A Year End Post!

With the lingering haze of sleep and nerve grinding Toronto cold weather, I am wrapping my mind around with the possibilities of words to shape up this last post of the year. Although, this is the busiest time of the year, keeping my nagging worries aside I am pretending to be in the state of a controlled chaos (with our upcoming travel) and connecting with you all for the last post.  

I am totally bogged down (with a thought of long travel), my stress level is through the roof (managing all the packing) and I can‘t keep calm (with all the excitement of a family wedding). For now I am going to let them slide and pretend they are not part of my life and daydream about the choices I might have to ‘spoil’ me with my long & weighty shopping list of silk sarees and glistening jewelry. Shopping is undoubtedly one of the most exciting aspects of the entire wedding preparations….probably more when it’s an immediate family wedding.

However I find it overwhelming …even though I have precise favorite shopping places, a favorite designer, hundreds of photos saved on my phone and many pieces stored back in the memory of my head…I feel finding the perfect piece or saree is a daunting task especially when you are ‘oh so old-school’ & fussy kind of a person when it comes to settle from the latest flashy trends. No matter what the latest trends say, my fashion funda is clear, I wear something without any pressure from any trends, grace and sophistication comes easily to me when I am sticking with my love for traditional.

Apart from shopping, excitement level is soaring higher thinking about all the massive spread of food and festivities. Feasting on an unending menu of multi-cuisine delicacies and dreaming about dressing in best of the attire we are ready to stir up some fun at a family wedding. There are some typical glitches of travelling overseas but the satisfaction of meeting and mingling with family and friends is worth everything.  

Humming the tune of excitement and with butterflies in my stomach….we are so ready but how could I leave without wishing you all well at the year end for all the love. As we close the year end post, acknowledging each one of you for being a part of my passion. Thank you for your unwavering support and sticking around. Shall crack open new decorative adventures in the coming year. Until then, if you are travelling like us or staying home to enjoy the magical time of Christmas...wishing you and your family the very best of the holidays and a happy new year! 

You may stay connected with me on my Instagram to #travelwithpinkz stories until my return on the blog. A big e-hug to all of you, toodles! 

Desi DIY sisters (Home Tour)

I stepped into Divya’s home the other day (virtually via Instagram) and kept ogling there with my eyes wide open for quite some time. Clearly, her home is a passion of her fun and fresh DIYs combined with the respect of Indian traditions. Dazzled by her brilliance, in a light hearted take, I took a leap into that unknown person’s inbox and fortunately my bravery paid off and Divya agreed to have her home featured on my blog here.

But wait, my story doesn’t end here. From her response I learnt it’s not one but two sisters in-charge (Divya & Sravani) who have made their creativity run rampant while making their DIY vision come to life. Most of their creations are heritage exposition that represent the rich cultural imprints of India & their discerning aesthetic strokes via good dose of DIY. While injecting their elbow grease with pure heart and soul, to some extent, they both are truly leading advocates for recycling/up-cycling turn trash into treasure and help save the environment in course.

Dive with me into the world of these DIY overrode homes as I uncover what goes into bringing their vision to reality. The process in each of their home is solely orchestrated and monitored by each sister individually.

Divya's Home:

Divya has trained her eyes to take one step further in an innovative way. She spent hours scrolling through the web to find a piece befitting her whimsy of entrance console, but nothing really made her heart hum. That’s when she decided to look for some antique pieces that she could enforce her charm over. By rubbing her sweat, passion and never-say-die spirit, the creation unfolded into the most talked about piece.  This is a transformation from an old brown console table to a beautiful peacock double colored console table. Isn't it so pretty? To attempt your hands on this DIY go here.  

A vintage approach to this console leaves every visitor enchanted by its beauty. Such clever use of color, well-chosen accessories and imaginative table top display hints away pride of Divya.      

Spontaneous projects thrill Divya. Magic happens when something unique like this temple bell coffee table is made impromptu out of nothing special. She totally upped the game of this ordinary old glass table that she bought for only $10, (yes re-read the price) by turning it into an envy inducing piece. DIY like this piece can also be a great way to cut some decorating cents, wouldn't you agree? Go here to see how the piece came together.

The resulting piece now serves as an anchor in her attractively decorated living room. Enticing display of brass and a dash of Indian soul in Divya’s living room emphasize cozy simplicity.   

The spirit of Indian traditional décor eases its way through room eventually touching every corner. Good dose of brass bells always bring well-edited elegance in any traditional Indian décor, without falling out of style. I loved the idea of placing a brass bell on a wooden panel for a dramatic outcome.    

Though Divya’s coffee table makes a statement on its own, whatever she places on top is just an added bonus. To reflect the traditional tone and inject personality of one’s ‘desi soul’ brass always earns to exude that magnetic charm.

My eyes go right in to the envious pieces of brass and Buddha Divya owns. Just like me, she is unapologetically leashed to creating these vignettes around the home to keep the corners alive and engaging. Also, as I know many of my readers are in search of these lotus candles that Divya has dotted promptly, hence upon request Divya kindly shared the source of them. Here is the link to purchase them from Amazon, India.

Divya also channels her talent through some living things such as this mini open air tabletop garden in a terrarium. This super easy to make and incredibly low-maintenance terrarium is perfect for people like me who are botanically inept. This gold terrarium planter falls perfectly in the rhythm with Buddha and naturally enlivens her Zen-corner in the home. If you are in a mood to create one for yourself or as a gift, head right here.

Being a profound thinker, our DIY diva has her own way to nurture her spirit and reflect her personality. Giving her creative persona some freedom, she spins unfinished & rustic pieces into a surface that sings. With her ingenious touches, Divya made this discovery of wood pallet outdoor dining table more pleasurable than expected. She richly layered the top with burlap runner and few assortments of flickering candles making it a breathtaking venue for your impromptu dinner nights during summer months.

What a fun way to make a stark space into a soothing refuge. The end result ticked off functional and decor field of the home owner. If you ever invite me, I wouldn’t mind juicy tête-à-tête (of course about your DIY) and fun bites in that area Divya ;). Go here if this inspires to create one for your backyard.

When one door closes, another exciting DIY opportunity opens. And that’s what happened when Divya caught the wind of what she was exactly looking for. Divya was always crazy with the Indian aged doors of a bygone era. Fascination of antique doors that were part of her childhood is finally made by diva herself from scratch to add much color, character and added life in her living room that will always make her feeling nostalgic. Well worth the wait for something actually make exactly the way you want, I would say not exactly but way better! This is my personal favorite pick from all of her DIYs. Head here for making this DIY Antique Door.

Sravani's home:

DIY bug is genetic in both the sisters and they enthusiastically brain-storm every project personally according to the need and style of their homes. As we head to Sravani’s home the very first DIY is hand painted console table.

With the life-long obsession that Sravani had for ‘muggu’ designs, she succumbed to the lure by painting one herself on this console. When you put your elbow grease, sweat (and frustration some time) the act of creating something into a piece like this seems to imbue it with addition value above and beyond its inherent quality. Go here to see the entire make-over of this tremendously detailed hand painted console. 
Practice that rose out of Sravani’s childhood of sitting on the floor while eating made her take a route bold enough to follow her heart. With the deepest passion of DIY, they transformed a regular dining table little by little into a low sitting table. The table that is made according to tailor choices of the family’s own style and preference now establishes a decorative tone in the dining room of Sravani.

Closer look of the dining table design. I found the decoupage project quite intriguing and impressive. Go here to see the process and procedure of the dining table make-over. Draw your eyes on the corbel in this dining room, which is another brilliant DIY of Sravani. She recalls this project as ‘Creativity with neediness’. Having no place of handful brass bells that she got from India, she invented a fresh and unconventional approach of dangling them on the carved bookend that she found from HomeGoods. All she did is just gave the piece few licks of paint and “ta-da” the piece now is championing a unique and One of a Kind look.

Sravani claims this etched glass door as a simple project that turned a mundane glass door into a piece of art. Simple? I remember breaking the bank up to have this door installed professionally for our temple room ;). I am just in awe with your creativity girl! And inside peek at her temple room where good amount of brass bells flanked on both side of the temple hitting off the right note of the place. 

Passion and focused approach has helped Sravani to achieve many unique and successful DIYs under her belt. One of them is this day bed that she found in white color at World Market. But white wasn't just right for this color savvy design diva. An eye with creative endeavor as well as color love , made Sravani imbue her style with a hint of risk and adventure by painting it in a tiffany blue. Me thinks, the color brought out the heavy duty historic character in the piece.

As we conclude this post, I truly hope this home tour will keep you happily occupied for this holiday season to knock off few DIY's around your home while compelling you to attempt your hands on outside of your comfort orbit. My gratitude extends to Divya and Sravani for throwing the doors of their DIY friendly homes open for my readers.

Do share your feedback writing which DIY inspired you the most? Also connect with these DIY divas here to see their upcoming projects and take inspirations from. Until we meet again, stay connected lovely peeps, toodles!

(Images are taken by DIY SISTERS). Please do not use the images without the prior written permission of the home owner and Pinkz Passion however, you may re-pin them from Pinkz Passion's Pinterest account) 
  

Stylish and Edgy with a Touch of Tradition (Parikh's Home Tour)

There is something intrinsically pleasing about today’s post. Unlike our traditional home tours, this beautiful and opulent home tour will raise the spirits of contemporary and traditional lovers. Come along to a very stylish and edgy home tour of a power couple who are popularly known for their diverse design sensibilities and who love to be in the presence of beautiful ambience. While carefully and tastefully decorating their home, they have won to keep the elegance and simplicity with a touch of tradition. 

A wall decal in the family's kitchen

Keeping it sane while getting adventurous with bold color combinations and quirky accessories, this fashion forward home of Kishan & Sejal Parikh perfectly captures couple's charming qualities and One-Of-A-Kind décor style.    

                                        
Kishan, a technophile IT professional, has dotted geek gadgets throughout the home (There is a home automation (smart home) done through music system and Alexa  
App, which can play the music the family wants as well as controls smart lights and thermostat - freaky isn't it?) and Sejal an ambitious corporate lady and a glamorous diva, who thinks outside the blueprint and maps out every detail when it comes to peaceful & pleasing decor that couple envisioned for their home! The empty nesters whose son is now in university are enjoying their new phase of life with a positive outlook.  

Parikh's excelled at the shopping part and have ordered custom pieces throughout the home. Standard furniture or accessory wasn't their suit, instead they settled in for impeccable materials that created quirky vibes to style their space. And one can definitely nod in agreement when they land to this chic, urban entry way dotted with a modern setting. The eye-catching pedestal and bright chandelier bring a bit of subtle sophistication and striking appeal to the entrance of the home.

Monochromatic color schemes might sound the easiest palette to execute, yet it can be so challenging to get it right. With muted tones of bold and brilliant color duo of black and white, the couple opted to go with a color combination that is always hip and works well with any theme. As told by the duo: "We remember the origin to this idea was a visit to a model home setup at one of the home shows we attended years and years ago. The first project therefore turned out to be the family room with a black and white theme. Numerous visits to furniture shops resulted in us acquiring the main furniture anchor pieces in both black and white - a set of trendy black and white chairs, a white Italian leather Daybed, a majestic white quartz top bay window sitting area and a matching carpet with a futuristic high gloss center table complete the look. The smaller decor pieces keep on arriving as and when we find them. Circulating these keeps this room fresh, dynamic and agile."

Totally, the soft washed family room is a place where one can feed all your senses, enjoy the touch of textures and visual treat of favorite art pieces of the family. With plenty of comfortable seating the space is perfect for solo brainstorming or entertaining a crowd of people. To maximize the sitting area the custom-made bay-window is included in design scheme which makes the beautiful planted backyard part of the room from giant windows, where they convene, entertain and enjoy each other.

After playing with absolutely fail-safe black and white combo, the couple let their imagination run riot with the most brazen hues in the living room. It is drummed into us that color is the greatest way to convey personality and this room without a fail is a fabulous reflection of couple’s style where there was no fear of big bright splatter of color and playful prints. Totally opposite adroit mix of vibrant tangerine and green apple imbues the room with energy while making it a juicy conversation zone for their guests.
What the couple has to say about this room: "We went all out and took the boldest route. Intense internet browsing sessions followed to identify the combination. We zeroed in on an orange and green combination - one high on the boldness scale! A living room does not give as much flexibility in decorating options as a family room. The approach was cautiously bold. We decided to bring in the walls before we proceed on to the furniture and wall art.  The wall when colored gave an A+ look. That brought us the confidence to match the color of the furniture pieces to that of the wall." and oh boy, modern they went!  The bold C-shaped ouches are entirely made-to-order befitting the space requirements of the room. Small visual echoes - such as the graphic rug, abstract art work and the black accent wall ties the room together and makes the look perfectly balanced instead of overwhelming. By mixing the hot hues of vibrant tangerine and apple green with taming neutrals like grey and black gives this room an entirely new spin. Captivating natural black accent wall with stones is an immediate eye catcher. With accent lights overhead the charming wall creates an enchanting effect at night. 

A thoughtful evaluation process has helped the home owners to hone the game plan of their kitchen. Their kitchen is a hefty financial investment where they put their own stamp and design including the flushed in refrigerator and dishwasher. As they coined out about their fuss-free, minimalist and chic kitchen : “Both of us also love a modern style of decor which you will find as a constant across our home and lives. A bunch of ideas in the kitchen here also came from what we missed in our previous home’s kitchen”.
The strikingly clean and undeniably stylish kitchen at Parikh’s does not play a role for the preparation and dishing up of food but this place is amalgamated into a multipurpose zone. The island offers an extra ordinary chance to make a spectacular statement. Parikh’s are the confident hosts and love to entertain friends with their culinary activities.Consistent modern style of decor is carried forward in most of the rooms except their temple room where they let their Indian traditional roots to take over their modern perspective. As told by the couple:"Taking time out to tastefully decorate is a challenge in our highly engaged lives. However, we do not compromise on quality or the outcome. Projects are taken up one at a time to do proper justice and obtain full satisfaction be it a kitchen, a backyard, prayer room, family room or the living room. We like to be bold and trendsetting.” 

Trendsetters indeed! A Meticulously adorned temple room of Parikh's is a visual treat with devotional art and geometric patterns on the wall. The ever enchanting effigy of “Lord Krishna’ is transported via courier from India especially for the temple room.  Sharp features and sweet smile on this figurine makes one completely mesmerizing. The couple treasured those kutchhi embroidered pieces that once belonged to their parents and framed them to keep as a memory. The altar where the ‘murti’ is placed is a DIY weekend project that couple took over. Not settling for anything usual, the couple decided to make-over this corner with few clever touches on a simple IKEA TV table. With the help of white sheer drapes and red backdrop they won to create a perfect temple like ambience in the room.

As I am concluding the post, anyone can easily belt out that the home owners are high performers when it comes to home decor; their wild working lifestyle didn’t put them away from achieving a warm and inviting space that says ‘Welcome Home’ every time anyone walks in the door. Thank you Parikh's for opening your home and heart for us. Wishing the family all the very best of the world.

I am pleased to be launching this unique and modern home tour on the blog that’s been in the works and kicking around my mind for months now, hope you all my readers enjoyed it as much as I had fun putting it together, until we meet again, have a great rest of the week, toodles!

(Images are taken by Pinkz. Please do not use the images without the prior written permission of the home owner and Pinkz Passion however, you may re-pin them from Pinkz Passion's Pinterest account)