A home is a living canvas. More than a carefully planned housing scheme, it is a silent witness to everyday routines, shared laughter, and collective memories that shape a lasting sense of belonging. It is defined by the intangible threads that quietly bind a family together.
Housing Scheme: A Contemporary Home Designed Around Everyday Living | Foresight Associates
Tucked quietly within the geometry of a builder-based housing scheme, Darshnam Celestial wasn’t just another design project. For Foresight Associates, it became an opportunity to redesign functionality, a symphony of textures and the spatial composition of a pre-defined built form.
Preserving the framework of the structure intact, Housing Scheme began with the intention of shaping a home from the plinth upward. Through thoughtful civil alterations and spatial reimagination, the designers sculpted a residence that reflects the family’s individuality.
Designers shared,” Imagine being a young studio, just starting to find your footing, and then, a client comes along who not only believes in your vision but hands you the reins completely.” They offered us creative freedom to explore ideas, where we were not just designing spaces, but building a home.
The client’s brief was simple: “We don’t want a house that looks like a hotel. We want a home – minimal, symmetrical, and low-maintenance. One that feels like ours,” and that became the guiding mantra for the thoughtful contemporary residence and resulted in a house that whispers elegance, offering cozy nooks connecting inside and outside spaces.
The major transformation happened in the backyard when the client acquired additional land, opening the possibility of extension. The extended son’s bedroom balcony rested on the fabricated metal structure, below experiential spaces grown, composed of a swimming pool under the open sky, a gazebo for slow life conversation, a servant quarter, a pump room, and a lush garden, enclosed with the raw concrete textured wall.
The spatial narrative evolved with symmetrical and linear patterns, illustrating a design language that echoes calmness. Shivali describes how she engaged with the family to understand and interpret their routines, dreams, and quirks, and then translated that into a functional space, reflecting each family member’s unique taste. Entering the welcoming
foyer, the eye catches the ethnic wallpaper, softened by indirect lighting. A linear CNC- cut metal sheet partition gracefully separates the foyer and the living area. Following the
linearity, a step well-inspired mural in the living room becomes the focal point, with back wall textures evoking visual stillness. Pausing at the Adiyogi Shiva statue engraved in premium black granite in the passage adds spiritual depth.
The triple-heighted pooja room visible from the master bedroom balcony rises like a sanctum with a circular cut-outroof that unwinds as the shaft of divine light, and a CNC metal bird motif creates a sculptural, dramatic space.
On the ground floor, the grandparent’s bedroom incorporated cane elements, zero panelling, and a calming, minimal aesthetic. Outside, a swing on the deck overlooked the lush backyard, a perfect perch for morning tea and quiet reflection.
The family lounge was planned for togetherness with low seating, an open-shelved TV partition unit materialised with veneer and metal. Adjacent to it, the double-height dining area emitted grandeur with carved wooden furniture and a rich, warm finish.
The kitchen was designed for a dual purpose – one working kitchen in the backyard and another inside, finished in back-painted glass shutters and Kalinga countertops.
The staircase with wooden treads and concrete risers climbs beside a mural wall that unfolds stories of ascent, connecting the different levels.
The son’s bedroom was distinguished with black-and-white fluted Italian stone in an L- shaped form, set the tone, enhanced by suspended hanging lights.
A blue accent wall held a bike-themed fan, a peculiar nod to shared father-son passions. From this room, the balcony overlooked the swimming pool, blending private space with landscape.
The master bedroom is composed of calm textures and furnishing featuring a palette of soft greys and blues. The muted Kota flooring, grey grooved concrete-textured walls, and black profile Pattis add a quiet luxury. The soft lid bed back, clad in blue, and adorned with Sarita Handa furnishings whispers luxury. A traditional Alankaram trunk at the bed’s foot blends seating with storage.
The balcony added a playful character with multicoloured Kota stone and red chairs, adding vibrancy to the space. Styled with bevelled mirror sliding shutters, the walk-in wardrobe evokes the classic charm
The guest bedroom, in contrast, was minimalistic, carved with a wooden pole bed, mirrored accents, and a fabric-panelled wall with a single ledge shelf to hold a book, a candle.
The top floor held a multi-functional music room and home theatre, a private world for rhythm, rest, and meditation.
Imagine enjoying your favourite music with exceptional clarity and depth, transforming the space into a home theatre where walls were designed to optimize sound quality with proper acoustic attributes, minimizing reflections and echoes.
This residence features balanced form, minimalist interior and artist furniture that tells a story of elegance and timelessness. Each element from CNC-carved marble to the blue- hued accent resulted in a functional space that feels like home.
Looking back, House Scheme is more than just a project. It is a thoughtfully curated, human-centric home that reflects the designers’ creative vision, creating a setting for life’s intangible experiences.
Fact File
Designed by: Foresight Associates
Project Type: Residential Interior Design
Project Name: Stria House
Location: Bill, Vadodara
Year Built: January 2024
Duration of the project: 18 Months
Plot Area: 4800 Sq.ft
Built-up Area: 5500 Sq.ft
Principal Designers: Shivali Agrawal, Kunal Patel & Azaz Saleh
Photograph Courtesy: Tejas Shah
Products / Materials / Vendors: Wallcovering / Cladding – RCC concrete, veneer, Mdf, teak wood, dyed veneers / Lighting – Hybec pro lights / Doors and Partitions – veneer finished doors / Sanitary ware – Kohler / Windows – Telesia Window world / Furniture – Alankaram (Indore) / Flooring – Italian, Kota, Mikasa wood flooring / Kitchen – kalinga-quartz (modular kitchen-nolte) / Paint – Asian Paints / Wallpaper – Nilaya / Hardware – Veneto, Hettich, Blum, and Yale locks
Firm’s Instagram Link: Foresight Associates
Firm’s Facebook Link: Foresight Associates
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