My Prized Possessions: Ganesha at Home :)

I often get emails and messages for a tour of my house. Loads of motivation from blogger friends and I decided to show case my abode and the curios I have collected over the years. Nothing better than starting the feature with my Ganesha. *

My Love for brass has been there forever now. Vacations with parents in Tamil Nad n kerala (Southern States in India) meant trips to temples and a compulsory detour to old markets laden with beautiful handmade brass and bronze artifacts. I am quite blessed to have found pieces I love. My collection has grown over the years.  Do enjoy the vignettes :)

My love for music prompted me to pick this up. It has been there with me for over a decade. I fondly call the set

Kaccheri pillayar or The Ganeshas in Concert :)

The relaxing ganesha enjoying a quite evening

another vignette of the same idol

And ending this post with my ultra modern singing ganapathy (a.k.a. ganesha) the lord is holds a sitar (musical instrument) and seems to enjoy the outdoors a lot :)

A  few friends tease me about this idol and call it Organic pillayaar Ganesha). The reason behind this is Lord Ganesha is known for his love for food. Its very rare to find an idol with out a belly :). This idol was a gift from a dear friend and is lean and unconventional.

Also read about my handmade Ganeshas for the Ganesh Chathurthi festival. Loved doing the post. Thanks for stopping by :).




PS:  Coming up with a wonderful home tour. So stay tuned

*In Hinduism, Lord Ganesha is considered the remover of obstacles :)

Vintage love ~ chairs !!

Found these beauties for sale on the local garage sale site. Contacted the seller for more information and was told they were custom made around 40 years ago. Ah! and they are in perfect condition. While I type this post, they are on their way to a loving home. 

Pic: with seller's permission

Type of furniture: Retro, clean line

material: leather and rosewood

Brand: custom made

Era: 1970s

Disclaimer: all information as provided by the seller and posted with seller permission

Antique Fire blower - Bellow

A dear friend Anpu was fascinated by this vintage find in Dubai and bought it. It is a fireplace bellow blower or the आग धौंकनी. It is used for strong blasts of air and used in the Bedouin households while cooking..the 3 holes at the back of the tool let's the air in.  The tribe used this device for rekindling the kitchen hearth when they settled in the evening.

Beautiful isn't it. She has made it into a neat accessory near the fireplace

Pics: Anpu

Item: Fire blower

Amazing Antiques ~ Teak / rosewood Laundry bins

I grew up seeing this piece of furniture, called mail daan or laundry basket. They were used in homes in the Tamil Nad, Andhra and other parts of the country.  These smart looking, well designed bins were made of teak or rosewood, and used to store/pile clothes until laundry was done.

The design is quite similar to that of a post box with the exception that the top is a lid with a latch. Soiled clothes were dumped from above and collected from a slot/door below. 

source : local seller

Type of furniture: Laundry Bin
Country of origin: India 
Year/era: most over 100- 60 years old
Wood: rosewood or teak 
Design era: Art deco/mid century style clean lines / colonial with cane or carvings
Dimensions: 3' x 1' x 1' (generally)


Hand washing and line drying clothes are daily rituals in Indian homes. Such bins fill in a single day given that most were joint families with at least two or sometimes three generations living together. 

There is another story of why these bins/basket were very popular - there were times when many families relied on a dhobi (washerman). And the bin came in handy to manage soiled clothes until the washerman came in to collect clothes on the laundry day.  There could be slight variations to the design but the overall look and feel remains same. However, lack of space makes it difficult to have such pieces at home :) nowadays. 

PS: I keep finding them on reselling and craigslist kind of sites. And get so tempted in getting one home

  

Green design: Preethi's Fan blade Lamp ~ DIY

I have already spoken about this amazing lady on the blog here. Preethi is full of surprises. This time around, she made a set of pendant lamps from discarded fan blades.

 And here is the story in her own words.

"Pendant lights can be expensive and yet not unique. Here is a quick DIY pendant lights idea. 

On my last trip to the weekly Bangalore Sunday market, which happens on the BVK Iyengar Road, I chanced upon these table fan blades in different colors. They weren’t pretty when I saw them, I had to look through a load to get the least dented ones, but I think I could see through the dusty blades and I had an instant idea. I picked up four of them and they sat in a corner of the house for a few weeks before the time came for it to see the light of the day."

"So when I was decorating my husbands office meeting room, I visualized the three fan blades hanging from the ceiling above the table. I wanted a retro feel in that space, and the fan blades were best suited there.  I brought them out and shined them with some soap water and wet rag."

What I used for this project?

• 3 meters of wire (White)
• 3 white bulb holders
• One metal wire manager strip ( can find in any lighting shop)
• 3 LED bulbs

How I did it? 

"It was just a matter of cutting the wires to 3 different length, attaching the holder and passing it through the fan blades. The wire manager holds the wire tightly in place and conceals the wires connections. Since the connections to be made to the existing building wiring, it needed an electrician for installation. And it was done! 

I think it turned out pretty cool, and I am quite proud of it. It sort of fit perfectly into the theme and looks very impressive."

Awesome is't it. 

I had to feature this as it works so well and it goes so well with my green design ethos :). Need to see more of her awesome DIYs? Hop over to her space... preethiprabhu.com

Thanks a ton for sharing the DIY with me Preethi. :)

PS:
She is an entrepreneur and deals in Indian handicrafts and exclusive textiles. I hope to do a tour of her awesome office space she did recently... :)