Outdoor Entertaining Colour Schemes :: Colours of Rajasthan, India

The best thing about moving house is when you go through those last few boxes and discover old picture frames, holiday photos, lamps, ceramic bowls and items you purchased on holiday and packed away years ago as you never found a natural home for them. 

With this mind and together with my fond memories of India I would like to add a splash of colour to my outdoor entertaining space and finally find a home for those packed away holiday purchases. 

I am literally starting form scratch as I currently have no outdoor furniture.

So where do I start?... With a colour mood board and a theme. 

My colour theme for my outdoor dining area is going to be that of the intense mix of colours that I have found across India and especially Rajasthan. 

Here's my colour board below...

I have added a few photos from my travels along with my favorite colours & textiles. This blend of  bright colours instantly brings back happy memories of my travels. 

Yes you really can take a photo like this. The cows love the camera!

I cannot take credit for these photos as they are by others.
I have added these images so that you can see how intense colour really is in Rajasthan, from the sari fabrics through to the window frames and architecture.

For this type of colour scheme to work I will use intense colour across fabrics and cushions and keep the seating and furniture quite neutral, maybe white cane seats and white washed recycled timber.

This exercise is not something I am going to solve overnight but by starting with a colour board and theme it will help me keep focused on a clear approach.

Have fun.

Fabrics of India :: Indian Sari Fabric

On my last few days in India I had the pleasure of shopping for silk sari material to send back to Australia. 

Inspired by this wall hanging from a restaurant called Dal Roti in Fort Kochi that had been created from hand loomed cotton sari material, I was looking to source some fabric that can be used to make artwork for a rather large white wall I have at home. 

Artwork from Dal Roti (Left Image)

Sari material would be perfect for the job as each piece is about 5 metres in length and can come with different patterns printed within the one piece. Each piece of the artwork can then be created from different parts of the same fabric used to make up a complete sari.

Shopping for the sari material is quite an experience! First you are asked what price range you want to choose from and are then seated at the appropriate place along a long wide table that weaves it way around the shop in front of the hundreds of shelves full of amazing material. After explaining the colours and styles you are looking for the sales staff bring you a range of 5m long folded silk saris to choose between. As they extravagantly unfurl each sari it soon becomes clear why you need such a long table to see the complete design!

Shopping and fabric overload!

In my case I was looking for fabric that I can hang on the wall and had to ask the staff to hold these impressive 5m long pieces of fabric high up so that I could see what it would look like. This selection alone needed three people to hold it up!

After what seemed like many hours I had to rationalise my selection to just a few saris and walk away from the many beautiful designs that remained.

My final fabric selections

The fabrics have now been sent back home and I just cannot wait to get back in May to take another peak and start transforming them into artwork.

Have fun.

Modern Art Deco :: Trinity, Malabar house, Fort Cochin, Kerala

This beautiful home dates back to 1740 and was the headquarters of the Dutch East India Company here in Kochi, Kerala.

What caught my eye with this lovely property was the architectural style, original reclaimed features and bold use of colour used to create these colonial styled villas built around private courtyards. 

Each villa has it's own indoor-outdoor bathroom next to a courtyard with an outdoor shower that uses a large metal bowl set into pebbles for it's base.

There is also a vast range of eye-catching artwork and sculptures arranged around the house and a beautiful collection of Art Deco furniture interspersed with modern furniture.

The terracotta ceiling tiles

Eye-catching artwork and sculptures

The entrance and building style

With this style of modern architecture along with the use of original features like the original terracotta tiles within the vaulted ceilings, there is a strong sense of history and character that you would struggle to achieve with a regular plasterboard ceiling and rendered walls!

Have fun.

Handbuilt Eco Cottages :: The Bohemian Masala, Varkala, India

A few weeks back I stumbled across The Bohemian Masala, a slightly different approach to an eco resort tucked away behind the main tourist strip in Varkala, Kerala. 

The resort contained a number of curious, indigenous hand built mud eco cottages. 

Each cottage has been designed on plan for maximum airflow and constructed with handmade mud bricks. The walls were then plastered using a traditional method of applying clay rich mud and cow dung and then painted with natural pigments such as red brick dust, flowers and herbs.

The pigment for the black floors is carbon from burnt coconut husks that has been given a top coat of wax to seal the floors. The thick brick walls, use of small windows and traditional plaster create a surprisingly cool room.

Also, a mix of secondhand ceramic tiles and palm leaves have been used to construct the roofs. All the timber used is sourced from ex plantation stock coconut trees.

For the interiors all the furniture is handmade with local ex plantation stock timber from a mixture of coconut and jack fruit trees. 

All the fabrics for the ceilings, curtains and wall coverings have been made from secondhand sari material.


What a great way to use up all those old sari's.


Have fun.

Chic Colonial Indian Design style :: The Raheem Residency, Kerala, India

This beautiful heritage residence caught my eye last year when I was looking for interesting places to stay in Kerala over the Christmas and New Year period. 

You really feel that you are in your own private palace!

Originally built by an Englishman in 1868, this beautiful house was purchased in the 19th century by Mr Raheem who moved his family from the Indian state of Gujarat to the thriving port town of Alleppey.

In 2003 the home was purchased by it's current owners who undertook the process of converting the run down home into a chic boutique hotel whilst retaining and restoring its original classical colonial Indian style. The new hotel was re-named the Raheem Residency. 

With ornate antique timber furniture and interesting objet d'art scattered around, this boutique home has an amazing mix of traditional Indian colonial elegance and a quirky chic style set in a lovely heritage residence. 

Such amazing carved timber detailing and unusual pieces of artwork... 

Now this is what you call a four poster bed Indian style!
Images courtesy of The Raheem Residency

Now this is truly a chic colonial heritage hotel and I am so glad I had the opportunity to visit such an amazing place.

Happy New Year.

Coastal Decoration Indian Style :: Goa, India

I am always drawn to the colour and texture when I walk along a beach and it's a pleasant surprise to find so much inspiration on Indian beaches...

These beach huts at Cozy Nook use decorative timber screens as the downstairs entrance wall and look stunning against a the natural bamboo backdrop. 

In contrast these images are of fishing nets, timber panelling, ceramic pots, fabrics and other objects that have now found a new uses. 

Next stop the beaches of Kerala.

Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Beach Huts :: Ordo Sounsar, Palolem Beach, Goa, India

I normally like my accommodation to be more permanent in construction but while in Southern Goa, I had the pleasure of staying in an amazing quiet bamboo hut resort called Ordo Sounsar on Palolem beach.


After crossing an interesting little bamboo and timber draw-bridge you find this resort tucked away down the quieter northern end of the beach.

The interesting thing about this resort is that all these beach huts are constructed new each season by the resort staff from locally sourced sustainable materials. 

In fact each resort in Palolem is required by the state government to keep records showing where they obtained the materials as taking timber etc from the local forests is forbidden. Most of the materials therefore comes from local mills which certify the material is from either trees which fall naturally during the monsoon season or from plantation stock. 

Also, where possible any equipment and materials that will survive the monsoon are stored on the property for next season.

Each hut comes with an outdoor shower and as the resort is surrounded by forest you can also share your outdoor shower with it's local resident monkeys hanging around high up in the trees!

So when it comes to decorating the resort the use of only local materials make for interesting natural design elements; bamboo weave is used to make vessels for lamp shades; timber off cuts are used for decks, bridges and furniture; rope and coir are used for ceiling features and balustrades; palm leaves are used for roofing; wicker and cane are used to weave lanterns and draped fabrics are used to clad ceilings.

A fantastic use of natural and local materials and an amazing place to stay! Also a huge thanks to Sera, LD, Shelly and the team for being great hosts :)

Have fun.

Coastal Colours & Textures :: Goa, India

I have been taking some much needed rest in the very nice beach area of Palolem in Southern Goa. 

I couldn't help but notice the beautiful colours of the beach huts and boats as well as the use of local textiles and fabrics. 

Absolutely stunning and inspirational. It is a delight to see this bold use of contrasting colours against the backdrop of sand and sea!

Have fun.

Colours of Diwali : The Festival Of Lights

Diwali is one of my favourite festivals. 

In the past I have witnessed this in both Nepal and India but as I have not left yet I shall pop into Brisbane tonight to join the crowds, enjoy some fine Indian food and listen to some loud Bollywood style music!

This festival means the triumph of good over evil. For me I just love the amazing contrasting colours created by this festival, the oranges, the reds, the pinks and the warmth of candle light. 

During this festival I have seen people hang lanterns and burn candles at their front doors, whilst most homes display Rangoli artwork at their entrances, garden areas and even on entire floors. 

This intricate artwork and patterns can be made from petals, flowers, coloured sand, rice or chalk powder. 

Here is some entrance artwork of Ganesh!

If you are interested at looking at how to decorate for Diwali check out this link for some great ideas.

Only a few weeks left till I am off to Nepal... Yippee...

Have fun.

Glamping & Luxury Tents :: Aman-i-Khas, Rajasthan

I am off on a leadership training weekend today and camping is going to be only form of accommodation... I do love sleeping outdoors but given the choice between my two-man tent or glamping I am afraid I would have to choose the creature comforts of glamorous camping.

So this has given me an idea to research what is out there in the way of luxury tents  and checking some out on my next travels.

The first one that captures my eye is Aman-i-Khas. This is a wilderness camp of 10 air-conditioned tents surrounded by the Aravalli Hills and located on the edge of Rajasthan's Ranthambore National Park in India. 

I have actually been to this National Park a few years before this beautiful resort was built. Never mind... maybe next time.

images via Aman-i-Khas

As you can see from these photos each tent is like a luxury apartment surrounded by soaring canopies of fabric draped in a Moghul style. 

I am sure from my past experience with this level of accommodation in India, the level of service and attention to detail will be impeccable. Also one can not forget the amazing peace and tranquility that comes with staying in a National Park and the chance to see a Tiger from the back of an elephant.

If I return to India this would definitely be on my bucket list for places to stay.

Have fun this weekend.