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around town

Nattily Morphed Utility Items It’s not very difficult to deduce that this can only be the

mind’s eye of an engineer. Kept at the Drawing Room, Artfeat Designs by Kavan Bakshi is all about metamorphosis of ev-eryday items into something unique. One look at the kettles transformed into lamps (Rs. 2,500-3,000), sewing machine into a fancy study table (Rs. 10,000-12,000) and door latches into paper weights (Rs. 900) and you would know what we mean. We particularly liked the John Lennon clock made out of a gramophone record worth Rs. 1,000. A perfect blend of creativity and engineering!

Drawing Room, 36, Shahpur Jat, New Delhi/9910330377

Fun Designer Animal FiguresWalking a little further, we found a loaded but tasteful home

décor store, named after the Enid Blyton’s fictional flying chair – The Wishing Chair. This haven of sorts had things neither too kitschy, nor too ethnic. Proprietors Vivita Relan and Avneet Mann bring in these beautiful possessions from artists across India, save for

the flowers and crockery, which is sourced from China. While poodle, mag pig and woven crocodiles (rang-ing between Rs. 1650 to 1950) caught our fancy, we loved the modish wine tubes priced at Rs. 550 each.

Second floor Studio, 86 – A, Shahpur Jat, New Delhi/ 9810154949

Faceless painting and Home Curio

Currently the prettiest home designer store in Shahpur Jat, the Second Floor Studio made

its way in the market very recently. Loaded with bric-a-bracs - room sets, cutlery, wall installations, vases, candle stands, cushions and endless more, you might just need help with the amount of options you find here for your home. Attractions include painted transparent blue medicine bottles, minia-ture inspired faceless paintings worth Rs. 20,000, brass and nickel candle stands worth Rs. 800-Rs. 1,500, and marble tea light holders at a maximum Rs. 2,500. The bracelets with skull shape embellishments (made by Olivia Dar at Rs. 2000) looked unique; while the hand painted cushions on silk (ranging between Rs. 4,900-8,900) can change the look of any space.

Second Floor Studio, 417, Shahpur Jat, Near Jungi House/ 011 41420324

Exploration of Sorts at

Shahpur Jat

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There are villages and urban villages, and then there is Shahpur Jat. Before a visit to this market of markets, we were guessing it to be a replica of Hauz Khas Village, with identical designer stores, plenty of places of eat and a funky crowd around. In many ways, they proved siblings and in more ways than one, they didn’t! Little did we know that amongst the kucha-pukka confusing lanes and a hundred designer stores, one can actually hit upon a jackpot of creative innovations!So as we marched on the quivering pathways with a colourful Shahpur Jat map in our hands (kept at all the modern designer stores), we discovered many creations - some inventive and appealing and others just plain eccentric. Follow us through the huddled alleys of unpainted brick buildings, lined with tailoring sweatshops and hole-in-the-wall vendors; who sit comfortably next to the contemporary shops we got interested in.

illustration: Anirban Bora

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Metal bookmarks and hand-stitched Journals

This one wasn’t very easy to find. Clutched inside one corner in a modest

store, the creations by Anand Prakash are worth a mention. The designers’ signature

store at Shahpur Jat has an amazing collection of station-ary including pencil holders (from Rs. 2,490-Rs. 3,490), fantastic metal bookmarks (from Rs. 250-Rs. 800) and hand-stitched journals (Rs. 690 to 1,490) . The metal inspired jewellery (Rs. 4,490 approximately) is experi-mental and brave and the steel coasters (Rs. 350 each) are just another interesting

addition. We heard he also does custom-made stationary too!

32, First Floor, Shahpur Jat, New Delhi/ 011-26492678 uby vArAlikA viJ

Handmade Home Décor and Kitsch Sentimental Objects

These happy and refreshing products come under the label ‘Elan’ and can be bought at Alecca Carrano’s concept store – Drawing Room. The

storehouse of designs includes buckets, boxes, gardening tools, lanterns, stools, napkin rings and much more; hand made with galvanized sheet metal by designer Vidushi Gupta. The basic geometrical designs and flam-boyant colour patterns attract one’s attention and the cost varies between Rs. 200 to Rs. 3,200. The kitsch sentimental objects kept under the brand name ‘Lunazef’ were very unique and transported us straight to the 80’s.

Drawing room, 36, Shahpur Jat, New Delhi/ 9810962611

Hand Painted Bags and Ballerinas

Having entered the Dada Jungi House pathway, we got bent on entering this unambiguous pink shop

named ‘al artz’. The meek attendants told me about pro-prietor and artist Alisha Bhasin, who can make your

Embroidered Collars and Wrap-around Bracelets

It’s not really easy to find such fashion-art elsewhere. Many of us should know that

those stocky and heavy necklace pieces can be swapped with these elegant collars (made with beads and sequins, sewn into satin). Not only do they look different and chic, but also

feel so silky on your delicate neckline. The French designer Olivia Dar, a gracious and modest French lady, can make customised collars matching with your garments and is said to deliver them within a week’s time. The collars cost Rs. 4,500 and if personalised, would be charged at 20% more. She has many fans for her thin wrap-around bracelets too.

olivia Dar, H 5, 1st Floor, Jungi House, Shahpur Jat, New Delhi/ 9999386020

imaginary designs come to life on balleri-nas, sling bags and even ipad covers. The retro cushions, movie trays and coasters are for those who can experiment with the home themes. While the personalised bal-lerinas cost Rs. 1,599, ipad covers and sling bags Rs. 1,499, your jazzy cushion covers and wine trays come for Rs. 699 and Rs. 1,299 respectively.

al artz, 5 c, Jungi House, Shahpur Jat, New Delhi/ 9811970891

around town