Say hello too, pretty please

I plan to share goodies from the blog 

And a whole lot of things that I like, there

Here, click here

And follow @_AnIndianSummer

See you!

[All pics: Chondamma, Meera and Purvi. Sole Sisters on facebook. Creative story boarding: An Indian Summer]

A home in Bombay

Anavila Sindhu Misra and I have been exchanging creative notes since the time I blogged about her work. We met when she came to Delhi to exhibit her exquisite sarees and fabrics, where she very graciously gifted two handcrafted fabric art works from her studio to me. It was such a pleasure to meet Anavila in person, and as we chatted about our creative likes and dislikes, the blogger in me instinctively knew that her home would be as lovely as her. I pestered her for a home tour, and here we are - the beautiful and distinctive space that Anavila, her husband and their son call home! Anavila also shares her personal style and aesthetics below...

My home style is very India inspired. From the wall art to the textiles, all are craft based, with some occasional picks from travels which I couldn't resist - like the antique gong and bird cage which I bought at an exhibition from a Thai/ Indonesian old couple, who were putting up there lifelong collections for sale.

 

 

Most of the things you see around my house are my own designs and products collected over the last seven years ever since my association with crafts. I go with colors like green, beige, whites for home with little accents of brighter shades. For me, plants are a must and most of my decorations are botanical. 

Home for me is putting together familiar and inspiring things that make you comfortable and happy ! :)

Many thanks Anavila for the lovely home tour!

Looking forward to seeing you and your pretteh textiles in Delhi again soon :)

[All images copyright: Anavila Sindhu Misra and An Indian Summer] 

A home in New Delhi

Aneela Zeb Babar and I have known each other's virtual presence for a couple of years now. I love what and how she writes, and she enjoys the doses of pretty from An Indian Summer. Aneela moved to India recently, and one hot summer afternoon, we met at her new home in New Delhi. Over refreshing cups of Aneela's special chai, we had endless conversations, laughter, and a tour of her lovely home. I loved the fact that each little thing in her home has a story, a history, or a memory attached. And I won't even attempt to retell these stories to you, for I have the utterly charming and fabulously witty Aneela right here! Over to Aneela:

When you ask me about style and inspiration I guess for a long, long time it has been my mum, and my earlier houses were kind of an 'inspired tribute' to how she had done up her home but some time last year I think I finally grew more comfortable with who I was and now that I look back at the photographs over the year, I recognize how the blues and reds and a sense of eclectic are replacing the creams and beige and tapestries of before!

Ours is a family of Baba, Begum and a 3 year old. Sometime in September 2009, we packed up 'The House With The White Picket Fence' in Melbourne to live a life ‘unsettled’. Which meant that most of the paraphernalia of what constitutes as home was packed up in a garage and only the 'portable memories' made the cut in the boxes. The past three years has seen a lot of travel and homes combined with aspirations that my child grows up with some objects around him that have remained consistent and that we don’t exactly kill his sense of the aesthetic living in rented houses at times with someone else's furniture.

I think our home in Delhi now reflects the design demands of living out of a suitcase and combining a bit about who the father and me are and our journey so far....the 3 year old has quite an opinion about what makes it across the threshold too so the rooms combine some of his stories as well.

I thought that most of our purchases were random or something that the three of us could finally agree on…but I realize now that there is quite a method to our mad buying. Most of the artwork has a strong woman's voice. I know that a picture is worth a thousand words, but with our house rules of no TV…everything from the paintings, the bed spreads, the lamps, and of course the book shelves have to tell a hundred tales. I have quite a design crush on the art of kantha, also the Bengali jatra...so the three year old has spent many a summer afternoon poring over the bedspreads tracing stories with his finger about the embroidered ghouls, and camels,  parrots,  fish,  birds and butterflies.

I am guilty of being like many South Asians who dream in English but like to live the subaltern...so I give good business to Barefoot in Colombo especially their lovely painted ceramic pottery and the metal craft workers of Bangladesh who introduced me to their reading of Ganesha and Saraswati. Some things have not changed, I still cannot kick my family's addiction to carpets so there are a lot red carpets lying around the house bought in  Afghanistan and from Rawalpindi and Quetta in Pakistan! My husband is getting help for his penchant for lamps around the house.

We indulge in our penchant for nostalgia with wing back chairs, collecting faux antique writing desks, the odd gramophone , antique wall clock. My favorite child remains the Chicago Phone which amazingly still works.

  

When it comes to portable memories ...some things like my grandfather's war medals, my grand mum's trays, a grand aunt's milk jug, and father's books will always find a place in my suitcase. And there will always be a wall to accommodate my collection of political cartoons.

Aneela, shukriya (thank you) for sharing your lovely warm home with us!

You and I need to have another round of your fragrant chai soon :)

[All images copyright: An Indian Summer and Aneela Zeb Babar]