Home decor essentials

The curtains and their rods are down, the rugs are rolled up, the maps and assorted thingamajigs are tucked away. This weekend our house gets painted a clean cream, and I say goodbye to brothel-pink and dhaba green.

Bone-white walls mean fun playing with colours for furnishings, of course. I have been going through things looking for ideas for my curtains. Now, some people have a knack of taking a couple of old sarees and making magic. Me, not so much. I am constitutionally unable to put together 'a look' whether on my person, or my table. And I am always okay with that. 'Eclectic', 'Artist in a garette', and 'Scavenger' have pretty much been my favourite decorating styles.

But now, I am decorating for two, so to speak. And I have been overdosing on other peoples magazine-ready houses.  The result is that I have been going through a mild phase of 'oh what's the use, its impossible, I cant do it, mum-maaa!'

But we know by now that the multiverse does not allow me to feel that way for long.I happen to be helping a little girl with her homework most evenings. And she is wide-eyed with joy at the pretty things she finds at our home.

'you have a painting!'
'yes, my friend made it and gave it to me.'
'ooooo'

'you have many frogs..'
'yes, I like them a lot. do you?'
'hanh! may  I play with them?'

She looks through the pretty books, builds with scrabble tiles, and plays with the thingies. And I see them all with a new pair of eyes and think, 'Not Martha, but who wants that? This is lovely.'

How does that song go? 'kisiko dekhna hain ghar, to pehele maang le nazar..'

Yeh ghar bahut haseen hain.