Royale Rama Home Tour - Part 3

We are parking ourselves today, at the final juncture of Rama family’s home tour: Part three, covering the kitchen and library. Just as I fell in love, so did hundreds of you lovely readers, who swooned over this stunning home and expressed your open admiration for part one and two. Now you will be glued to part three as well, with equal adoration. If in case you missed part one and part two, you may head here and here to tour this envy-inducing, richly layered home, where every corner is exquisitely adorned.

The Library:

Paddy is a voracious reader from as far back into childhood that she can remember, a quality she says is inspired by her mother. Reminiscing the days of her childhood, she recollects visiting the local library regularly since the age of four with her mother. Regretfully, she had to abandon boxes and boxes of her book collection when she moved to the US, but her love for reading remained. Needless to say, when Rama family bought a home, they needed a designated space for their keepsake books.   A look out area, overlooking the foyer is dedicated as the family’s reading nook. Although Paddy does not get enough time now to read, due to the fact that her kids are too young, it did not stop her from creating this darling little reading space. She creatively curated her ultimate book collection along some knick knacks and décor accessories.



Cozy reading nook in the upper level, overlooks the foyer.

The Antique book shelf came to their home along with the tall mirror that the family have in formal dining. This teak hand carved shelf is made out of architectural salvage from a traditional south Indian door frame. Of course, like rest of the eclectic pieces in the home, there is a story behind this piece too that triggered Paddy to bring it home. “The thing that instantly attracted me to this book shelf was the yellow paint at the bottom, symbolic of most south Indian door frames. Applying turmeric and kum kum as many know, is an ancient Hindu custom and painting thresholds in yellow and red paints in various rangoli patterns, was a modified practice adopted later, reflecting the same symbolism. Growing up, this threshold art was one of my favorite chores that my mom used to give me during major festivals. When I saw this book shelf with a yellow paint retained at the bottom, it flashed very vivid memories from my life back home!"

Apart from books, the shelf is peppered with interesting Knick knacks, toys (kondapalli, marapachi), and other figurines.

Adjacent to the shelf on the wall, are three ornate mini picture frames that are garage sale finds. Take notice how she fixed them to the wall with a mini brass bell inside each frame! The bells again.... now let's whistle! :)

The floor seating channels a wonderful cozy area to laze around with a book or a chai.

The very comfortable, personal and unique “baithak” area is created for practical reasons keeping family’s young children in the mind, who love climbing over furniture and jump around. Canny use of colors via vibrant cushions brightens this dramatic setting. 

A kathakali painting by Paddy peeks from behind the dancing kondapalli toy in the shelf. Tabla set is perched on a vintage trunk here (yet another garage sale find).



Wonderful collection of Buddha in the reading nook

The brass stand seen in the picture (seating the Buddha statue) is originally an antique brass tray, a gift from her aunt to which paddy had gotten a welder fix brass legs to make it a stand. Another brilliant idea!

The lovely space is used frequently by Paddy's husband Vinod, for his tabla practice or meditation

The Kitchen and Family Room:

The kitchen and family, held as the heart of Rama family are done in an interesting contrast to the rooms in the front area of the home. The décor diva, who likes to throw an element of surprise into everything she does, considers the styling of these rooms to be the surprise that eschews the expectation of the décor trend set in the front section of her home.

The styling of the open plan kitchen and family display a perfect balance between pleasing aesthetics and practicality.

As per Paddy, a considerable thought has gone into this design decision: "As much as I like the traditional Indian decor, I also love the fuss free, minimalistic and serene ambience provided by contemporary designs. While the front part of our home is done in a traditional style, where we embraced color, patterns and bling with abandon; the heart of our home i.e. family and kitchen have been done up in contemporary style. The main reason for this decision being we needed a clutter free space for my kids to run around. As such, there is enough mess to cleanup every day (from my kids and kid's dad), so making this choice made my life easy and manageable"

The arresting feature in the family room is a giant crystal chandelier, complimented by a row of  more crystal light fixtures all the way to the kitchen. A Howard miller two sided clock throws an unexpected vintage pop into the otherwise glam room

A Howard Miller double sided clock mounted on a pillar post, midway between family and kitchen lends a practical, yet stylish solution for checking time from any side!

The pops of color come from the floral and fruit display in the room done in neutral palette. The lighting fixtures are like the sparkling ear rings for the beautiful, serene face of the rooms!

Though minimal, the choice of furniture and accessories from the off-white Natuzzi sectional, the Gray leather Nuevo Living bar stools, custom made coffee and dining tables, the radiant light fixtures, all together make a stylish yet practical family retreat for the Ramas.

Air plants and succulents by the sink window compliment the style of the room. 

Paddy created a mini-world full of lush, beautiful plants by  making her own terrariums above the sink window.

Their custom made low dining table is a big hit among her visitors who love to 'sit down' literally for a meal or tea on this simple yet lovely table.

The kitchen dining is styled in a contrasting theme to the formal dining, where the family got a low table custom made through Amish craftsmen. Paddy wanted their family to have a 'cross legged sit down meal' in the traditional Indian way. So she opted for the Japanese style table that accommodates this idea in a contemporary setting.

The fruit that is always there on the side bar adds a splash of color to the room. Paddy is famous in her circle for her French press coffee that she makes, by grinding beans fresh for every brew.

Her red clay pots and accessories add a hot glam factor to the kitchen. The red delicious apples in the picture above are from their own apple trees in the yard.

We all know by now, that every visible corner of the Rama home is meticulously designed and expertly arranged. The same also applies to the areas that are not always visible. A peek into Paddy's pantry and cabinets shows her sense of order and organization skills that are as impressive as the visible areas of her home. 

All the containers are labeled with re-usable chalk markers. Seen above are re-purposed baby food jars.

Says Paddy: "When it comes to organizing, I follow the same motto I do for decor. The inside has to be as pretty as the outside. This includes inside the cabinets and all enclosed spaces."

A peek into her meticulously organized cabinets

However, Paddy credits her mother for this habit, who herself had organized kitchen shelves and often made Paddy responsible for the organizing chores.

A look at her highly organized pantry and some more cabinets.

By her own admission, Paddy declares that she is a messy cook (Nope, I refuse to believe that ;)). Paddy says: "I have a ton of clean up after every cooking session.  Keeping the cabinets, pantry and kitchen organized is a way to help myself. In general, I prefer to know clearly, instead of resorting to guess work as to what is inside a container :)"

As we come to a glittery end, we officially end the Rama Royale Family home tour here. Though I relished the entire process of writing, editing and blushing over the sprinkle of applause by the readers, the best part was to bond with the décor diva Paddy. I thank her for showing great faith in me and giving me an opportunity to feature her heavenly home.

For final closing, passing the baton to Paddy who signs off, stating: "Our home is evolving and growing, well nurtured by our love, interest and the memories we are creating in the process. I am not sure if I will ever stop and say it is completely done; for my passion for decor is insatiable. As long as my very grounded husband willingly provides wind beneath my wings and allows my creative flights of whimsy, I guess I will keep flying and continue the jaunts :). And you Pinky, I thank you from the bottom of my heart for narrating my home story with as much love as I have had in decorating it. Thank you for presenting with such aplomb and poesy, all the corners and frames of my home; and in the process, also making an amateur photographer out of me!:)"

And a final treat for you all as Paddy lovingly made a video clip especially for the readers of Pinkz Passion summing up all three parts of this home tour. Enjoy!

 

You can connect with Paddy and her inspiring feeds on Instagram here or Facebook decomania here.

What a wonderful journey it was....hope you all enjoyed the part one , part two, and this last part three as much as we enjoyed bringing it to you. We thrive on the love and encouraging feedback from our lovely readers. Take a moment to leave your comment. Also stay connected until we meet again dear readers as with the month of festivities we have beautiful posts coming your way, toodles!

(Image Courtesy: Padmaja Rama. The pictures can not be used without a consent  from the home owners, however, you may re-pin them from Pinkz Passion's Pinterest account)  

Royale Rama Home Tour - Part 2

After an impressive response to Part One of the home tour of Rama Royale (in case you missed it, click here), I am happy to present Part two of this breathtaking home, which show cases the formal living and dining areas. I am even more thrilled to let you know, that is a Part Three of this immaculate home where the home owners have share two more areas of their lovely home, the kitchen and Library. And before we move further, the Rama family and I would like to extend our gratitude to all our readers for the exceptional love and success of Part One!

So escape with me today into the lavish settings of Rama family’s living room and formal dining room, where graceful details are masterfully created with some unexpected and exquisite collection. And be prepared to hold on to your heart, for you will find that it skipped many beats by the end of this post! :)

Formal Living Room:    

Hand carved Teak Indonesian chairs and mirrors blend perfectly with the rest of the room

 A totally traditional and powerfully visual living room mirrors Paddy’s refined aesthetics of combining traditional and timeless themes. The room has a varied yet coherent mix of Indian and Asian artefacts, hand carved furniture and eclectic décor accessories interspersed beautifully to create a visually stunning space.



Brass hanging lamps are several years old collection

With a dazzling display of her eye popping collection, the room nods eloquently to the traditional emblem of a South Indian home. A brass finished coffee table exposes the modern sensibility in the room and paddy muses, “It was a lucky Craigslist find during the first year of our marriage that I refused to part with while moving from one city to another before we settled into our own home. What I absolutely love about this coffee table is that it holds my large Urli snugly under the glass top. I often have flowers floating around in the urli, along with some floating candles for almost all festivals and special occasions. The look is so mesmerizing and whimsical that I leave the table top bare and let the beauty underneath the glass show. This arrangement also keeps it safe and away from my ever curious kids, who love to pick the flowers and splash the water.”

Each collective piece is a seductive surprise.

Perky elegance is Paddy’s calling card and with the same motto, she opted for a curious combination of purple and orange in the living room, which is strong enough yet not over powering due to the neutral backdrop of the upholstery and the drapes. The Buddhist monk painting crowned above the sofa is done by the lady herself, who by the way is also a hobby artist. Incorporating pieces of her own art skillfully into the decor added another personal dimension to the prevailing aesthetics of her home. Speaking about this artwork she says - “I wanted a painting that coordinated with the Buddhist monks pillow on my sofa. I also wanted this painting in the orange and purple or plum shade which was hard to find and expensive to commission to so I went ahead and did it myself in Acrylic, with my own choice of pattern and colors. There are many versions and variations of this image out there by several sources/artists so I do not know who to give the credit for the original image.”

Driven by a natural afflatus, the lady has a sharp eye for dramatic pieces, a result of which some stunning items find their place in her home. The purple colored large Amethyst Geode the couple bought for their second wedding anniversary was a catalyst in selecting the color scheme in the room. The bronze Ardhanari statue, a gift from her mother that she placed inside this geode reveals her distinctive curatorial eye.


Another Indonesian mirror in the foyer is a garage sale find

The stylized amalgamation of colors, placement and arrangements in this room are to some extent guided by the Feng sui principles the lady follows. 

 

Close up look of her collection which whispers elegance in every corner.

Small Jharokas on the wall, enlivened corners, some more of her art and an expert use of lighting elicit sophistication and refinement on the other side of the same room. Paddy's smart use of ghungroos as tie backs for the drapes belt out her un-diminishable love for bells and she makes no bones about displaying her weakness for them.

Paddy's brass stands had my attention throughout, which she lugged all the way from India along with her tall oil lamps (kuthuvilaku).

With the soft glow emanating from various dramatically placed sources of light, evenings in this room cast an autumnal hue in regal grace. The thought of perching myself on the lovely furniture here in the dusky twilight and being surrounded with such gorgeous brass pieces, makes my heart sing :)

Formal Dining Room: 

Rama family’s dining room is nothing that you will see in regular furniture catalogs, showing collections that are beautiful, predictable, bland and impersonal. Instead, it is stunning, highly personalized, visually animated and unlike any other. They have gone lengths to put in their personal spin in this space and their zealous efforts show brilliantly in every square inch of this room! 

Phenomenally designed, meticulously executed and exceptionally curated, each and every object here adds an incomparable element of luxury to the room, where along with food; every guest is in for a picturesque treat. By far, this is my favorite room that very much reflects home owner’s explosion of imagination and creative confidence.

Many fascinating images of the room captured at different times

The couple manifested and updated this room brilliantly from what it was originally, when they bought it. The room had wall paneling covering three quarters of the wall on all sides which Paddy found not only drab looking but scope- less for any wall décor. She conceived the idea of stripping the walls of the paneling and building wall niches, within the first 10 minutes of first laying her eyes on this room.However, Paddy gives total credit to her better half for this statement wall. She gushes: "We could have outsourced the project of building niches into the wall to a contractor but my DIY loving civil Engineer husband wanted to do this himself, and he did! He removed the paneling on all four walls in this room, tore the wall to back to the studs and rebuilt it with the embedded niches just as I had designed it. It was a long laborious process that took 9-10 months but the end result was just as I envisioned and more. I painted the niches in terracotta red/orange shade. The choice of this color apart from Fengshui was to hold the flow of color theme between the rooms as well as our outdoor areas"

The tall Antique mirror, another serendipitous find by the couple superbly adds to the gasp-
inducing effect that this wall has, on everyone.

Ah, and that handsome mirror... I know you had your eyes on it ;) The story behind it is equally enticing. Paddy says: "Apart from niches, I also wanted a tall mirror on the same wall for Fengshui as well as aesthetic reasons. So I came up with a design of a tall mirror in the center of this wall and niches on either sides in a particular pattern. We waited until we found the perfect mirror before we set about creating the niches for the wall. It took me about an year to find the mirror I wanted. We found this by chance in a store that imports eclectic furniture from India and Indonesia. This too is made from an Antique south Indian Teak hand carved door frame like a few others I own, and it was love at first sight for both me and my husband. The color of this frame incidentally and miraculously matched our existing foyer cabinet (purchased elsewhere), that is placed right opposite to this wall in the entryway. It is like this piece was made for us and it found us somehow, as against us finding it!"

There is an aura of regality in air here, permeated with sparkles from the crystal chandelier, the
light fixtures and subtle shine from many brass artifacts.

For the formal dining table, the couple wanted a transitional style butcher block table. While Paddy was particular about the look and design, Paddy’s husband who hates regular powder wood furniture, was insistent on it being made of real hard wood and being extra wide. So after much scouting and hunting, the couple found a perfect French furniture designer locally, who exclusively makes custom dining tables. With the inputs and custom requirements from the couple, the furniture designer made a perfect hand carved, hand finished table which now entertains a good flow of guests when they have company.

The radiant niches display Paddy's many brass and bronze collection

The buffet / console cabinet that neatly hides all dining room necessities in this room, was purchased from another store that imports furniture from India and Indonesia. This teak, hand carved cabinet that was in natural lighter shade originally, was stained to match the dining table. 

A close up shot of Buddha vignette with a meditating Buddha statue and a Quan yin statue in a large brass planter.
 

Framed vintage brass artifacts bought from India.

Above the buffet cabinet are framed brass artifacts that Paddy got custom made in orange and green raw silk fabrics, to compliment the colors from the furniture and other objects in this room. The lady, who is near obsessed with the minutest detail of decor also had table runners and napkins custom made to go with the colors from these frames :).

A round up of an envious collection that adds much needed oomph in the room.

Her own buddha art, hanging bells, a mini bar, hand made pottery, antique brass pots. Not
to miss the old chakki she has used for making a mini bar, what a brilliant idea!

As you know by now that Paddy can never have enough of bells and in this room too, she has two hanging bells – one in wood and another in bronze. Also on the wall are two framed Buddha paintings by lady herself. On the other corner is a handmade pottery that she found locally, made by an Indian lady. Having an over flowing collection of vintage and antique brass pots, Paddy placed two of them on this clay pot and used the top one as planter to hold a succulent.

The table is a vision of royal grandeur, with her prized maharaja collection of Kansa dinner set

As grand as this room appears, it gets even more animated and dazzling on special occasions and festivals where Paddy steps it up a notch and serves a traditional meal on a kansa thali. The special table setting on these occasions with the sparkly gold and classy dinner ware on the magnificent table, with a back drop of the dramatic wall makes a visually stunning picture that is whimsical, elegant, glamorous and magnificent all at the same time.

The first visible room upon entry, this lively room appears to have its own heart beat!

All objects and furniture bought from different places at different times, in different styles, originating from different countries, co-exist perfectly in this room in a serendipitous harmony, making it a perfect place to gather and gossip with delicious food.  

As we traipse through this post, one can clearly view the home owner's innate skills and sharp acumen in shaping their home. Paddy take a bow from me for creating such a heavenly place fill with heart and soul.

And for you lovely peeps, as we conclude our part two, hop to part three showcasing rest of the room of this beautiful home. Until we meet again, stay connected, toodles.

(Image Courtesy: Padmaja Rama. The pictures can not be used without a consent  from the home owners, however, you may re-pin them from Pinkz Passion's Pinterest account)