Supreme Home Therapy Vol 1, Issue 1 Jan -Mar 2014

Supreme Home Therapy - 1 -

SUPREME HOME THERAPY Organise your living spaces , Organise your life ........



W e l c o m e . . . . Hello visitors !

welcome to 'Supreme Home Therapy' - A quarterly online magazine that provides Interior Design solution for your residential and commercial spaces and encourages its readership to create a better ambience around them . Supreme Home Therapy publishes four times a year, at three-month intervals . It is called Supreme Home Therapy because our goal behind this magazine is to cure physical, mental, or behavioral problems of our readers by providing them a comfortable and stress free surroundings, sophisticated lifestyle, functionally improved and aesthetically enriched spaces. We believe that.... If we can't organise our living spaces then we can't organise our life . So, be a part of our Supreme Home Therapy and create a beautiful and healthy ambience of your own. Stay tuned with Supreme Home Therapy. Supreme Home Therapy includes regular columns on historical architecture, art, design formulae, antiques, green design, renovation Time, Interior Design Outlines, Vastu and Feng shui, Residential Spaces and 9 to 5 spaces.


Besides, Do design woes get you depressed ? Let our in- house expert and Editor-in-chief of Supreme Home Therapy , Designer Rishabh Shukla wipe that frown away . Leaking Roof ? Yellowing marble ? Cluttered Spaces ? Here's where you 'll find the diagnosis and hopefully the solutions to all your design woes.

Write in with your Queries to :

[email protected]

Editor in chief Rishabh Shukla

Deputy Editor Vikrant Kulkarni

Writer Sneha Rajyadaksha

Design Consultant Swapnil Shukla

Illustrator Gurpreet Singh

Marketing Head Vipul Bajpai

Publisher Aten Publishing House

Supreme Home Therapy is also available on :

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Owned and published by Rishabh Shukla , at Aten Publishing House . All rights reserved . No part of this publication may be reproduced , stored or transmitted in any form without prior consent of the copyright owner. We welcome unsolicited material but do not take resposibility for the same. Letters or e-mails are welcome but subject to editing . The editors do their best to verify the information published but do not take responsibility for the absolute accuracy of the information.Rishabh Shukla ( Editor-in-chief ) reserves the right to use the information published herein in any manner whatsoever. copyright© 2014 Rishabh Shukla. All rights reserved . For all subscription enquiries , contact here : [email protected]


Table of Contents :

Editor's Page 06 Historical Architecture - Indian Art and Architecture : ( Part - 1 )

11

Art - Aesthetics 17

Design Formulae - Decorating Do's 23

Antiques - Ancient Coins 26

Green Design - Eco Friendly Homes 30 Renovation Time – Renaissance Interiors

32

Interior Design Outlines 34

Vastu & Feng shui 36 Residential Spaces - Kitchen Design 39 9 To 5 Spaces - Retail Design 41


Editor's Page …..

‘Interior design’ does not require an introduction. The popularity of interior designing as a discipline is not confined to urban cities but it has rapidly spread to small town and cities across the nation. This is largely because of the changing lifestyle of people and their want to customise their residence with the help of an expert who can understand their taste and preference.

Interior design is the process of shaping the experience of interior space. Interior designing means better utilization of a particular space according to the requirements & budget of the client & to create healthy living ambience by using different kinds of materials. In other words interior design is a profession concerned with anything that is found inside a space {walls, windows, doors, finishes, furniture, texture, lights, furnishings, accessories etc.}. All of these elements are used by Interior designers to develop a fuctional, safe, aesthetically pleasing space for a building user.

In simple words, we can say interior designing is the arrangement of living spaces i.e, organizing, managing & planning of the interiors of residential , commercial or industrial spaces. The objective of designing space is to achieve functionality and to create the right kind of atmosphere for the right budget. Purpose of Interior designing is functional improvement, aesthetic enrichment


and psychological enhancement of interior spaces . Modern lifestyles demands a sophistication in interiors both residential or commercial areas , everyone wishes to reside , work or to be around in an aesthetically set room or building that needs the assistance of trained designers and decorators .

Interior Design involves manipulating the architectural integrity of interior space as well as the creation of a lifestyle experience through the study of human behaviour . Interior design draws on aspects of environmental psychology , architecture, product design , furniture design in addition to traditional decoration.

An Interior designer is a professional , who does better utilization of a particular space according to the requirements and budget of client and creates healthy living environment by using different kind of materials. Interior design as profession includes a variety of aspects which involves - conceptual design, design development, design documentation, construction supervision, contract administration.

In a market place that's getting increasingly competitive, and in a world where big names like to be aligned with other big names, a proper brand imaging of a designer will become necessary . and to become a brand the designer would have to strike the right balance between how he sees the space and what's expected out of it- with a definite leaning towards what the clients wants.

Considering the demands of the Interior design industry , we are proud to present ' Supreme Home Therapy ', a quarterly online magazine that provide Interior Design solutions for your residential and commercial spaces and encourages its readership to create a better ambience around them .



Supreme Home Therapy will be published four times a year, at three-month intervals . It is called Supreme Home Therapy because our goal behind this magazine is to cure physical, mental, or behavioral problems of our cleints by providing them a comfortable and stress free surroundings , sophisticated lifestyle , functionally improved and aesthetically enriched spaces. We believe that.... If we can't organise our living spaces then we can't organise our life . So, be a part of our Supreme Home Therapy and create a beautiful and healthy ambience of your own. Stay tuned with Interior Design Therapy.

This is the first of our offerings ...Look out for us in April 2014 . Until then , A very Happy New Year ! This is Rishabh Shukla , signing off. www.rishabhrs.hpage.com


copyright©2014 Rishabh Shukla. All rights reserved

No part of this publication may be reproduced , stored in a retrieval system or transmitted , in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the copyright owner.

Copyright infringement is never intended, if I published some of your work, and you feel I didn't credited properly, or you want me to remove it, please let me know and I'll do it immediately.

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Historical Architecture …….. Indian Art and Architecture : ( Part - 1 )

Indian Art and Architecture, the art and architecture produced on the Indian subcontinent from about the 3rd millennium bc to modern times. To viewers schooled in the Western tradition Indian art may seem overly ornate and sensuous; appreciation of its refinement comes only gradually, as a rule. Voluptuous feeling is given unusually free expression in Indian culture. A strong sense of design is also characteristic of Indian art and can be observed in its modern as well as in its traditional forms. The art of India must be understood and judged in the context of the ideological, aesthetic, and ritual assumptions and needs of the Indian civilization. These assumptions were formed as early as the 1st century bc and have shown a remarkable tenacity through the ages. The Hindu-Buddhist-Jain view of the world is largely concerned with the resolution of the central paradox of all existence, which is that change and perfection, time and eternity, immanence and transcendence, operate dichotomously and integrally as parts of a single process. In such a situation the creation cannot be separated from the creator, and time can be comprehended only as a matrix of eternity. This conceptual view, when expressed in art, divides the universe of aesthetic experience into three distinct, although interrelated, elements—the senses, the emotions, and the spirit. These elements dictate the norms for architecture as an instrument of enclosing and transforming space and for


sculpture in its volume, plasticity, modeling, composition, and aesthetic values. Instead of depicting the dichotomy between the flesh and the spirit, Indian art, through a deliberate sensuousness and voluptuousness, fuses one with the other through a complex symbolism that, for example, attempts to transform the fleshiness of a feminine form into a perennial mystery of sex and creativity, wherein the momentary spouse stands revealed as the eternal mother. The Indian artist deftly uses certain primeval motifs, such as the feminine figure, the tree, water, the lion, and the elephant. In a given composition, although the result is sometimes conceptually unsettling, the qualities of sensuous vitality, earthiness, muscular energy, and rhythmic movement remain unmistakable. The form of the Hindu temple; the contours of the bodies of the Hindu gods and goddesses; and the light, shade, composition, and volume in Indian painting are all used to glorify the mystery that resolves the conflict between life and death, time and eternity.

The arts of India expressed in architecture, sculpture, painting, jewelry, pottery, metalwork, and textiles, were spread throughout the Far East with the diffusion of Buddhism and Hinduism and exercised a strong influence on the arts of China, Japan, Myanmar (formerly known as Burma), Thailand, Cambodia, and Java. These two religions with their various offshoots were dominant in India until Islam became powerful from the 13th to the 18th century. With Islam, which forbids representation of the human figure in religious contexts, geometrical patterns became the most common decoration in the arts patronized by the Muslim rulers.

ARCHITECTURE

Indian architecture found its earliest expression in brick buildings that were contemporary with buildings that were constructed of wood. The wooden structures disappeared over the centuries, but they were succeeded and imitated in stone buildings, which have survived.

Early Indian and Buddhist Styles

The oldest architectural remains in India are buildings of burnt brick found at Mohenjo-Daro and Harappā (now in Pakistan), dating from about 2500-1750 bc. The subsequent Vedic period, which precedes the beginning of historical styles, is represented by burial mounds at Lauriya Nandangarh, in Bihār State, and rock-cut tombs in Malabar, Kerala State.

The establishment of historical styles began about 250 bc in the time of the Indian king Ashoka, who gave imperial patronage to Buddhism. Accordingly, the monuments of this time were built for Buddhist purposes. A characteristic Buddhist construction was the tope, or stupa, a memorial mound encased in masonry, with an altar and parasol at the top, corridors around the base, and four entrances marked by gateways. The best example of these structures,


commemorative of the death and entering into Nirvana of Buddha, is the Great Stupa in Sanchī in the state of Madhya Pradesh.

Other Buddhist structures are the dagoba, a relic shrine, said to be the ancestral form of the pagoda; the lat, a stone edict pillar, generally monumental; the chaitya, a hall of worship in basilican form; and the vihara, a monastery or temple. Chaityas and viharas were often hewn out of living rock. Architectural details such as capitals and moldings show influence from Middle Eastern and Greek sources. Notable examples of early rock-cut monuments in Mahārāshtra State are the Great Chaitya Hall at Karle (circa early 2nd century ad ) with its elaborate sculptured facade and tunnel-vaulted nave, and various temples and monasteries at Ajanta and Ellora.


Jain and Hindu Styles

Buddhism waned after the 5th century as Hinduism and Jainism became dominant. The Jain and Hindu styles overlapped and produced the elaborate allover patterns carved in bands that became the distinguishing feature of Indian architecture. The Jains often built on a gigantic scale, a marked feature being pointed domes constructed of level courses of corbeled stones. Extensive remains have been discovered on hilltops far removed from one another in three states, at Parasnath Hill in Bihār, Mount Abut at Abu in Rājasthān, and Satrunjaya in Gujarāt. Small temples were congregated in great numbers on hilltops; one of the earlier groups is on Mount Ābu. Typical of Jain commemorative towers is the richly ornamented, nine-story Jaya Sthamba.

The Hindu style is closely related to the Jain style. It is divided into three general categories: northern, from ad 600 to the present; central, from 1000 to 1300; and southern, or Dravidian, from 1350 to 1750. In all three periods the style is marked by great ornateness and the use of pyramidal roofs. Spirelike domes terminate in delicate finials. Other features include the elaborate, grand-scale gopuras, or gates, and the choultries, or ceremonial halls. Among the most famous examples of the style are the temples in the south at Belur, and at Halebid, Tiruvalur, Thanjāvūr, and Rameswaram in Tamil Nādu State; temples in the north at Barolli in Rājasthān, at Vārānasi in Uttar Pradesh, and at Konarak the Sun Temple in Orissa State.

Indo-Islamic Style

Islamic architecture in India dates from the 13th century to the present. Brought to India by the first Muslim conquerors, Islamic architecture soon lost its original purity and borrowed such elements from Indian architecture as courtyards surrounded by colonnades, balconies supported by brackets, and above all, decoration. Islam, on the other hand, introduced to India the dome, the true arch, geometric motifs, mosaics, and minarets. Despite fundamental conceptual differences, Indian and Islamic architecture achieved a harmonious fusion, especially in certain regional styles.

Indo-Islamic style is usually divided into three phases: the Pashtun, the Provincial, and the Mughal. Examples of the earlier Pashtun style in stone are at Ahmadābād in Gujarāt State, and in brick at Gaur-Pandua in West Bengal State. These structures are closely allied to Hindu models, but are simpler and lack sculptures of human figures. The dome, the arch, and the minaret are constant features of the style; a famous monument in this style is the mausoleum Gol Gumbaz (17th century) in Bijāpur, Karnātaka State, which has a dome with a 43-m (142-ft) diameter, almost as big as that of Saint Peter's Basilica in Rome. Another notable structure is the five-story stone and marble


tower called the Qutb Minar (12th cent.), near Delhi.

The Provincial style reflected the continued rebellion of the provinces against the imperial style of Delhi. The best example of this phase is in Gujarāt, where for almost two centuries until 1572, when Emperor Akbar finally conquered the region, the dynasties that succeeded one another erected many monuments in varying styles. The most notable structures in this phase are found in the capital, Ahmadābād. The Jami Masjid (1423) is unique in the whole of India; although Muslim in inspiration, the arrangement of 3 bays and almost 300 pillars, as well as the decoration, in this mosque is pure Hindu.

The Mughal phase of the Indo-Islamic style, from the 16th to the 18th century, developed to a high degree the use of such luxurious materials as marble. The culminating example of the style is the Taj Mahal in Āgra. This domed mausoleum of white marble inlaid with gemstones was built (1632-48) by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan as a tomb for his beloved wife. It stands on a platform set off by four slender minarets and is reflected in a shallow pool. Other famous examples of the Mughal style are the Pearl Mosque at Āgra, Uttar Pradesh State, the palace fortresses at Āgra and Delhi, and the great mosques at Delhi and Lahore (now in Pakistan).

Modern Styles

Building in India since the 18th century has either carried on the indigenous historical forms or has been patterned after European models introduced by the British. Numerous examples of Western styles of the 18th, 19th, and 20th centuries may be seen in public buildings, factories, hotels, and houses. The most outstanding example of modern architecture in India is the city of


Chandigarh, the joint capital of Haryana and Punjab; the city was designed by the Swiss-born French architect Le Corbusier in collaboration with Indian architects. The broad layout of the city was completed in the early 1960s. Notable architectural features include the vaulted structure, topped by a huge, concrete roof umbrella, and the use of concrete grille and bright pastel colors in the Palace of Justice; the arrangement of concrete cubes topped by a concrete parasol that is the Governor's Palace; and the use of projections, recesses, stair towers, and other contrasting elements to break the monotony of the long facades of the secretariat building, which are 244 m (800 ft) long. Modern Indian architecture has incorporated Western styles, adapting them to local traditions and needs—as in the design of the railroad station at Alwar, Rājasthān State.




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Art …….

Aesthetics

Aesthetics, branch of philosophy concerned with the essence and perception of beauty and ugliness. Aesthetics also deals with the question of whether such qualities are objectively present in the things they appear to qualify, or whether they exist only in the mind of the individual; hence, whether objects are perceived by a particular mode, the aesthetic mode, or whether instead the objects have, in themselves, special qualities—aesthetic qualities. Philosophy also asks if there is a difference between the beautiful and the sublime.

The term aesthetics was introduced in 1753 by the German philosopher Alexander Gottlieb Baumgarten, but the study of the nature of beauty had been pursued for centuries. In the past it was chiefly a subject for philosophers. Since the 19th century, artists also have contributed their views.


AESTHETICS AND ART

Traditional aesthetics in the 18th and 19th centuries was dominated by the concept of art as imitation of nature. Novelists such as Jane Austen and Charles Dickens in England and dramatists such as Carlo Goldoni in Italy and Alexandre Dumas fils (the son of Alexandre Dumas père) in France presented realistic accounts of middle-class life. Painters, whether neoclassical, such as Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres, romantic, such as Eugène Délacroix, or realist, such as Gustave Courbet, rendered their subjects with careful attention to lifelike detail.

In traditional aesthetics it was also frequently assumed that art objects are useful as well as beautiful. Paintings might commemorate historical events or encourage morality. Music might inspire piety or patriotism. Drama, especially in the hands of Dumas and the Norwegian Henrik Ibsen, might serve to criticize society and so lead to reform.

In the 19th century, however, avant-garde concepts of aesthetics began to challenge traditional views. The change was particularly evident in painting. French impressionists, such as Claude Monet, denounced academic painters for depicting what they thought they should see rather than what they actually saw—that is, surfaces of many colors and wavering forms caused by the distorting play of light and shadow as the sun moves.

In the late 19th century, postimpressionists such as Paul Cézanne, Paul Gauguin, and Vincent van Gogh were more concerned with the structure of a painting and with expressing their own psyche than with representing objects in the world of nature. In the early 20th century this structural interest was developed further by cubist painters such as Pablo Picasso, and the expressionist concern was reflected in the work of Henri Matisse and other fauves and by the German expressionists such as Ernst Ludwig Kirchner. The literary aspects of expressionism can be seen in the plays of August Strindberg, a Swede, and Frank Wedekind, a German.

Closely connected with these relatively nonrepresentational approaches to art was the principle of “art for art's sake,” which was derived from Kant's view that art has its own reason for being. The phrase was first used by the French philosopher Victor Cousin in 1818. This doctrine, sometimes called aestheticism, was espoused in England by the critic Walter Horatio Pater, by the Pre-Raphaelite painters, and by the expatriate American painter James Abbott McNeill Whistler. In France it was the credo of such symbolist poets as Charles Baudelaire. The “art for art's sake” principle underlies most of avant-garde Western art of the 20th century.


MODERN AESTHETICS

The 18th-century German philosopher Immanuel Kant was concerned with judgments of taste. Objects are judged beautiful, he proposed, when they satisfy a disinterested desire: one that does not involve personal interests or needs. It follows from this that beautiful objects have no specific purpose and that judgments of beauty are not expressions of mere personal preference but are universal. Although one cannot be certain that others will be satisfied by objects he or she judges to be beautiful, one can at least say that others ought to be satisfied. The basis for one's response to beauty exists in the structure of


one's mind.

Art should give the same disinterested satisfaction as natural beauty. Paradoxically, art can accomplish one thing nature cannot. It can offer ugliness and beauty in one object. A fine painting of an ugly face is still beautiful.

According to the 19th-century German philosopher Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel, art, religion, and philosophy are the bases of the highest spiritual development. Beauty in nature is everything that the human spirit finds pleasing and congenial to the exercise of spiritual and intellectual freedom. Certain things in nature can be made more congenial and pleasing, and it is these natural objects that are reorganized by art to satisfy aesthetic demands.

The German philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer believed that the forms of the universe, like the eternal Platonic forms, exist beyond the worlds of experience, and that aesthetic satisfaction is achieved by contemplating them for their own sakes, as a means of escaping the painful world of daily experience.

Fichte, Kant, and Hegel are in a direct line of development. Schopenhauer attacked Hegel but was influenced by Kant's view of disinterested contemplation. The German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche followed Schopenhauer at first, then disagreed with him. Nietzsche concurred that life is


tragic, but thought that this should not preclude acceptance of the tragic with joyous affirmation, the full realization of which is art. Art confronts the terrors of the universe and is therefore only for the strong. Art can transform any experience into beauty, and by so doing transforms its horrors in such a way that they may be contemplated with enjoyment.

Although much modern aesthetics is rooted in German thought, German thinking was subject to other Western influences. Lessing, a founder of German romanticism, was affected by the aesthetic writings of the British statesman Edmund Burke.

Academic Controversies

Academic controversies of the 20th century have revolved about meaning in art. The British critic and semanticist I. A. Richards claimed that art is a language. He asserted that two types of language exist: the symbolic, which


conveys ideas and information; and the emotive, which expresses, evokes, and excites feelings and attitudes. He regarded art as emotive language, giving order and coherence to experience and attitudes, but containing no symbolic meaning.

Richards's work was important also for its use of psychological techniques in studying aesthetic reactions. In Practical Criticism (1929) he described experiments revealing that even highly educated people are conditioned by their education, by handed-down opinion, and by other social and circumstantial elements in their aesthetic responses. Other writers have commented on the conditioning effects of tradition, fashion, and other social pressures, noting, for example, that in the early 18th century the plays of William Shakespeare were viewed as barbarous and Gothic art as vulgar.

Growing interest in aesthetics is revealed by the establishment of the periodicals Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism, founded in the United States in 1941; Revue d'Esthétique, founded in France in 1948; and the British Journal of Aesthetics, founded in 1960.

- Rishabh Shukla




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Design Formulae ………

Decorating Do's

- Do sketch your floor plan and record the room dimensions , window sizes and placement and the location of special features, electrical outlets and so on. - Do take time to discover your personal style. - Do identify the focal point of the room ( a fireplace, a view, a bed or an armoire ) - Do pick a signature piece.


- Do purchase large elements first ( rugs, carpets, upholstery, furniture, draperies ) - Do consider the uses and functions of a room. - Do use principle of repetition. - Do plan ahead for appropriate task , general and dramatic lighting . - Do purchase the best quality of furniture. - Do arrange conversation areas to be within an 8-14 feet square area.





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Antiques Antique, object made in or belonging to earlier times. An antique item can be valuable because of its scarcity, manufacturer, previous owners, or nostalgic qualities.

Ancient Coins

Coins were the main form of currency until the 1600s, when European banks began printing paper bank notes, a practice Marco Polo observed in China in the 1200s. Besides their value as currency, many coins are also commemorative of great events or people. Coins have been minted in a great variety of sizes, shapes, and compositions.

HISTORY OF COINAGE

In ancient times, pieces of gold and silver were widely used in trade, being exchanged for other goods by weight. The weight and purity of the metal had to be tested every time it changed hands. In Asia Minor, sometime around 600 bc, the Lydians hit upon the idea of shaping electrum, a natural alloy of gold


and silver, into bean-shaped lumps of fixed weight and purity and stamping them with official symbols. By 550 bc, the practice of striking coins was established in all the important trading cities throughout the known world. Although most Greek coins portrayed gods or goddesses, coins of the Roman Empire (from about the 1st century bc to the 5th century ad) offered portraits of the emperors. Because Islam prohibits graven images, Arabic coins (at least before the 20th century) were restricted to inscriptions, often from the Qur'an (Koran), the sacred scripture of Islam, on obverse and reverse.

From earliest times, silver was the principal metal for trade in the Far East. It was cast in cakes or ingots of various forms marked with inscriptions giving the name of the merchant and the denomination and purity of the piece of metal. Regular machine-made round coins of the Western type did not appear until 1870 in Japan and 1889 in China.

Except for the Orient, most coins throughout the world were handstruck until about 1500. The Italians are credited with devising mills for punching out uniformly round, blank metal disks, or planchets, and screw presses for impressing designs onto them. The discovery of the Americas, with their wealth of precious metals, led to greatly increased coin production, including large silver pieces. During this period almost every kingdom, duchy, principality, and free city in the Western world issued its own coins.

Minting of coins in the New World began in 1535 in Mexico City, after the


Spanish conquest. The British government did not provide its North American colonists with a coinage of their own; therefore, although the colonists used British money, reckoning values in pounds, shillings, and pence, they also used French, Dutch, German, and assorted Spanish coins.

An official mint in the United States was established in 1792, and coinage began in 1793. In addition to the denominations still in use today, the mint over the years produced y-cent, 2-cent, 3-cent, and 20-cent pieces as well as gold coins ranging from $2.50 to $20. The original 5-cent pieces were half-dimes made of silver. With a few exceptions, U.S. coins carry a year date and a mint mark to show where they were produced. The last regular issue gold coins were struck in 1933, and the last fine silver coins were dated 1964. Since 1982, however, the United States has issued silver and gold commemorative coins to mark certain memorable events such as the 23rd Olympic Games in Los Angeles (1984), the centennial of the Statue of Liberty (1986), and the bicentennial of the U.S. Constitution (1987). Since 1986 the U.S. Mint has issued gold and silver bullion coins, principally for precious metal investors.

All early U.S. coins had a personification of Liberty on the obverse; on the 1859 cent this figure was depicted with a Native American in a feathered headdress. A design featuring a representation of a Native American came into use on the $2.50 and $5 gold pieces of 1908 and on the 5-cent pieces (made of copper and nickel) of 1913. The practice of picturing deceased presidents on U.S. coins dates from 1909, the centennial of Abraham Lincoln's birth. A series of 50 types of special commemorative silver coins was issued between 1892 and 1954; many carried likenesses of historical figures other than presidents, including the explorer Daniel Boone and the showman P. T. Barnum. The first regular-issue coin with such a design was the Benjamin Franklin half-dollar (honoring the American statesman), issued from 1948 to 1963.

The most elegant way to display a coin collection is in a cabinet with pull-out trays. The most convenient way, on the other hand, is to use an album system with plastic pages that hold individual cardboard coin mounts. The best way to deal with large numbers of coins is to use small, standard-size coin envelopes filed in boxes. The same precautions taken for other valuables must be used to safeguard a coin collection.


COIN ASSOCIATIONS AND MUSEUMS

The American Numismatic Association, founded in 1891 to promote exchange of knowledge, is the largest organization of coin collectors in the world; headquarters is in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Several special museum collections in the United States are also devoted to coins, among them those of the Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C., and the American Numismatic Society, New York City.




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Green Design Eco Friendly Homes

Should we be walking around our homes wearing decontamination suits? Not quite yet, but the health of our homes will be at the forefront of home technology in the coming years . Some of us spend a great amount of time indoors and often the quality of air is worse than what we find outdoors. Homes and commercial buildings are sealed so well that despite circulation by heating and cooling systems , odours and particulates swirl around with nowhere to go, but your lungs . The homes in which we live and the buildings in which we work, are not always as healthy as we would like them to be. Sick building syndrome has been linked to respiratory problems, including asthma and allergies and headaches and soreeyes to name a few. These can be attributed in part , to mold, outgassing from synthetic fiber used in building


materials and carpets , pet hair , outdoor polens that become trapped indoors and inadequately vented cooking and odours. The goal should be to create a home which is ' friendly' to its inhabitants and sympathetic to the environment in which we live, some tips towards a healthy and ecologically conscious home : - Use energy efficient appliances and solar panels. - Rainwater harvesting is integral to an eco home. - Use sustainable , certified , toxic treatment free timber. - Emphasize renewable materials such as wood or those made from plentiful raw materials such as quarry tile. - When selecting materials for the interior, minimize the use of products and materials with high levels of volatile organic compounds ( VOC ) , select low volatile organic compounds and toxic free paints, finishes and adhesives . - Area rugs are preferable where dust allergies or asthma are a concern since they can be removed for proper cleaning. - Create an asthma aware home i,e. no fitted carpets, reduced ledges, low allergen gardens.




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Renovation Time ……..

Want to run away from the hustle and bustle of your home ? Well, the answer is : Decide a theme and design your space keeing in mind the formats of that particular theme . Lets take inspiration from Renaissance Period. Renaissance means the period in European history from about the 14th through 16th centuries regarded as marking the end of the Middle Ages and featuring major cultural and artistic change .

Renaissance Interiors

The houses of affluent people in the Renaissance (14th century to 16th century), contained large rooms and high ceilings elaborately ornamented with painted decorations and plaster moldings, usually derived from ancient Greek and Roman styles. Both the decorations and the furniture of the rooms were calculated to create an effect of richness and magnificence. In France and


Italy, where such famous artists as Benvenuto Cellini and Raphael created household decorations, a room was judged by the ornamentation on the ceilings and walls. Little furniture was used. Sideboards (dressoirs), chests (cassoni), and clothes presses (armoires) were designed to complement the formal, symmetrical architectural features of the rooms.

In England during the early Renaissance, houses were typically constructed in the Tudor style, approximately half timber and half brick and stone. Lavish use was made of wood paneling and of such features of Gothic art as mullioned windows, elaborate chimneys, fireplaces, and mantels. Rooms were simple and dignified, with few articles of furniture or accessories. Ceilings and walls were decorated with plaster moldings or hung with tapestries. Windows, doors, and the large four-poster beds characteristic of the period were draped with heavy velvets, damasks, and brocades.

Houses contains large rooms and high ceilings elaborately ornamented with painted decoration and plastic moldings usually derived from ancient Greek and Roman styles . Decorations and furniture were calculated to create an effect of richness and magnificance . A room was judged by ornamentation on ceilings and walls . Little furniture was used. Sideboard chests ( Strong rectangular box ) , clothes presses were generally used . In England, houses were constructed by half timber and half bricks and stones . Lavish use was made of wood , panelling, elaborate chimneys, fireplaces and mantels. Rooms were simple with few articles of furniture or accessories .Ceilings and walls were decorated with plaster moldings or hung with tapestries with heavy velvets damasks .




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Interior Design Outlines ……..

1- Interior Design, is the development of indoor living and working spaces, usually involving both practical and aesthetic decisions. 2- The lighting, whether natural, artificial, or a combination of the two, has a profound effect on the atmosphere of the room. 3- Lighting is taken into account when a color scheme is being determined. 4- The cool colors (blue, green, gray) and the warm colors (red, yellow, orange, brown), the strong dramatic colors (red, brown, purple, black), and the less prominent colors (beige, pink) can contribute a great deal to the feeling created by a room. 5- Certain colors have the effect of enlarging a space (white and the cool, light colors); others, of diminishing it (black and the warm, dark colors). 6- Certain colors blend unobtrusively with other colors; the same colors in differing intensity or shades can become strikingly emphasized.


7- Small objects in a room can be rendered conspicuous if their colors contrast with the background colors of the room. 8- Texture is an element that contributes to the overall impression of a room. Bark cloth, slate, brick, glass, plaster, glazed chintz, damask, linen, polished wood, silk, wool, linoleum, and tile—all have different textures that can add to the effect of a decorative scheme. 9- The designer’s final choices should be guided by the client’s tastes and budget, as well as the intended function of a given room. 10- For a house to be successful, the objects in it must communicate with one another , respond and balance one another .




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Vastu & Feng shui

Feng Shui, ancient Chinese skill of keeping a balance of forces in the land or surroundings. In feng shui (Mandarin Chinese words meaning “wind-water”) the land is regarded as living and as reflecting the pattern of heaven, and any development must be in harmony with this pattern. When building, planting, or altering the landscape in any way, or when choosing a grave site for an ancestor, practitioners of feng shui aim to balance the forces of yin and yang, the two counterbalancing forces of the universe. For example, hills and mountains are pictured as dragons, full of yin, while valleys are seen as tigers, embodying the balancing yang force.


Feng shui is the study of the environment , places, people, time and how the energies of each interact. Feng shui is about balance, comfort and harmony . It is a science that offers the ability to create a balance in your dwelling or place of work . Feng shui is based on five tatva : Fire, earth , Metal, Water, Wood . Vastu Shastra , vaastu in sanskrit means nature, a surrounding or environment . The word vaastu came from vastu denoting anything existing such as house, shelter, building etc. Shastra in sanskrit means systems. Vastu Shastra is an ancient art and science , containing principles and practises of constructing buildings which ensures a harmonious balance between man and nature and thereby bring all around happiness , health , wealth and prosperity. Vastu Shastra is based on pancha bhootas namely earth, space, air , fire and water and eight directions namely Esshan ( North- East ), East , South East , South West, South , West , North West , North. Who does not want prosperity and happiness in life ? Now- a days , when people want to construct a house or other building , they devote more time for minute details of foundation, superstructure , comforts, look, appearanceetc. without going into detailed examination as to whether such a house or building will bring them prosperity , health , wealth, wisdom and happiness in the life paving the way for progress and peaceful living or not . Vastu Shastra and Feng shui are such vast fields which really needs specialisation if someone want to study it. There are some basic favourable and unfavourable directions which we use in our daily life . Shape of plot : Favourites are regular shaped square or rectangular plot and irregular shaped plots are normally avoided. Water- bodies : water bodies in north or east are considered good. Obstructions : obstructions like big trees, pillars, open well and posts before an arrow like roads are to be avoided. Ideal Site : In a square plot, the house should be constructed in the house centre and in rectangular plot it should be nearer to construction south, south west and west sides preferably leaving more in a plot open space on north and east .





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Residential Spaces ……… Kitchen Design

While the interiors of a home should reflect the personality of its occupants & meet

their day-to-day requirements , the budget factor plays a crucial role. let us look at Kitchen of your house & some of the options that you can consider.

What comes to your mind when you think ofa kitchen ? Do grimy images with unpleasant working conditions flash before you ? Think no more ! There is an increasing trend towards modular kitchens & towards open plan kitchens which merge with the living room . This has also helped to ensure that it receives greater attention & more funds while allocating the budget .

The kitchen counter top should be made of granite since it is hard & stain free. cabinets below the counter top should be made of matt finish laminate available in exotic colours . Shelving should be done with steel racks .It is easier to maintain & not very expensive.

Vitrified tiles are best suited for kitchen flooring as they are stain free. These tiles cost around Rs. 60-120 persq.feet. Cast lights i.e. down-lighters casting light on the kitchen counter is an essential.


Granite counters comes at a price of around Rs. 3000 and it is advisable to opt for shades of black, red or dark grey. Marble should be avoided as it gets easily stained . A small chimney can help remove the warm air & cooing fumes . This comes in a wide range of Rs. 7000 to 30, 000 .

Different types of kitchen layouts:

U-shaped

L-shaped

Corridor/ Parallel

Island based

Broken U-shaped

Single wall

Consider the type of the kitchen layout that fits your home space . The U-shaped kitchen is the one that surrounds you on all sides with storage , countertops & applinaces , saving lots of steps. If the 'U' is big enough , you can add an island work station in the middle but this is a relatively costlier option.

One of the most popular kitchen layouts is the L-shaped kitchen because the work traingle is uninterrrupted by traffic & there is a lot of space for appliances. The most cost -effective model is the corridor kitchen. While you can move around the entire kitchen in a few steps , counter space & storage are limited . The kitchen should be designed for both comfort & utility. Modular kitchens are increasingly preferred because of the flexibilty they offer. there is a wide range of options with the price range starting at Rs. 3000 to 4000 per trolley to composite kitchens , either fabricated to size or readymade, which can cost up to Rs. 5 lakhs for some International brands.




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9 To 5 Spaces ……… Retail Design

The generally current indian pastime of shopping at fairs , festivals and exhibitions is based upon sound psychological principles. By looking at displays in fairs and exhibitions both exterior and interior , customers see merchandise that is powerfully presented with the object of creating desire . They can stop, look and even examine new and attractive items without any obligation. That is why , the question confronting every retailer is what encourages a customer to shop in one store rather than another ? The answer is : A coordinated effort that includes marketing, merchandising, store design and visual merchandising. Visual merchandising is the' icing on the cake ' . its the first tactile representation of projected merchandise that the customer will see. Visual merchandising is the art of presentation , which puts the merchandise in focus . It educates the customers, create desire and finally augments the selling process. In other words, Visual merchandising is the presentation of a store and its merchandise to the customers through the teamwork of the store's advertising, display, special events, fashion coordination and merchandising departments in order to sell the goods and services offered by the store.


Importance of Visual merchandising in today's scenario : - It educates the customer about the product. - Setting the company apart in an ecxlusive position. - Combining the creative, technical and operational aspects of a product and the business. - Establishing the linkage between fashion , product design and marketing by keeping the product in prime focus. - Drawing the attention of the customers to enable him to take purchase decision within shortest possible time, and thus augmenting the selling process. - helps in achieving reasonable profit. - remind customers of their desire for new things. - It generates interset that will bring a steady flow of regular and new customers to their store.


- communicate the store image to its target customers. - establish the store as a distinct fashion authority. -disseminate timely fashion information and become a source of news of innovations. - show uses for products. - show care of merchandise . - Suggest merchandise combination.


Techniques of Display : - Decorate from visitor's viewpoint. - Select products and settings that are timely . - Have one central idea or theme. - Keep the display clean often. - Use background and lights to attract attention and to accent the products. - Make original and pleasing use of colour and harmony . - Display the products as they can be used. - Change the display often .




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Documents

Supreme Home Therapy Vol 1, Issue 1 Jan -Mar 2014