Shopno Kuthi
By M. Rakinul Islam
Imagine the walls decorated with every inch of your memories, stretching from childhood through the transitions of your life, painting the tales of tradition and a taste of culture, hobbies, passion and family across the corners of your house. For this segment of Fabulous House, we take a stroll down the quiet streets of Mirpur DOHS to the British bungalow inspired fabulous house decorated and built by a lovely couple; Mrs. Zeba and Mr. Mamun. With the hopes of establishing a home, this dwelling has been carefully crafted over 6 years housing the family of 4, with a unique touch of a homemaker’s mark.
First Sight
Even before the doors to the dwellings open, we are welcomed by the warm greeting of the residents’ name tag outside the door. The doors open to the nostalgic sight of culturally significant pieces taking anyone back to the old days of Bengal, a short mind trip through the rich culture of handiwork and instruments, ensuring a warm Bengali welcome to the guest.
But this trip through cultural artistry is quickly diverted to the adjacent washbowl complementing the dining. Displayed in front of a coarse-tiled background is a wooden set up of coral decoration of the washbowl followed by an exquisite in-house fountain, playing the soothing sound of flowing water that is bound to take your undivided attention for a good moment. The set up is made more beautiful with the contrast of dark wood in front of a light background, followed by shell decoration of similar light nature with an aesthetically placed mirror.
The Set Piece
Taking a step or two from the entrance takes the visitor into an immediate trance. A complete view of the set piece to the right, all the way to the family living in the left is an overwhelming experience to the sight, as we take in the remarkable decoration. Even before taking a seat in the drawing room one must stand and observe every element that is almost perfectly placed to capture your bits of attention.
As the eyes contemplate before settling on the brightly hanging Moroccan lights on the center, illuminating the venue, we finally get to understand the room. A beautifully colored piece with Berger Illusion to one side and a base color of light purple on the others brighten up the room and makes the details of the decorations more visible to the eye.
The room is furnished with red mahogany colored furniture and fine wood work from the shelves to the ceiling and below the lights is a table of hobby. Mrs. Zeba has always had the hobby of collecting coins, stamps and currencies, displaying them embedded in the table in the center piece of the drawing room.
Taking a seat and still in trance, the eye keeps catching details; mesmerized by the decoration of fine arts, ranging from exquisite vase from Darjeeling to a gramophone all the way to crafted porcelain dolls on one wall and paintings on the other. But what accentuates the room is the gorgeously placed swing topped by a side clock, giving the whole room the impression of a traditional contemporary.
Themed Bedrooms
The apartment comes with 3 beds and each bedroom is crafted to the liking of the individual, hosting a different array of color, themes and setting to accommodate the preference and lighting needs.
Master Bed
Encapsulating the traditional palong bed, the master bedroom hosts a magnificent furnishing complimented by the off-white wall paints with mood lighting to give a touch of the olden days and set a light melody to it. The bed was constructed as a tribute to the memories of Mrs. Zeba with her grandfather in her childhood days, with the notion of holding on to tradition for the next generations to see.
The room comes with an attached bath and balcony and is decorated dimly with paintings on the wall, portraying the rural beauty of Bengal. Besides the Palong Bed the room has sitting arrangements for two with an easy chair for a leisure afternoon.
Children’s Rooms
The two children’s rooms are beautifully crafted to their personal preference each coming with an attached bath for convenience. The son’s room is painted with bright colors to illuminate the room and give it a spirit of youthfulness, ranging in the spectrums of orange to yellow and furnished with all the essentials needed to host a growing kid.
The other room is painted in accordance with the favorite color and the amount of light entering the room, draped in purple giving it a wow-worthy hue, putting a soothing yet bright outlook for the room.
All rooms are decorated with matching curtains to ensure the coherence of each element to accentuate the dwelling.
Favorite Corner
According to the family, their favorite corner is the family living room that hosts them for a movie night or accommodates the time spent as a family. The rest of the areas of the house host the base color of light purple and the same is for this portion of the fabulous house. The setting is decorated with a low sitting L-shaped couch facing the television with a glass-top table in the set. The area is right beside the central balcony which itself is a place of magnificence.
The area hosts urbanistic painting along with showpieces on top of the sitting area. A small shelf of plants keeps the area lively, adjacent to the lamp lit side table hosting artistry of its own. The setting of the television is on a decorated wall that boasts a unique decoration of masks that makes the family living room a great place to contemplate, bond and be a family.
A walk down memory lane
The area between the family living room and dining has a cleverly placed wall dedicated to a memory lane, hosting pictures of the family through different adventures and journeys of life. The wall is suitable placed in a location which is visible from; the master bedroom, family living room, dining and glimpses from the drawing room.
This corner is for Mrs. Zeba and her family to look and ponder on the days spent together, reminiscing on the memories. The table in-front hosts some of her most prized pieces, some dating back to when she herself was a kid. The area also hosts a rocking chair and is luminated by carefully placed light sources that spreads an aura of joy across this heart touching space.
Prayer/Reading Room
Holding on to religious believes, a separate prayer room was built as to not distract anyone with decorative. This room hosts a modest setting with the exclusion of dolls or pictures of individuals to enact the religious setting. Upon entrance we are welcomed by a grandfather clock that has always been a mesmerizing addition to any furnishing.
On entry the tree bookshelf is certainly the center of attention, climbing through the walls hosting articles of knowledge. The room is set with a sofa-cum-bed that can quickly transform to host any guest for a night. The room follows the base color of light purple and comes with brightly luminated lights to ease the burden on the eyes for reading. All in all, the room sets a cozy atmosphere for a secluded evening of me-time.
Dine-in Kitchen
Having a passion for cooking Mrs. Zeba spends a lot of her time in the kitchen and this has led her to decorate the space in the most unique of ways. The kitchen comes with a small table for 4 where most of the days lunch is served. The kitchen itself is decorated wonderfully with a selection of color that keeps the space bright and luminous.
The space has a wood-like tiles flooring and hosts an array of furnishings of its own. The shelves are worked into the walls with wood and the compartment hosts a fridge to cater to all dining related requirements.
Balconies
The essentials of balconies are of utmost important to the family. Not having the opportunity to go out too often the balconies are decorated to host a lively green environment in the dull urban setting of the city.
The balcony adjacent to the family living room hosts a table and seat for two, decorated with a variety of bonsai trees, ensuring there is a variation in the breeds of trees available. During blooming season, the beauty of this balcony is unparalleled, waking up to the sight of blossomed flowers spreading their aroma across the dwelling as you sit for a cup of tea under the ambiance of nature in the heart of the city.
Its and Bits
The its and bits to this fabulous house deserve an article of its own. The grandiose manner in which every element has been placed goes far and beyond the description of words. The infusion of plants complimented by the monochromatic touch of elemental pieces of art sets a traditional and cultural tone across the scene, taking the viewer in an indulgent journey of multi-cultural epiphany.
The fine work of the wooden ceiling often escapes the eye as we tour the ornaments of the decorations, but the house has a remarkable design in every top complimented by crafted shelves.
A homemaker doesn’t only take care of the family, her responsibility extends to decorating a home to her mind and making it the ideal place to build a family for generations to come. In this segment of fabulous house, we have seen the making of Mrs. Zeba’s fabulous house; a place that holds memories of past, present and future, a place to hold your dear ones close and grow old.
