Home is where the heart is.... Part I

This has got to be the heights of narcissism, me doing a Home Tour of my own house!!! 

But October has been a month of surprises, and some really pleasant ones so far. As I said earlier, I had sent two pictures to My Dream Canvas for a series called Stories to Share and Anuradha who blogs at My Dream Canvas  got back asking for more so she could do a post on my home.

Before this happened, I have never really thought much of my decor skills. My hubby keeps complaining about how we have too much furniture and knick knacks lying around. According to him a home should ideally be a place where he and our two 3yr old boys should be able to play football indoors. Which currently they are not allowed to do. And my mom is forever cribbing about how my home feels like a museum and how she hates me insisting she use a coaster every where. So I definitely haven't had any in-house fan club till now. 

So this was a big, pleasant surprise. And after My Dream Canvas featured my home on it's home tour, I was simply overwhelmed with the number of messages I received. So, brimming with a little more confidence in my decor abilities and giving into the inner Narcissus in me, I am doing this post to share a few more pictures from our home here in London.

Most of our furniture is teak from Indonesia. We lived in Jakarta for a few years and I fell so much in love with the large, carved pieces of furniture there that I spent months scouting for furniture I loved, and ultimately picked what I have. A few things I picked up were ready-made, but some pieces were custom made in keeping with the vague notions in my head.

Now I am a flower-o-holic and there are always fresh flowers everywhere around my home. Sometimes I think, if I had saved all the money I have so far spent on flowers, I could have taken a beautiful vacation across Europe!!!

The drawing room 
The orange wooden Buddha is from Thailand. I picked it up in Singapore.
Those 2 chairs are from China - they are called Emperor chairs. They look mighty uncomfortable but are actually surprisingly comfortable to sit in.
The painted wooden cabinet on which the Buddha stands is an antique Tibetan apothecary cabinet
On the extreme right of the picture, is a chest on which a jade Buddha sits. That chest is a dowry chest from the island of Madura, famous for it's coloured carvings. And it is one of my prized possessions.
The rugs - the maroon -red one from Ikea, the deep blue one is a Kashmiri woolen carpet, I lucked out on. There was a slight mistake in the weaving pattern and so I got it for a steal.

The drawing room

A corner of the drawing room.
Table that houses the Bose, is a fake antique.
Masks are from Nepal, India and Indonesia
My favourite piece - the Ferris Wheel photo frame that has a series of pictures of my twins fighting!

Another nook in the drawing room. 

The dowry chest from Madura

I first set eyes on this two coloured teak wood bench when I was being driven through a narrow lane in Jakarta. The car had slowed down due to the ubiquitous macet (traffic jam) and I was generally looking out as I had nothing to do. I saw this in front of a shop; the owner was lying on this chatting with a friend. I took one look at this and it was love at first sight. I asked the driver to pull over, ran to the shop and bargained for the first time in my life. The man was amused and didn't even bargain and let me have it for a steal.

This tapestry was a gift from my friend and colleague when she quit being in my team. It was supposed to be a table runner but I loved it so much I got it framed. And I pair it with a Turkish kilim with an ikat pattern.

The dining room - 

The Chinese believe that a mirror facing the dining table always reflects what is on the table and adds to your prosperity. So true or not, I always ensure the mirror faces the table. The fireplace mantel has a carved wooden boat and boatman from Indonesia and dokra metal statues from my home state - Orissa. The little shelf which houses the knick knacks were made by a carpenter for me.

The dining table is an old teak door that I got converted into a table. The surface is rough and rustic and I love the way it looks and feels. If you look carefully, you would see a little wooden flower on the edge of the table. The lady who made the table put these to soften the rustic-ness of the table.

Another view of the dining table

The bar.
 The child like painting  of the sea-side is from a gallery in Bangkok.
Don't know why I love it but I do.
The Ganesha and the 3 musicians are from India.
The little painting of Arjuna is from Cambodia.

My Favourite corners
1. My study. Also houses my collection of comics

2. The breakfast table in the kitchen. This is where we have our regular meals and spend a lot of time

I must acknowledge the invaluable contribution my husband had in all this - yes he paid for it but more than that, after the first few arguments, he learnt really fast to keep his mouth shut and let me decide what I wanted. And most importantly, when I dragged him to the shops, he would go find the most comfortable chair and fall asleep (yes he did!). And since most of the shops were run by women; they would give me this look filled with sympathy and understanding and I ended up walking away with fantastic discounts, thanks to him!

And yes, as a mother of 2 hyperactive three yr old boys, I have had my share of destruction. A 2 feet high terracotta soldier from Xi'an survived our moving 3 countries but didn't survive 3 days of my then 1yr old sons giving him their undivided attention. And there are a couple of statues of Indonesian aborigines who will never walk again, given that their legs have been crippled by my sons. It is a challenge with 2 toddlers and I (and nanny) have to have eyes on the back of our heads each minute. But I have so far not moved much simply because I wanted them to grow up knowing and understanding they cannot damage things. How far I have been successful, only time will tell! :-)

Finally, since you have awakened the narcissistic beast in me, you all shall pay. So watch out, there is a second part, coming soon which will have pictures of some of my favourite knick knacks!
So long.
Cheerio!