Royale Rama Home Tour - Part 3

We are parking ourselves today, at the final juncture of Rama family�s home tour: Part three, covering the kitchen and library. Just as I fell in love, so did hundreds of you lovely readers, who swooned over this stunning home and expressed your open admiration for part one and two. Now you will be glued to part three as well, with equal adoration. If in case you missed part one and part two, you may head here and here to tour this envy-inducing, richly layered home, where every corner is exquisitely adorned.

The Library:

Paddy is a voracious reader from as far back into childhood that she can remember, a quality she says is inspired by her mother. Reminiscing the days of her childhood, she recollects visiting the local library regularly since the age of four with her mother. Regretfully, she had to abandon boxes and boxes of her book collection when she moved to the US, but her love for reading remained. Needless to say, when Rama family bought a home, they needed a designated space for their keepsake books.   A look out area, overlooking the foyer is dedicated as the family�s reading nook. Although Paddy does not get enough time now to read, due to the fact that her kids are too young, it did not stop her from creating this darling little reading space. She creatively curated her ultimate book collection along some knick knacks and d�cor accessories.

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Cozy reading nook in the upper level, overlooks the foyer.

???The Antique book shelf came to their home along with the tall mirror that the family have in formal dining. This teak hand carved shelf is made out of architectural salvage from a traditional south Indian door frame. Of course, like rest of the eclectic pieces in the home, there is a story behind this piece too that triggered Paddy to bring it home. �The thing that instantly attracted me to this book shelf was the yellow paint at the bottom, symbolic of most south Indian door frames. Applying turmeric and kum kum as many know, is an ancient Hindu custom and painting thresholds in yellow and red paints in various rangoli patterns, was a modified practice adopted later, reflecting the same symbolism. Growing up, this threshold art was one of my favorite chores that my mom used to give me during major festivals. When I saw this book shelf with a yellow paint retained at the bottom, it flashed very vivid memories from my life back home!"

Apart from books, the shelf is peppered with interesting Knick knacks, toys (kondapalli, marapachi), and other figurines.

Adjacent to the shelf on the wall, are three ornate mini picture frames that are garage sale finds. Take notice how she fixed them to the wall with a mini brass bell inside each frame! The bells again.... now let's whistle! :)

The floor seating channels a wonderful cozy area to laze around with a book or a chai.

The very comfortable, personal and unique �baithak� area is created for practical reasons keeping family�s young children in the mind, who love climbing over furniture and jump around. Canny use of colors via vibrant cushions brightens this dramatic setting.?? ???

A kathakali painting by Paddy peeks from behind the dancing kondapalli toy in the shelf. Tabla set is perched on a vintage trunk here (yet another garage sale find).

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Wonderful collection of Buddha in the reading nook

The brass stand seen in the picture (seating the Buddha statue) is originally an antique brass tray, a gift from her aunt to which paddy had gotten a welder fix brass legs to make it a stand. Another brilliant idea!?

The lovely space is used frequently by Paddy's husband Vinod, for his tabla practice or meditation

The Kitchen and Family Room:

The kitchen and family, held as the heart of Rama family are done in an interesting contrast to the rooms in the front area of the home. The d�cor diva, who likes to throw an element of surprise into everything she does, considers the styling of these rooms to be the surprise that eschews the expectation of the d�cor trend set in the front section of her home.

The styling of the open plan kitchen and family display a perfect balance between pleasing aesthetics and practicality.

As per Paddy, a considerable thought has gone into this design decision: "As much as I like the traditional Indian decor, I also love the fuss free, minimalistic and serene ambience provided by contemporary designs. While the front part of our home is done in a traditional style, where we embraced color, patterns and bling with abandon; the heart of our home i.e. family and kitchen have been done up in contemporary style. The main reason for this decision being we needed a clutter free space for my kids to run around. As such, there is enough mess to cleanup every day (from my kids and kid's dad), so making this choice made my life easy and manageable"

The arresting feature in the family room is a giant crystal chandelier, complimented by a row of  more crystal light fixtures all the way to the kitchen. A Howard miller two sided clock throws an unexpected vintage pop into the otherwise glam room

A Howard Miller double sided clock mounted on a pillar post, midway between family and kitchen lends a practical, yet stylish solution for checking time from any side!

The pops of color come from the floral and fruit display in the room done in neutral palette. The lighting fixtures are like the sparkling ear rings for the beautiful, serene face of the rooms!

Though minimal, the choice of furniture and accessories from the off-white Natuzzi sectional, the Gray leather Nuevo Living bar stools, custom made coffee and dining tables, the radiant light fixtures, all together make a stylish yet practical family retreat for the Ramas.

Air plants and succulents by the sink window compliment the style of the room. 

Paddy created a mini-world full of lush, beautiful plants by  making her own terrariums above the sink window.

Their custom made low dining table is a big hit among her visitors who love to 'sit down' literally for a meal or tea on this simple yet lovely table.

The kitchen dining is styled in a contrasting theme to the formal dining, where the family got a low table custom made through Amish craftsmen. Paddy wanted their family to have a 'cross legged sit down meal' in the traditional Indian way. So she opted for the Japanese style table that accommodates this idea in a contemporary setting.

The fruit that is always there on the side bar adds a splash of color to the room. Paddy is famous in her circle for her French press coffee that she makes, by grinding beans fresh for every brew.

Her red clay pots and accessories add a hot glam factor to the kitchen. The red delicious apples in the picture above are from their own apple trees in the yard.

We all know by now, that every visible corner of the Rama home is meticulously designed and expertly arranged. The same also applies to the areas that are not always visible. A peek into Paddy's pantry and cabinets shows her sense of order and organization skills that are as impressive as the visible areas of her home. 

All the containers are labeled with re-usable chalk markers. Seen above are re-purposed baby food jars.

Says Paddy: "When it comes to organizing, I follow the same motto I do for decor. The inside has to be as pretty as the outside. This includes inside the cabinets and all enclosed spaces."

A peek into her meticulously organized cabinets

However, Paddy credits her mother for this habit, who herself had organized kitchen shelves and often made Paddy responsible for the organizing chores.

A look at her highly organized pantry and some more cabinets.

By her own admission, Paddy declares that she is a messy cook (Nope, I refuse to believe that ;)). Paddy says: "I have a ton of clean up after every cooking session.  Keeping the cabinets, pantry and kitchen organized is a way to help myself. In general, I prefer to know clearly, instead of resorting to guess work as to what is inside a container :)"

As we come to a glittery end, we officially end the Rama Royale Family home tour here. Though I relished the entire process of writing, editing and blushing over the sprinkle of applause by the readers, the best part was to bond with the d�cor diva Paddy. I thank her for showing great faith in me and giving me an opportunity to feature her heavenly home.

For final closing, passing the baton to Paddy who signs off, stating: "Our home is evolving and growing, well nurtured by our love, interest and the memories we are creating in the process. I am not sure if I will ever stop and say it is completely done; for my passion for decor is insatiable. As long as my very grounded husband willingly provides wind beneath my wings and allows my creative flights of whimsy, I guess I will keep flying and continue the jaunts :). And you Pinky, I thank you from the bottom of my heart for narrating my home story with as much love as I have had in decorating it. Thank you for presenting with such aplomb and poesy, all the corners and frames of my home; and in the process, also making an amateur photographer out of me!:)"

And a final treat for you all as Paddy lovingly made a video clip especially for the readers of Pinkz Passion summing up all three parts of this home tour. Enjoy!