Small spaces, Big on Function and Style (Home tour)

I truly believe that the most appealing spaces are the ones that incorporate function, comfort and personal style. Adopting a pragmatic approach to decorating, Smita Bhushan  has created a beautiful den for her daughter and herself in their Gurgaon duplex home. I was delighted when Smita reached out to me with the generous offer to throw open her doors for the TECD family. Infusing her home with travel finds, visually stimulating corners and furniture that's practical, she ought to be proud of what she's concocted in a 650 sq. ft. space. Using her home as a template, we can learn about the witty juxtaposition of furniture and forget about the "IF we had the space" concept. 

Quoting Smita,"Sounds cliched but I feel my home represents my journey in life so far, my thoughts and my personality to the T." And that is what a home should be  - truly mirror who you are. One look around and you can tell she's a practical woman, loves the uncluttered organised look and can't resist bringing back treasures from her travels.

Thangka painting and wooden carvings (from Kerala ) add the art factor to the space. 

Smita's ingenious finds and a keen eye for function, has definitely been the reason why this place functions so beautifully despite the limitation of space. Her decor tip for small spaces but being big on style, is to look for furniture that serves a dual purpose. She says,"Instead of going the regular sofa set way, I retained the antique day beds and spruced them up with bright cushions. I’d always wanted a seating arrangement in white, so I covered the day beds in white sheets. They can be easily removed and machine washed, hence are low maintenance. " When Smita has company, the diwan style seating is instantly converted to comfortable guest beds. Isn't that smart ???

Another smart solution that Smita resorted to maximize on space, is her multi-tasking coffee table. " The coffee table has 4 pull out stools and doubles up as a dining table. It’s a relatively new purchase and is in Shesham wood but gels well with the rest of the antique furniture." 

The large french doors leads to the garden and floods the space with natural light. Bright burnt orange upholstery material that Smita had stashed away was finally put to use as curtains. "The bright curtains have been well balanced with white upholstery, white walls, light flooring and pops of green, pink and blue. "

Furniture placement has been a thoughtful process in this home. According to Smita the living room is the hardest working room in the house. It functions as a living room, study, library, entertainment room, dining room and guest bedroom. Now that truly is hard working. An antique Study table in Burma Teak occupies a place of pride and is used by Smita's daughter to store her school books and stationary.  Smita's comprehensive understanding of what she wants from the place has enabled her to create pockets that have their task cut out for them but  do not restrict the movement or overwhelm the space. 

Now who said you can't have it all :) Smita's designer kitchenette is an adorable space with no compromise on form, function or style. Over to Smita, " My kitchenette is also a part of the living room, sort off. It’s the only part I got designed and custom made. Turned out to be pricey but just the way I wanted. The clean, modern lines and cool colors, balance the traditional patterns and warm colors of the living room. I give full credit to the designer for insisting on an open shelf when I wanted a closed one. I love the way the glass bottles reflect the ceiling lighting.

With the kitchenette almost a part of the living room, I use the counter for laying a buffet when guests come over. The small induction cooker is so easy to stash away when required.

Adorning the kitchen ceiling is the ‘people tree’ installation by Mukul Goyal. Bringing in an element of surprise to the space, it is something I liked as soon as I spotted it online."

An avid reader, Smita needed a space to house her book collection. An antique wooden cupboard serves perfectly as a bookcase. Paired with rattan chairs that are light weight (double up for additional seating while entertaining),this space is designated as the library/reading corner. An antique mirror, allows for a quick fix and reflects light and helps open up the space.

Sporting cool shades of blue, the bedroom is  a peaceful retreat with focus on key pieces that Smita absolutely loves. "Our bedroom is spacious and overlooks the garden. I have done it up in shades of turquoise and off white. The dressing table is Tibetan and the mirror is from Fab India. The small boat (from Kerala) serves as a cache to store my daughter’s hair clips. Adding the final touches to the master bedroom is the hanging lamp (from Good Earth), the antique bed and my sketches. Most of them are ghat scenes from my home town Varanasi. And finally the bedspread is my favorite- an expensive purchase from Good Earth that I absolutely love!"

Summing it up beautifully, Smita has this to say about her home ,"Having been passionate about interior decor, I am very happy with the way my pad has shaped up. We love coming back to it every single day. It’s our beautiful cocoon and is our hideaway from the harsh realities of life." 

I'd like to thank Smita for being such a sport and opening up her wonderful pad to us. Wishing her luck and happiness with her warm and homey space. 

As for you my wonderful readers, I'd love to hear from you. So don't forget to drop us a line and make our day.

Until next time take care:)

Images:Clicked by Smita Bhushan. Please do not use without prior written permission.