House Of Wandering Silk

Katherine Neumann, the lovely lady runs House Of Wandering Silk, and I have been chatting for some time now. I chanced upon her work at the Red Earth Design Mela, and I knew that I had to share her beautiful products with you.

House of Wandering Silk is based out of New Delhi, India. Katherine works with marginalized women, to create luscious textile products, encouraging empowerment for these women, and also supporting weavers and artisans. A portion of the proceeds from the sale of each product goes towards the education of tribal and minority children in rural India, through the Adharshila school. You can browse through the collection of stoles, scarves and fabric necklaces right here.

The GiveAway!

Katherine and I had been planning to do something special for An Indian Summer readers for some time, and here we are! A fabulous giveaway, just for you! You get to pick a stole of your choice, from the luxurious collection at The House Of Wandering Silk! Yes, you heard it right - Your choice! The giveaway is open to readers from across the globe :)

Here's how you enter the giveaway:

1. Tapping into your inner poet, leave us a rhyme or two, making sure the rhyme contains the words "Wandering" and "Summer". Leave your verse/haiku/pun - whatever your inner creative comes up with, on facebook right here by leaving a comment. (Make sure you are logged into facebook to do so) 

2. To double your chances, leave a comment on this post too

3. That's it! Wait for result to be announced on facebook on May 6th  :)

[All images: House of Wandering Silk and An Indian Summer]

 

When the bug bites..

..you surf!

 Well, atleast till the time you actually travel

That is exactly what I did today

Surfed and wandered virtually

To far off destinations

And cozy places

Casa Da Bela, an original house, lovingly restored and renovated, is in South Bahia, Brazil. It's well traveled owner, who has a background in fashion and interior design, has done a great job of combining local architecture and furniture, with interesting pieces from all over the world.

Sigh. Another beautiful place bookmarked and added to the travel wishlist. The bug has bitten, folks...expect more unique places to stay at, in the coming days. Let's wander together, virtually :)    

[All images: Casa Da Bela]

Pure Eye Candy Day

From one of my favorite sites

Skona Hem

Sigh. Such prettiness.

[All images: Skona Hem]

P.S: The winner of the Jaypore giveaway has been announced! Is it you? Check right here!

Jaypore and An Indian Summer Give Away!

Jaypore is one of my favorite haunts when it comes to shopping for exquisite and one-of-a-kind treasures from all over India. Launched last year, initially as an ipad application, Jaypore is now an online store, shipping worldwide, including India.  

I love how the site has evolved and each time that I browse through Jaypore, their collection only seems to get better! From handpicked crafts to quirky products from young designers, to classics that withstand changing trends and styles gracefully, Jaypore has it all!

 

I was delighted when Team Jaypore reached out to host a giveaway on An Indian Summer. And what a fabulous lineup they have! Three beautiful products, to one lucky reader of An Indian Summer. Here's what is in the booty:

~ A set of carved wooden boxes

~ A ikat embroidered cushion cover in silk

~ A 3" by 2" mughal jaali rug

Yaay!

And here's how you can enter the giveaway:

1. Browse through the Jaypore site and tell us the name of your favorite product/s. Tell us about it on facebook right here by leaving a comment. (Make sure you are logged into facebook to do so) 

2. To double your chances, leave a comment on this post too

3. That's it! Wait for result to be announced on April 19th :)

 

All the best! 

 

 

[All images: Jaypore and An Indian Summer]

 

 

The Rose

The Rose is an immaculately put together, pristine small hotel in the heart of New Delhi's bohemian art and design neighborhood - the Hauz Khas village. It opened last year, and I was immediately drawn to its beautifully put together, minimalistic, light and airy interiors. Owned and run by Frenchman Pio Coffrant, The Rose also runs a cafe, an art gallery and various events on weekends.

Pio also runs another guest house in New Delhi, known as Colaba House. A quirky combination of Indian and French design elements, with odds and ends from various parts of the world, makes Colaba House another great place to stay at in Delhi.

Don't such lovely hotels make you wish that you were a tourist in your own city? What fun it would be if we got an opportunity to stay in such interesting places and a chance to view our city with a completely fresh perspective!

[All Images: The Rose, Colaba House. Layout: An Indian Summer]

Psst: The winner of the Lila Giveaway has been announced. Click right here to know if it's you!

Featured!

Femina

I am thrilled to be a part of the special Made By You issue of Femina this month! I was asked to contribute a feature on Interiors and Homes and, there I am, with the story on how the husband and I did up our home over the years. I shared with you the pics I had taken when the photoshoot happened; take a look now at a full visual tour of my home in the feature. :)

A big thanks to Anuradha, the Chief Copy Editor at Femina and Manpreet, the excellent photographer who did the photoshoot!

You can get a copy of this issue right here, and/or get it online on Zinio.

Hindustan Times Live Mint

And, my ideas on how to design and style transitional spaces were featured in HT Live Mint, last Saturday. I had superb company - Chandan and Rajee's design advice and examples from their homes were part of the article as well.

Thanks Komal for getting the three of us together on Live Mint :)

Take a look at the article online right here!

[All pics: Me]

Lila and a Giveaway

What a lovely weekend this is turning out to be! I am thrilled to share such brilliant talent in the last two posts, and now, a lovely giveaway from an eclectic indie boutique store in New Delhi - Lila!

Lila was set up in Late 2011 by Shruti Narayan, an architect - as a design lab based in Shahpur Jat, New Delhi with a vision to be experimental using the simplest of ingredients with a desire to create a series of designs that are both minimalistic in appearance as well rich in craftsmanship.  Lila strives to use only pure and natural materials that are locally sourced and fabricated. 

As a design philosophy - Lila celebrates solid colors and develops textures and patterns through a play of these solid colors resulting in vibrant tones draped in bold silhouettes – giving not only a laid back vibe but a sense of quiet sophistication.

Give Away!

Lila would like to giveaway this perfect-for-summer-evenings wrap blouse to one lucky An Indian Summer reader. Lila would ship worldwide, so everyone is free to participate in the giveaway.

To enter:

1. Think of what you would pair this wrap-around blouse with, or, what summer event would you like to wear it to. Tell us about it on facebook right here by leaving a comment. (Make sure you are logged into facebook to do so) 

2. To double your chances just leave a comment on this post too

3. That's it! Wait for result to be announced on April 6th :)

Thank you Shruti for the giveaway!

[Images: Lila and An Indian Summer]

 

More design goodness

I couldn't have left you this Friday, without sharing some more of brilliant design goodness. And that's not all! Wait for the next post for a fabulous giveaway. But first...

~ Ira ~

Reviving and reinventing traditional craft practices that are considered anachronistic, Ira creates and products that synthesises Indian crafts with a contemporary design style - drawing inspiration from hand-beaten vessels in copper and brass. Manasa Prithvi, the designer behind Ira, collaborates directly with master craftsmen in Southern India, and the products are then finished in London, adding values of both classic and contemporary design making.

Take a look at Ira's exquisitely crafted products right here.

~ Rayden Design Studio ~

Rayden Design Studio is a multidisciplinary studio working at the intersection of Art, Design and technology. Founded by Parul and Mooshir Vahanvati, Rayden Design Studio, uses inspiration from material, processes. experiences, context and people, to create objects and experiences which lean towards the minimal aesthetics, are emotionally evoking and use precisely engineered construction.

Take a look at Rayden's cutting edge designs right here.

~ Graphic Design + Architecture by Richard Poulin ~

I received a copy of Richard Poulin's Graphic Design + Architecture - A 20th Century History in December last year. Between work, travel and everything else, I finally managed to finish this very interesting book earlier this month. It is a fascinating read, through the history and evolution of environmental graphic design, in (primarily) western countries, during the 20th century. As described in the book synopsis, Graphic Design and Architecture, A 20th Century History closely examines the relationship between typography, image, symbolism, and the built environment by exploring principal themes, major technological developments, important manufacturers, and pioneering designers over the last 100 years.

Strongly recommend this book for students and graphic design/architecture practitioners. You can get your copy right here.

[All images: An Indian Summer]