Two full days. That’s all you have to get your home festive ready. Have those expensive and time-consuming makeovers remained a dream? But, you can do so much with so less; all you need is a healthy dose of creativity.
Make a statement says Ranjana Singhal, Coimbatore’s restaurant lady. Use ordinary net fabric as an attention-grabbing drape. She says even leftover bottles make a great design idea. “We all have these colourful glass bottles and jars lying about at home. Just insert some Chinese lights into them, hang them on your Christmas tree or any available space and connect it to the nearest plug point. It makes for a vibrant showpiece,” she says.
Interior decorator Sumithra Srikant swears by gossamer dupattas. “Remove your regular curtains and artistically drape dupattas on the frames. Your room will be transformed,” she promises. While it’s not possible to change the colour of your room, you can always add accents that provide the same effect, she says. Cut out stencils of motifs, hold them against the wall and rub a paint-dipped sponge over them. Voila! The walls now speak a different language.
Flower power — Urulis with fresh flowers are old news. But, glass bowls with flowers are not. Go ahead and choose vibrant flowers. They will transform a boring drawing room. Think gerberas, carnations and gladioli. If you’re in the mood for something more exotic, invest in bright-hued orchids (pink, violet…). Add some pebbles, marbles or translucent glass pebbles for greater effect, suggests Sumithra.
Family photographs add warmth to any gathering. Says Ranjana: “Frame some ordinary chicken mesh. Hang it on the wall. That’s your canvas for all the family photos. Just put them up using wooden cloth clips.” The best thing is, you can remove them and store the mesh frame for later use.
Shift the focus — Other temporary ideas include spray-painted flowers cut out of cardboard (leftover from a used roll of paper tissue) and single marigolds on a string. “Hang them from the ceiling (using stick-it tapes) around the dining area. They lend cheer,” she says. Sumithra says that if nothing else, just shuffle the furniture around to lend your room a different look. Hang some colourful mirrors or masks; they become the centre of attraction.
Fish are great attention grabbers too. You don’t need a fancy aquarium; just a regular glass bowl with some gold fish would do, she says.
If you know how, draw a lovely kolam in a corner of the room. Decorate it with some marigold and arrange some lamps around it. It creates a lovely mellow setting to ring in the New Year.
Pep up your home with
A bowl with gold fish
A bottle with Chinese lights
Colourful dupattas
A frame of family photographs
Flowers on a string
