The art of remarkable interiors

Interior design is an array of creative endeavours right from designer walls to doors, windows and flooring.

Good interiors is an amalgamation of good walls, flooring and ceiling not to mention the doors and windows as well. So a good interior designer is basically a multi-tasker in the true sense. All these elements need to be carefully looked at to arrive at a well-designed space.

Ceiling Design
Treating the fifth wall is as important as treating the rest of the four walls Hemil Parikh, Founder and Principal Designer, Elysium Abodes LLP too seems to express a similar opinion “An indispensable part of any room, the ceiling is debatably just as vital as its floor-up equivalents. If you forget about the ceiling while doing up your home, you are surely missing out on a major prospect to generate a more exclusive space. Although painting a ceiling is really no big deal, if you grow out of love with the shade, you can simply consider repainting it. If you are still hesitant to take the ceiling color plunge, you can opt for the half-and-half approach — a combination of fifty percent wall paint to fifty percent white or off-white shade to the ceiling. Never go too subtle for the ceiling shade, because then the ceiling won’t appear white and it will fail to precisely bear a resemblance to the walls. Always remember to transform a ceiling and your space will surely follow.”

Wall Decoration
When it comes to walls, wallpapers are also a good option “Mediums have changed for wallpapers to a great extent these days. People are no more fond of the conventional, floral and flashy patterned wallpapers, rather fabric wallpapers are the new trend. These fabric wallpapers not only constitute advantageous properties like being washable, acoustically sound and of low maintenance but are pleasing to eyes as well. These wallpapers are installed in the form of panels where the fabric is wrapped on to them which solve the conventional problem of wallpaper opening from joints; increasing durability.” says Sumit Dhawan, Architect, Cityscape’ 82 Architects.

Floor Design
“When we talk about the types of flooring available in India, most Indian homeowners generally contemplate opting for either marble or tiles. However, one must bear in mind that there is a multitude of flooring options that are available out there and can make you spoilt-for-choice.” says Hemil Parikh.

Speaking about Laminate flooring Khozema Chitalwala, Principal Architect & Designer, Designers Group says“ Laminate flooring is amongst the most economical & functional options, granting an eye-pleasing warmth of wood to space. In fact, it may work great for a particularly large scale or even other typologies of projects. While catering to the aesthetic appeal assimilating a whole new range of wooden textures, laminates flooring also provide longevity and durability factors for space.”

Doors, windows and ventilation
“The importance of windows and doors bringing in natural light and ventilation to the interiors of a space cannot be stressed more as they are the lifeline of any project. But with increasingly large office floor plates it is becoming a challenge for designers to not rely on artificial ventilation and air conditioning to substitute for the natural ventilation. The need to block off the excessive heat and pollution of the outside only adds to the woes of designing a building enjoying maximum natural light and ventilation. The possible solutions as I see it can only be by reducing the floor plate, staggered built edge, introducing greenery in built form itself in the form of green walls and green windows and having sufficient amount of green terraces adjoining the built interiors.” says Shera Bano Merchant, Creative Director and Interior Architect, Owner, Square 9 Designs.

Kitchen Design
“The best way to make a kitchen clutter free is to create the three zones under which each item gets a designated storage space above and below the counters, making items in easy reach when that particular activity is being performed, like having the cooking pots/pans or the spice rack at hands distance from the cooking hob etc. Here, the interior designing becomes of prime importance as the space planning the kitchen into three major zones with its ancillary storages help increase the efficiency of food preparation.” says Shera Bano Merchant.

Furniture Design
Puja Mathur, Interior Designer, Arcadia Design points out “Furniture designing is essentially an interplay of materials and textures. Today the clients are going for more organic, greener, and indigenous options. The populace is ready to explore and the designers need to give their designs that balance of sustainability.”

“The latest trend picking up,” she adds “is a combination of cane with wood or rattan with wood. Marble, terrazzo, semi precious stones are all popular choices for tabletop. An earthy theme with a brass inlay and a dash of luxury gives the furniture piece a new dignified look. Another popular material has always been fabric. Fabric furniture has always been seen as luxury and sophisticated material that is used in many upholstered material. This furniture definitely helps when it comes to replacing the material  of the furniture and reusing back the same frame, making it cost effective in the long run and reupholster can give it an entirely new look. Metal furniture is also trending today for their longevity and aesthetic value”.

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