Rangoli - Expression of Cultural Mannerism

Rangoli is woven tightly in our any celebrations, but Diwali witnesses the utmost use of it. It brings the beauty and wonder of Diwali into our home. It is a center of festival celebration, where I slow down and gaze every time I pass by to remind myself that we are in the middle of a very special time of year.

 

In our part of the world, weather is a constraint and we lack gracing our actual entrance, hence the rangoli, like every year, is placed indoor where it creates an instant impact.

 

As a true ‘Ganesha’ fan, we also happen to have a perpetual love of his presence in every décor and style we follow. This year’s rangoli is not an exception. Since tackling the dusty rangoli colors is not my forte, we use two simple ingredients (rice and food colors) to make our rangoli every year. To personalize the design, I threw in some craft mirrors in the design. 

With a bit of effort and imagination we have learn to preserve this tradition alive. It’s the time of the year where, we don’t only connect with one another; we also tie with the past and cherished memories we have created following this tradition. 

 

My law “more is less” is especially apt when it comes to Diwali lights. Stairs are the classic place to display lights, adding an unexpected sparkle. And few scattering tea lights on the rangoli complete the overall effect.

 

Hope the series of Diwali posts were a catalyst in making your home festive ready. As we wrap the last post of the festival, wishing you all a very Happy Festivities at your end. May your home be filled with many memories of the festival. Until we meet again, toodles.

Diwali Home Tour ( Living & Family Rooms)

It is the time of the year when I eagerly crave compliments for our festive adorned home and yes I admit, bagging away applauses for something you feel proud is indeed a best feeling :) This year, sparkling setting with a sophisticated golden theme has made our Diwali perfect, exotic and special. A generous sprinkle of our well envied collection has maximized the impact and made our home festive ready for us and the crowd of friends we entertain every year. In order to capture the magic and spirit of Diwali, I have kept a tight rein on the color palette. Deep red from our entrance has been carried forward into our living room.

Come step in, to tour our festival ready Living Room and Family Room to soak in all the extra special details we deliberated for this year's Diwali.

Coffee table happens to be the centerpiece of any room and adding an element of drama on it will draw an eye with irresistible focus. Let your fertile imagination flow and give a big decor punch for Diwali, by adding a bit of sparkle and shine on your Coffee table. And you will notice how it instantly changes the whole decor dynamics of the room. In our home, our NEW collection, a handsome musical troupe of “Ganesha”, is displayed on our coffee table, adding a new dimension and sparkle to the existing array of displayed collections.

The new frolicking group was pre-destined to join our cherished collection and become our all-time favorite. Here is a closer look for each one. 

By now, you are all aware that brass is a must-have element in my bag of décor tricks. Just as it does for every festive occasion, our collection of brass has cast an inimitable landscape this year too for Diwali. Every successful collection begins with a carefully devised purchase and I want to thank my husband’s keen eye for his addiction of hunting for antiques and one-of- a- kind pieces. It is the allure lent by these treasures that enabled me to shape our home with a sparkling appeal.



Let us dwell a minute on the show stopping corner of our living room. I placed colored votive in a "ghunghroo" embellished plate on the side table to boost the drama. The burst of colors from votive, coupled with the festival staples, the candles and flowers is exuding a warm and welcoming spirit this corner. Come dusk, with the flickering lights splattering colorful hues, this show stopping corner is sure to steal the show from the coffee table ;).

If you have been with  me on my "Diwali with Pinkz" journey on Instagram, you must have seen few of our prized collections. Here is a round up of few for them again for those who missed it. Due to the herculean cleaning task and heftiness, these vintage pieces appear only on special occasions in my décor.

The charming jumble of all traditional artefacts compliment our neo-traditional living room, that has a bit of modernity thrown in from the furniture and other accessories. 

Diwali is rooted in glimmerings and socializing. My most favorite thing during this time, is to spend leisurely evenings with family and friends, basking in the hypnotizing glow cast by the flickering lights. 

As the evening unfolds, beautiful glow spreads out all over the room from liberally placed candles around the room. The blazing fireplace adds the much needed warmth on this nippy fall evenings. With overflowing crowd of friends and family, conversations and giggles in this cozy room make the best memories for years to come. Oh, I love this time :).

Let us step into my family room. I took a creative freedom in my family room as well for the festival. The game here is upped by adding a pop of fuchsia all over the glamorous gold.

I added a thali (plate) to serve as a center tray over my coffee table in family room.  One of the studded 'rangoli’ from my rangoli collection came in handy to work in sync with the colors of the bloom.

I keep trying new approach to freshen up the décor rotating the things I have on my hand. Few beloved ethnic pieces are mixed here with modern elements on the side console table. The juxtaposition of the modern and antique elements stand out with an interesting visual mix.

In order to enhance the depth of the theme of Diwali, every corner is adorned with plentiful glows and fireplace mantel has also became the victim of the same.  Few flickering clay diyas and collective lamps have vivified the otherwise monotonous space here. 
 

The all dressed and festive ready room with luster and shimmer is now calling upon me to relax, put my feet up and enjoy the celebrations.

A piece of work by our teenage daughter on our chalkboard

Wrapping up the post by sending in the good wishes from our family to yours. Have a happy, happier and happiest Diwali  Enjoy the celebrations, gobble up all the goodies and have a blast enjoying the festival. I might squeeze in the rangoli post, so stay connected on facebook page and instagram for more decor inspirations. Until we meet again, toodles!

You may visit our last year's Diwali ready home here and here. If you have missed this year's Diwali decked up entrance head right here.

Exchange of Diwali Creativity

Diwali is time to decorate with absolute abandon and our homes are the highlight of the festive season. My feverish state of ‘impatience’ is cured and “feel good” phase is back as Diwali preparations at my end are perfectly falling in the rhythm.   

Diwali is a wonderful time for creative expressions. The herald of festive season has not only me on a massive decorating mode, but also the mammoth virtual land of social media, which is also brimming with festivity fervor. To bring some inspiration for my dear readers, I reached out to few of our readers and fellow bloggers to share their creative inspirations. They graciously shared their outrageously creative ideas for Pinks Passion, doused with a generous does of glitter and dazzle to match the spirit of Diwali. Preserving the traditional bone, they all have enlivened their dwellings in their own unique style, that reflects a perfect applaud for the festive season. Jump on the bandwagon and enjoy the visuals from their festive homes.

  

 Neha from A Cauldron Full of love  

Neha, an avid gardener, a home decor enthusiast, a self-confessed food connoisseur shares her well thought out vignettes.  

Ganesha Vignette: Every new beginning, everything auspicious in our home and in many Indian households is celebrated with the blessings of Lord Ganpati. This vignette conforms to the same with Lord Ganesha on a peacock throne, tiny elephant diyas, and my favourite Golden pothos. I loved the details on the elephant diyas and instantly bought them for Diwali. 

Buddha Vignette: This Buddha statue holds a special place in my heart for 2 reasons - first, it’s a lovely gift from my MIL and second, if looked closely, it depicts the entire life of Lord Buddha from being a prince to an ascetic to the enlightened one in the form of detailed carvings all over the body. The Buddha symbolizes inner peace and serenity and hence is a focal point in my home. The little bird diyas, an impulse buy from an exhibition and the lotus tea light is from The Purple Turtles, a lovely store in Indiranagar, Bangalore.

Peacock Diya: If there's something that creates a warm, fuzzy feeling in my stomach during Diwali, its the amber glow of the terracotta diyas. As kids, and even now, we light up our oil soaked diyas immediately after our Diwali Puja in every single corner of our home. I loved this beautiful brass peacock diya the moment I set my eyes on it. Here, its set against beautifully woven white chrysanthemums and red roses on my favourite chakki table, which I must add is a versatile canvas for all my vignettes.

 

Shalu From Temple Bells

Shalu, (whose plethora of fantastic treasures we shared here) is a decor enthusiast, shares her  warmly traditional corners where brass, Diyas and flowers are the tag team that make this festival come to life.

Stitching the thread of memories, an eclectic mix of silver and flowers are adding the glorious touches of celebrations at my end. Silverwares are my mom’s handed down heirloom pieces that evoke nostalgia as and when I bring them in my décor.  

Nothing else can beat the gentle glow of flickering diyas and home grown flowers on my brass settings. After rolling up my sleeves and getting my hands dirty on some brass cleaning, finally my console table is adorning few of my priced possession.  

Diwali is a much-loved festival of mine & I think, eat, drink, & sleep decor ideas during this festive season :)! I am a traditionalist of Indian decor and always try to emanate with new ideas every Diwali and this year is no difference, I have used an antique wooden ladle holder to display the flowers & lamps as my table setting for festive spreads.

  

Jayeeta Chakraborti - A reader of Pinkz Passion

 

Jayeeta Chakraborti is a fitness lover and a home decor enthusiast, who also happens to be a loyal reader of Pinkz Passion. Her décor and style are equally inspired by the traditional vibes of India.

Home decor is Yoga for me. This gives me immense joy, motivates me to create something new, helps me release my stress.

Being a Bengali, our main festival is Durga Puja. But we try to celebrate almost every festival whether it is Ganesh Chaturthi or Diwali. I especially do this for my kids so that they learn about our culture. Also when I decorate my home for a festival I feel my home becomes a peaceful place where we all can live happily!

"Less is more" - I try to follow this simple rule when it comes to Diwali home decor. I try to keep things simple yet elegant. I read Indian as well as Western home decor blogs regularly and these are the sources of my many new ideas for home decor. I try to incorporate my own ideas with that and the end results become a whole new thing!

 

Paddy From Decomania 

It would have been a total amiss if I have not asked Padmaja Rama, aka Paddy (whose home we recently show cased here in our home tours segments) to share her festive flavored home, where essence of Diwali is loudly felt. Tucking in the well wishes for the festival, Paddy shares some portraits from her Diwali ready home.

Welcome to the bedecked Rama home during Diwali. Diwali is hands down my most favorite festival, just as it is for millions of other Indians around the globe. Living in the US, there certainly has been a moderation in the way it is celebrated. Nevertheless, we Rama's make every effort possible to keep the traditions alive and make this festival authentic and exciting for our kids. This is the time I try to bring to life, my nostalgic memories from life back in India and re-enact the rituals and the fun activities that I have experienced. I test the limits of my DIY endurance around this time, be it cooking or cleaning or festival decor. 

During Diwali, our home decor gets enhanced with an extra drama quotient, both inside and outside. Kolam/Muggulu, clay diyas, external festival lighting, tea lights, lanterns, flowers, brass, more brass...the house is decked up completely, like a new radiating bride. 

That being said, I do believe in staying green, minimizing the efforts, curbing mindless buying as well as keeping the home safe and kid friendly.

Ultimately, the most important thing, festival or not, is to cherish life, celebrate and create best memories with the true lights of our lives - our beloved family members!

 Dolphia from Story of Cooks

 A bubbly and cheery food blogger with an infectious smile, sends beautiful corners from her contemporary home, brought alive with dramatic Diwali decor.

Diwali meant much more than Durga puja to me. Everyone has their own way of decorating their nest for the festive season. And this is mine, I like cozy, compact settings, because every time I enter it gives me a warm embrace.

I am not a fan of colorful, bling-y products so it’s a tad bit hard to shop for me. I like white and golden when it comes to festive décor, so I invest some golden and earth colored props and perk them up with white flowers.

And as we conclude the post, I want to express my heartfelt thanks to all creative divas, who contributed their Diwali adorned homes for this festive special post. I greatly appreciate this lovely exchange of creativity and hope you dear readers have been inspired thoroughly with the decor ideas.

 

Circle back with me this Thursday for another Diwali Tour of our Living room. If you missed the entrance tour, head straight here for some bite size ideas to adorn your corners. Until we meet again, stay connected on Facebook and Instagram, toodles.

Decked up Entrance - (Diwali Special Part-1)

As we approach Diwali, I cannot help but get nostalgic about my best childhood memories around the festival...the aromas of wonderful traditional food, the spectacle of colorful decorations, the glow of lights in every corner, the thundering sounds of fire-works, oh the euphoria!

Fast forward many years, although the grown up rat-race has subdued my bubbly childhood cravings, the pent up anticipation for Diwali still manages to surge; and I do my best to tackle the feat of earnest celebration with panache. This year is no exception. Welcome to my entry way that is currently brimming with Diwali preparations and inspirations.

On festivals like Diwali, I suffer major transformational moments and for me, nothing heralds Diwali like the eternally elegant brass. This year, a dominant shade of deep red with a lavish dose of sparkling brass is sprinkled throughout our home, fostering a classic traditional palette. Our entrance that usually wows every guest, has been elevated further in style quotient with an extra dose of color and bling.Akin to my changing seasonal wardrobe, I also rotate decorative pieces around the home to complement the passing season and moods. For special festivals like Diwali, some buried treasures are unearthed from my treasure chests and displayed around my home for that extra festival oomph. Like this old fashioned "Jharoka" that adorned the entrance in our old home now comes out for special occasions like this.

Unconventional pieces like my antique brass ice bucket used as a vase here, added that depth and dimension to the shimmering decor here.

The bold palette created with a personalized amalgamation of sparkling brass, colorful flowers, Diwali diyas and the patina of some well-loved pieces enriched the festive look I wanted to orchestrate. If you are visiting first time here, take a glance at the paintings above the console, they are creations of our artist in the house, our teenage daugher.

Our glittery, shiny and gleaming entry way is all set with the spread of festive accessories.

Diwali is the time to spruce up any dull corner begging a zing. Remember, those often forgotten corners offer that unlimited décor prospective to impress your guests upon arrival. The niche beside our staircase also offered a potential of more decorating opportunities and grouping of few metallic accents here, with varied heights made this darling little space a show-stopping alcove.

If you are eyeing those urli stands, they are the our new additions for Diwali this year. I could not pass on the 50% off offer on these awesome pumpkin stands at Pier 1 and they now elevate and display my urlis beautifully at varied heights. Also friends, this is the same treasure chest where all  my goodies jumble when they are not in use ;).

The heirloom piece here with intricate work is an antique brass lamp, displaying a subdued glint through layers of age-induced patina. The brilliant craftsmanship and elegance of this beauty draws attention to its aesthetics and an intrigue for the bygone era.

If you are looking to pep up your decor for this festive season, browse through your collection and build a scheme. You will be surprised at what you can come up with. For the festive punch, diyas add that rich glow and flowers, a freshness in any décor. The combination of both is surprisingly effective. I didn't shy away from using the vast collection of my clay and brass 'diyas' that I layered together, perking up the corners with a bold radiance. 

The wooden engraved box is also another recent addition from Home Sense Canada. The rich gold details on the box with some diyas perched on top, adds some visual drama to this corner.  

As a concluding visual, here is a bird's eye view from the stairs, where the lit diyas in a dramatic setting brings to life, our dull nook that has now become a highlight of our entryway.

Hope you all get a good boost out of all the sparkling ideas in the post and will now spruce up your place with this inspiration. I do have a number of more posts including a Diwali tour of our Living Room planned for you between now and Diwali, so I better get busy! And for you lovely peeps, stay connected on Facebook and Instagram for more decor sagas to celebrate Diwali with me, until we meet again, toodles! 

A Dash of Glam on your table ( Diwali Tablescape)

Come of Diwali season and I get into the décor mode with the frenzy. Décor mania has gripped me very hard just like every year and I have started weeding through the best of my décor pieces to reflect Diwali cheer at my end. Along with delectable array of Diwali feasts, treat the eyes of your guests on a dining table laden with loads of sparkle and glimmer. Adding a festive interior spice will make that royal-on-going festivity of chiming cocktails, devouring Diwali delicacies and delicious tête-à-têtes into a memorable one.  

If you haven’t yet given a thought of your festive tablescape for this year, let me help you construct one with the kind of things you use all year.  The series of such small pieces at my end have created a larger impact on the table occupying as layers for the festival. 

The Diwali table is one place, I love to play and plan even before deciding the menu. A fine idea was brewing in my mind to use these brass coasters (recent loot from Home Sense) on my Diwali Tablescape and 'ta-da' they look fantabulous. 

For that extra little glittering effect, I went overboard with the self-adhesive ribbon from Michael’s. It was super easy to peel and paste on my bare table runner. To add more interest, I also tried the ribbon on some ordinary looking candle votive. And I think I got lucky to achieve that richer look on the table, what say?  

Along came the “Navratri” bangles as candle votive on the table. These bangles are a token of love from a dear aunt but they unfortunately didn’t fit me and I didn’t have heart to pass it on to someone else. With their flashy color, I decided to let them join us on the tablescape :). They befitted perfectly with my golden theme.

 

For a festive look, choose metallic colors such as brass and silver, they are not only timeless but they never fail to cast a spell to bright up a space.

Try a hint of red, it always works for me. From flowers to candles to tablemats, few thoughtful touches of red can go a long way with your any decorative style.

It doesn't take a lot of time or money to create a beautiful table....just a bit of imagination. Muster up some table skills and run with this as an inspiration to build one with an easy, cozy vibe so you can wonderfully smug about having it all done for the crowd of your favorite people.  You may also refer to my last year's 'Diya tablescape' here.   

We have couple more Diwali Inspiration posts lined up next for you all, so, until we meet again, stay connected on Facebook page and Instagram feeds of Pinkz Passion, toodles!