Around the world within four walls

BENGALURU: Imagine yourself sitting against the backdrop of the lofty snow-capped mountains in the Alps and sipping a hot cup of coffee. Doesn’t this sound like a perfect holiday destination? For holiday seekers, this could be an image straight from a travel tale. But instead, this is the master bedroom decor of IT professionals Vijay and Rashmi who have redone their home decor to reflect what they love and miss the most--travelling--especially when the world is fighting against the spread of the Covid-19 virus. 

Not just Vijay and Rashmi, many Bengalureans who believe that ‘home is where the heart is’, are now customising their walls and decor to vicariously experience what they are unable to do in reality. Poorva Vijay, brand manager of We Dezine Studio, who revamped the couple’s home decor,  says, “The couple loves trekking and wanted mountains painted on the walls of their master bedroom. They briefed us about their needs with reference images and we recreated the same-- a layout of blue mountains on the wall that’s hand-painted by the team.”A beautiful blue sky or the use of furniture in the room with soothing colours seems to be a popular choice “Depending on the clients, we’ve also noticed that there’s a demand for decor that represent nature,” Vijay says.

Priyanka Varma, design expert and associate studio manager of Design Cafe, used a wooden cut-out of the world map to adhere to her client’s specific needs. She says that one of her clients who used to travel to new destinations twice a year, couldn’t make any travel plans this year due to the pandemic. To keep their spirit high, the couple decided to give a different look to their home decor. 

“They live in a villa that has a double high ceiling. The couple wanted to use the wall to represent their love for travelling with a world map.” The initial plan was to have a mesh of the map so that they could hang their travel photos but it wasn’t possible given the height at which the pictures would be placed.”
Considering the need of her client, Varma and her team, made a wooden cut-out of the map and added lights behind it.  

However, the concept of redoing the decor to quench your travel thirst isn’t confined to classy and elaborate designs. For those who cannot afford such designs, customised wallpapers are coming to their rescue. The mesh on the wall design allows them to hang their photographs as well. Architect and interior designer Suman Paul worked with a couple who were motorbike enthusiasts. “They had several images from their previous travels, including a Himalayan range, that they wanted to incorporate as part of the theme. Some of them got converted into art forms across the home. There’s a lot of planning that goes into such designs,” he says.

Paul explains that the art form, depending on the theme, will need a “good background, lighting and mood set up” to make sure it’s relevant throughout the day. The material palette and the showpieces also add to the travel memoir the homeowners want. “Travellers have bonsai trees which are collected from different parts of the world. We’re now using memorabilia they bought to create these new themes,” says Paul, adding that landscape themes too are getting popular among travel enthusiasts.