A thing of joy

interior

Just because an apartment has less space does not mean it cannot be decorated well. This week You! takes a look at Mrs. Seema Samad’s chic apartment...

Rick out any interior magazine and you are bound to get awe-inspired by a few interior design ideas of houses that are spacious. At times you wish you had a home that is exactly like the one you saw in the magazine. But the fact is that people live in apartments too - whether by choice or necessity. And decking up a small space requires aesthetics along with smart and clever ways to enhance the space. Even though there is no specific formula, when it comes to decorating a smaller space one has to be really careful with the choice of furniture and accessories. Well, that is exactly what Mrs. Seema Samad kept in mind while doing up her apartment.

“We moved into this apartment almost a year back. My son and I fell in love with this place as soon as we saw it. Our previous apartment was relatively huge and spacious as compared to this one. Basically the theme was practicality as we didn’t have much space. So, I selected all the furniture pieces and decor items to complement the overall feel of the place and make it look spacious,” says Mrs. Samad.

As soon as you enter the apartment, you get a feeling of contemporary living due to the modern use of space. Clean lines, subtle sophistication and texture are what contemporary interior is all about. And Mrs. Samad has opted for a classy, contemporary interior which has a cosy and warm feel without being dark and drab. Neutrals, dark browns and off white have been used throughout the house. The choice of colour for the walls is off white while the furnishings are mostly dark brown.

“We opted for dark brown and off white sofas for our drawing room cum TV lounge which we bought from Habitt. However, I felt that the room looked boring so I added Zulu masks, some paintings and cobalt blue décor items that I had brought  from Dubai. Also, to give a traditional touch to the décor I added some Hala pottery to the room. I believe hints of such colourful items make a strong statement in any room,” shares Mrs. Samad.

The lobby and dining room are connected and different kind of sofas have been casually arranged on both sides of the room. “The lobby extends into our casual dining area. When I was planning this area I did not have a theme in mind. I just let my aesthetics guide me. For the lobby, I picked out leather sofas in dark brown and one-armed chairs in beige with cheetah print from ‘Index’. The accessories for this area were randomly picked. On the table there are miniature charpoys along with a candle stand that I bought from ‘Next’ and a flower vase to give a fresh feel to the place. Not to forget my favourite painting that I just couldn’t resist buying on my last visit to Dubai,” explains Mrs. Samad.

“However, for the dining area I was not able to find the perfect dining table and chairs because there was limited space. Hence, I got a custom-made wooden table and bench for that area and adorned the walls with a huge mirror and some old Hollywood paintings to give a hip coffee shop vibe,” she adds.

No matter which room you are in, one outstanding feature of Mrs. Samad’s home is the sunlight and fresh air you get in abundance .There are massive glass windows around the house that allows a lot of sunlight to stream in during the day. To make the entire apartment look spacious, Mrs. Samad has placed mirrors of different shapes and sizes. “I made sure that each and every room is well lit, so I have used a lot of lamps and shades in every room,” she states.

Mrs. Samad shares a word of advice for those beautifying their home interiors, “Be practical while decorating a small space. Spend more on interior because that is where you would be living. Also be careful with the room sizes because maintaining and keeping a small house organised is a difficult task,” she concludes.

Photography by

Naqeeb-ur-Rehman