The location for our latest holiday home project — Tranquil Haven — is the scenic Aamby Valley City at Lonavala, Maharashtra. The clients, a young couple, approached us with an interesting assignment which comprised of rearranging the layout of a 3,000-square-foot villa, adding two additional bedrooms in the arrangement, and creating a calming aesthetic indoors using minimal design elements. The two-storied structure initially had a living-dining space, kitchen, study and two bedrooms with attached balconies; with a landscaped entrance, porch, a pool and sit-outs.

We altered the layout by converting the existing kitchen and study (on the ground floor) into the two extra bedrooms requested by the clients. The kitchen was moved outside the house, in a separate structure built close-by. Further, on the first floor, in the two double-height bedrooms, we brought down the walls between the walk-in wardrobe and the bed areas to make the rooms larger.

Editor’s Note: The interiors of this contemporary home by KSD Studio leave behind an essence of the past. Antique furniture and decor are essential aspects of its design. Shades of beige and white prepare the perfect backdrop for mind-soothing artwork and indoor plants. The view of the mesmerising tropical landscape from the bedroom is a sight to behold! – Gopika Pramod

A home project with scenic views outside and a sea of calm inside | KSD Studio

The layout change created a free-flowing living–dining space with a patio which formed its extension. As the couple often entertain their family and friends in this holiday home, we designed a bar close to the patio for easy access from the living-dining. The pool is also set close to this setting. The two ‘new’ bedrooms can be accessed easily through the living-dining area. A flight of stairs would take one to the first floor where the two comfortably-sized bedrooms with independent balconies tied to them (offering beautiful views of the landscaped outdoors) are placed.

This project too, like all the others we’ve designed, honours the client’s brief and meets all their design needs… but not without adapting the studio’s core design philosophy of working with natural materials. Here, we’ve used lime plaster on all the walls throughout the house; while Italian marble was used for the living-dining flooring, and micro concrete was the choice of material for the bathroom floors. The furniture pieces we designed for this project were few, as the client wanted us to avoid clutter, but are stand-out pieces crafted in teak wood.

To create an impact, we decided on a vintage design for the furniture — conceived in house and crafted by Zeba — featuring curves and subtle carvings. The upholstery and curtains made from cotton, linen and cotton-polyester blends were sourced from Zeba furnishings, while the carpets and rugs came from Jaipur Rugs.  

In the living room we’ve created a relaxing and easy atmosphere for the family with a contemporary sink-in L-shaped beige-hued sofa which is accompanied by a single classic teak wood chair, and a vintage trunk that takes the role of a coffee table. A hand-painted pendant lamp from Sunshine Boulevard, a jute carpet from Jaipur Rugs, potted plants, and a large art print on the wall form a pleasant living room setting.

The connecting patio also has bespoke teak wood sofas and chairs to lounge and enjoy the surroundings. A circular marble-topped teak wood table marks the dining area, which is arranged right opposite the living room. Four upholstered chairs and a console cabinet to hold crockery are the other furniture pieces here. This section gets its colours from the potted plant, terracotta vases and the bright artwork print used on the wall.

Though we did not change the wood and wrought iron railing of the staircase, we replaced the wooden stairs with marble, with the risers featuring an inlay of green and black marble.

To complement the vintage window and textured wall finish used here, we suspended old world glass pendant lamps held by brass bands from the double-height ceiling of the stairway.

As both the bedrooms on the first level have a double-height ceiling, we proposed a four poster bed in one room; while the other (the master bedroom) features rattan on all the furniture pieces including the bed, side tables, study desk, chair and wardrobes.

The two guest bedrooms on the ground floor were kept minimal, with faux leather headboards adding colour to the rooms.

To give all the bedrooms a distinct look, we worked closely with Zeba to customise different traditional Indian weaves and prints on furnishings — ikat for the master bedroom, lucknowi for the parent’s room, while the two bedrooms on the ground floor has jaipuri and patola weaves and prints.

The accessories and artworks selected for the bedrooms were minimal, just as the client ordered.

The villa already had a well-maintained landscape design, we simply decked it up with handpicked accent pieces like vases, garden accessories, and lighting fixtures to complete the look.  

Fact File

Designed by: KSD Studio

Project Type: Residential Interior Design

Project Name: Tranquil Haven

Location: Aamby Valley, Maharashtra

Year Built: 2023

Duration of the project: 9 Months

Plot Area: 5,000 Sq.ft

Project Size: 3,000 Sq.ft

Principal Architect: Ar. Kshiti Shah

Team Design Credits: Rishi Pathak & Anshuli Kadam

Photograph Courtesy: Yadnyesh Joshi

Products/Materials/Vendors: Finishes – Stonelite, Limeplaster, Creton / Lighting – Olie, Purple Turtle Sunshine Boulevard / Windows –Windowala / Furniture – Zeba / Flooring – Concreteworks

Firm’s Website Link: KSD Studio

Firm’s Instagram Link: KSD Studio

Firm’s Facebook Link: KSD Studio

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