When interior designer Sonali Shah was given the brief to design a 2,200 square foot suburban house in Mumbai, she was told that it had to be a home that comfortably housed four generations of family members. And thus, while looking at the existing layout, she decided to redesign it by making several changes to the internal structure.
" I incorporated the narrow corridors into the living area, juxtaposed the grandmother's room between those of the parents and children, and opened up the kitchen to include a gorgeous terrace- this completely transformed the whole space, and gave me the perfect blueprint to work with", she explains. As the age of the seven family members ranges from the very young to very old, Sonali opted for a rich, dark colour palette of black, gray and burgundy to evoke luxurious elegance. "To bring in a play of textures, I used composite marble for all the flooring and brought in acrylic, glass and crystal to add pizzazz to the space," she adds.
The entrance was dressed up with a striking laser-cut acrylic motif in a deep shade of maroon, pasted on a glossy white door, making for an arresting effect. "The idea was to denote a sense of peace and harmony throughout the house with our own interpretation of yin and yang," explains the designer. This essence pervades through living and dining area, which is resplendent with glittering crystal light fixtures that reflect on the walls and ceilings for a dazzling effect.
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"I did not want to give storage in the form of shelves and drawers, I gave them concealed storage space as these provided more space and are discreet," says Sonali.
Glass has been extensively used in the house. A glass wall in the living room adds a voluminous feel to the area and also acts as storage. Mirrors have been placed at strategic locations to unify spaces and build a connection between them.
The home office-cum-study, situated at the entrance is a rectangular space with a glass wall on one side. The glass partition suspended from the ceiling gives it the required privacy storage.
A square-shaped glass top, placed on a cube along with six glass chairs forms the dining table. The owners like to entertain a lot and in order to accommodate more people, Sonali has designed an additional cushioned ledge with a headboard that runs up to the ceiling. The dining looks into the partially open kitchen.
