Perched on the 6th and 7th floors, this 3BHK duplex in a luxury apartment society in Bangalore, was a home crafted for a young couple with their 10-year old daughter, and grandparents who occasionally drop into town.  The core concept revolved around creating a cozy living space without being excessively cluttered.  Fronted by a large balcony and featuring large windows throughout, every room captured plenty of natural light, and offered an excellent canvas on which to create an uncluttered, eminently liveable space. The guest bedroom was located on the lower floor, while the master bedroom and kids’ rooms were tucked away upstairs. 

3BHK Duplex In A Luxury Apartment Society In Bangalore | U and I Designs

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Two major client mandates came into play when we began designing this home. The first was the client’s love for neutral tone like grey with some contrast. They wanted gray expanses to to play a major role in the aesthetics, as well as splashes of deep jade to help create a design focal point in different parts of the house. The second was to establish highly functional spaces that didn’t compromise on warmth and liveability, while being easy to clean – any parent with a thriving full-time career can empathize with the frustration of coming home to a laundry list of cleaning tasks. 

The living room sits off to the right of the dining area amid a peaceful, serene atmosphere. A double-height backdrop made with a mix of fluted and flat panels, creates a lovely sense of character, while perfectly framing the more colourful aspects of the space. All the seating here was custom made by our in-house vendors and includes a pair of gray high-back arm chairs, a 3-seater sofa, and a cushy set of ottomans. There’s a mix of the complementary and the contrarian at play here – the tufted edges of the arm chairs are mirrored in the striped ottoman cushions, the geometric print on the rug adds a dash of spice to the gray walls, and the jade green sofa contrasts deliciously with the entire ensemble.  

Opposite the seating area, a stunning gray wall feature soars along the vertical length of both floors – we used punning to create a concrete-like texture on the wall and grooved arches to drive home a playful, contemporary aesthetic. The arches actually tie into a curve-inspired design language that we’ve established across every space in this home. Given the dramatic sweep of the wall feature, we kept the living room media unit simple and minimalistic, with a wooden countertop, tinted glass, and vertical grooves. We love west-facing homes, since there’s much less glare during the day time, and this home is no exception. The massive floor-to-ceiling curtains run on automated rails, and are accented with double height pendant lights in a black-tinted finish.  

Striding into the foyer, a visitor is struck with an eclectic take on contemporary modern style. We used a pastel blush cabinet, topped with natural wood grain, as the centrepiece of this space. Brass fittings and cane webbing cut-outs on the storage unit doors add a dash of old-world charm, and a pleasing contrast to the black fluted wall panels. The space is finished with decor pieces that further emphasize the verticality of the space, including a Doppler-striped lamp placed below pinstriped wall art. We also had an arched mirror along one side of the foyer for a little bit more brightness, and to create the illusion of a more expansive space.

As a twist in the tale, the foyer leads directly into a dining area, which is dominated by a six-seater sheesham wood table. Instead of having a traditional ceiling fan looming above the dining table, we chose to flank the area with two smaller fan units and place a single hanging lamp right down the middle. When viewed from the living area the dining space is framed against wall panels with vertical beading that run diagonally up the staircase – we added this touch to enhance what would otherwise be a boring stretch of wall. 

An open partition complete with attractive shelving and a serving counter separates the dining area from the kitchen. We designed the kitchen to have a simple layout – all the appliances are ranged along one side of the space, which also features storage units finished in a deep jade sited below ribbed glass elements on the upper cabinet doors. Elongated arrow tiles draw the eye straight down the length of the countertop, renewing the sense of light and space and are complemented by all-black hardware.   

For the kid’s bedroom, we wanted to build a space that exuded elegance and playful charm, while still being child-friendly in every aspect. To that end we appointed the room in a tasteful blend of pastels and clean whites. A scalloped headboard upholstered in mauve and burgundy was placed against wallpaper with abstract prints and muted tones, and the bedding itself features a mix of plain and intricate knit covers. A set of monkey bars bisects the entire room, traveling upwards from the floor, across the ceiling and ending in a thick length of knotted rope for easy descent.

A trio of wicker baskets are sunk below the wardrobe for hassle-free toy storage and clearance and serve to break up the predominance of pastels with a warm, organic touch. We’ve also added a study desk in the windowed corner of the room, with quirky bulb feet to enhance the child-like quality of the room. A quartet of arched wall beadings extends from the study desk to the bedroom door, holding a series of fun prints and a full length mirror to bring both brightness and function to the space.  Every part of this home exudes a relaxed sense of refinement, blending modernist interior styles with a dash of the organic and the industrial, for a unique, easy-living aesthetic. 

Moving upstairs, as we enter the master bedroom, we’re greeted with a study of contrasts.  A blast of colour erupts from the jade headboard, while taupe wall panels run the width of the room.  This is accented by two wildly different styles of bedside table (one stolid and chunky, the other an elegant tripod) and a lovely brass pendant light. The wardrobes too are designed to be a conversation starter, with different materials coming together to showcase two distinct looks – light gray and brass on the right side, while the left holds a beaded door in taupe, featuring a black steel handle.

The bedroom TV console also captures elements of brass in the profile edge drawer handles and sports modernist grooves along the front and sides. This particular piece was custom made to serve as both a media platform and a chest of drawers. We return once more to brass in the form of a gorgeous full length mirror frame that sits mounted on the wall opposite the bed, and comes with a hanging dresser table built directly into the mirror surface.  We chose to conceal the bathroom entrance behind the wall panelling, using a push-to-open style door that leaves an unbroken stretch of wall on one side of the room. Once again, textured velvet curtains in a rich gray blend with the brass to deliver a modern, luxury feel that’s unique to this home.

On the same floor, the grandparent’s bedroom holds a statement bed with eye-catching wooden posts. We custom-crafted the bed from solid wood, creating a built in headboard with tufted gray upholstery as an ode to the grey color scheme of the house. This was offset by a trio of botanical wall prints that sit right above the bed and simple, teak-grained bedside tables.  Gray curtains embellished with folk prints frame the windows and the wardrobe is an expanse of white that’s bookended by a set of open shelves in dark wood.

We choose to incorporate a mirror and a curved dressing table into the alcove behind the door – along with the shelves these elements serve to frame the wardrobe creating an interesting interplay between clutter and simplicity.  Opposite the bed sits the clients existing chest of drawers that doubles as a TV counter and is fronted with exquisite parquetry detail. On the wall behind the TV, we’ve used wooden wall beading to break up any leftover monotony and round out the space with a splash of colour blocking.

Fact File

Design firm: U and I Designs

Project Name: The Jade & Grey Home

Project Type: 3 BHK

Total Super Built-Up Area:  2575 sqft

Project Location: Meadow in the Sun, Bangalore

Year of completion: 2022

Founder: Aniketh Bafna & Sonal R Mutha

Principal designer: Aniketh Bafna & Sonal R Mutha

Design lead: Khusbu Murarka

Photo credit: Nayan Soni

Firm’s Instagrm Link: U and I Designs

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