Hope you all had a great weekend. We are starting off this week with a new series featuring homes of my dear readers.
Welcome to the beautiful home of Sruthi & Giridhar. They are avid collectors of antiques and love to fill their home with finds from their travels. In her own words, “My husband Giridhar and I bought our first home in 2011 in Ashburn, VA. Since then it had been overwhelming to decide which rooms to do first, what style to decorate in, our budget and of course the house had to be kid friendly (we have a six year old son). We also wanted to create a warm and inviting space for ourselves. For the first floor we planned to carry an Indian theme through out. The colors we were drawn to were deep reds, greens and oranges. So last summer when I visited India I was on a ” mission” to find the right decor for our house. And what better place to find these than my mom’s home since she is an avid antique collector herself. I didn’t have to look beyond her house and of course my husband and I had our own little collection from our house back in India as well. My luggage had nothing but all of that you see in the pics”.
Her foyer;
The home is filled with artifacts from Rajasthan, Orissa, Kerala (Cochin), Nepal ( Bhaktapur), Tamil Nadu (Kallakuchi), Singapore, Sri Lanka and Thailand to name a few. Her family room features her brass artifact collection and one of a kind palanquin paintings.
She says, “The paintings of the palkis/palanquins were something I fell in love with the moment I saw them. Picked out the frames myself and wanted them done in fiber glass so that they would not break during transportation ( had at least a hundred tags of FRAGILE taped to the side of the suitcase). The Brass artifacts on the treasure chest coffee table are my favorite. The brass lady holding the lamp (tallest one) is more than 100 years old and it belongs to my great grand mom (heirloom piece). Some of the other artifacts were back from our scouting trips that my husband and I would take on the week ends back in India.
Another favorite happens to be the hanging lamps. I already had two of my own lamps and then found these gorgeous wood carvings. The thought of flanking these on either side of the wooden gopura in the center got me thinking that I needed two more lamps. So I got two more carved from a person we know back in India.”
The other side of the family room;
“The wooden plant holder on the coffee table is from our trip to Cochin. Found these lovely set of wooden containers that were used to store salt and other spices. Didn’t know then what I’d be doing with them. But for the price of Rs. 200 for 4 I had to get them. So here it is after a coat of dark polish and varnish.”
A view of the dining room from the family room;
A close up of the mirror and the Buddha statue;
Don’t you just love it when you can look around your home and your decor accessories or furniture brings back sweet memories of old times? It is for all those simple moments that we need to surround ourselves with things we love. Truly, Sruthi’s home tells her family’s story.
Beautiful home, I heart Shruti’s coffee table. Brass knick-knacks are icing on the cake. Thanks Vidya for sharing!!
This is a beautiful home. Love the foyer table and their coffee table. Also, the wooden peacocks on the side add a lovely touch.
Great job sis! Your house looks amazing (as usual)! I love the fact that you keep things fresh by moving things around every few months. Cant wait to see the next set of photos 🙂 xxx
It is easily one of THE MOST beautiful houses I have ever seen!
Well done Sru & Giri! What a gorgeous house! Classy & cosy at the same time 🙂
hey..where i can the gopuras used for hanging the lamps…what are they called…where can i find that in cochin, kerala?
btw, you have a lovely home and nice sense of decoration! well done!
You could try the antique stores in Fort Kochi. They’ll definitely have them. Here’s a link to the post about our trip to Fort Kochi in Dec.
http://devl.whatsurhomestory.com/antiquing-in-jew-st-fort-kochi/
Enjoyed reading your post….visit to fort cochin…
liked the part
“By now I was totally behaving like a kid in a candy store, squealing, grabbing things of the shelves yelling, “Oh my God, I so….WANT this!”
I can imagine myself been like that!!!
Btw, how do ship them to US, they are heavy, rite?
LOL! We bought only small things that we could carry home with us. My parents have been planning on going so they canget things for their home in Cochin. If you love things that old you’ll have a blast in Fort Kochi, I promise. Do let me know how it goes.
V
i will post my tour ..after my india trip
Hi vidya,Iam new to this site,wow beautiful.very impress.where can I get mirror with Buddha statue pls reply .thank u.
Thanks Sai. I bought it at Home Goods.
Hanging the lamps ..what r they called?Where can I find in Hyderabad?middle of the wall what is that one?Iam looking for murals can u post pls ?Is it possible to do in USA?
Sai,
They are called Thookku Vilakku. You could try the handicrafts emporium. See if you can find the Kerala state emporium. For murals I haven’t seen many folks selling it in the US. Would have to get it done from India. Do let me know if you want them. Can give you the contact info.
Vidya
what a lovely home! If you don’t mind can you give me contact info of the person selling such murals!
Hi Divya,
My mom does mural paintings professionally. She can do custom work based on what you want. Her email is [email protected].
Vidya