Shopping for Interiors?? - Recommended places in Bangalore

The question about which are the best places to shop for stuff for home interiors in Bangalore has surfaced in multiple discussions with friends, family and clients. Some may say that I am about to reveal a trade secret, however I am a firm believer that knowledge should be free ... and available for people to make informed decisions. Money should be made from ideas and implementation of those & not from information.

Before we dwell deeper here are some first principles

1. What are given below are my views on the best places that I know of.
2. I am not soliciting business for or from these folks.
3. You might end up with better places to shop than these....if you do then let me know as well :)

Okay....back to the meat then

Shutters (ready made): For wardrobe & Kitchen: Have found Indoline to be the best in quality, variety & value (= cost/ quality). These are available from most Kitchen & Furniture vendors in Bangalore. Huzafia Decor on Residency road is the Bangalore dealer for Indoline.
The negative is that these come from Nasik and take a min of 15 days for delivery. If one is pressed for time then Elenza comes a close second. They have a factory in Bangalore, hence can deliver quickly, also have a wider colour choice.

Carcass (boxes for kitchen & wardrobe cabinets): Anything works here...Elenza, Indoline, local make all are ok

Wood (Ply, Laminate etc.): Kanakpura Road (opposite GR Pinnacle) has multiple shops. All of these folks are distributors and offer good rates (I might write about rates in a later post)

Hardware: Before you buy hardware make sure you visit the Hettich showroom at Raheja Arcade in Koramangala (opposite Forum). A trip there opens your eyes to what all has been achieved in the Hardware world and what you should be using for your needs. Best places to shop for hardware are Ismail (good rates), Parmanand (Good variety) - both on Commercial Street (CS), CS has multiple other shops in the bylanes & crevices which I have not explored.
Closer to South Bangalore, Masterpiece (opposite Big Bazaar Jayanagar 9th Block) has good variety (rates are a ?). Also Razzle (Opposite Sonata on RV Road) has good variety (especially Handles & Aluminium profiles etc.), rates are ok ok.

Number of folks choose to go to City Market for Hardware, however shopkeepers there (i felt) are not trustworthy and might take you for a ride.

Electricals, Light Fittings Etc.:  For Lights the sasta and tikaau (meaning offering good value) place is Priya Electricals in Jayanagar 4th Block Market (Shops opposite Citibank). While Priya also keeps all other electrical stuff (Fans, Geysers, Chimney, Hobs etc.) sometimes have found Anupama Electricals (Opposite Khazana Jewellery in Jayanagar 4th Block) offering better rates.
If you want some of the best lights in town and care two hoots about the price then go to Trisha (Shanthi Nagar), they import lights from nearly all over the world and have a good variety.
I have seen Kapoor Lights, LightsPro etc. etc. but still found the above folks to be better.

Wooden Flooring & Panelling: This is one area (at least) where Hometown offers good choice, though you might get a better price outside.
There is specialized flooring and panelling material available (for example bamboo, shell, coconut shell wood panelling, leather floors etc) , however this comes from niche players who do not have a showroom in Bangalore but can supply.

Also very good quality Wallpaper is available nowadays (Hometown has this). This offers greater variety (than paint) for wall textures and is quicker to lay.

Kids Furniture: ChildSpace (Childspace.co.in) is by far the best, sometimes a little steep in price, however it beats all in quality and finish.

Sanitaryware: Galleria on Indiranagar 100 feet road has very good variety, they import stuff from all over, also they also have a price to match.
For standard desi stuff at regular rates Build mart (buildmart.co.in) on BG Road & Hometown have all that is there in the market...one stop shop


Kitchen & Bathroom slabs: This is not your run of the mill granite and marble stuff that I am talking about which is amply available in the Marble Market on BG Road.
There are speciality acrylic kitchen and counter tops that are available in Bangalore from Hanex (Hanexusa.com). They have a dealer close to dairy circle (before Kajaria Ceramics next to Forum) where you can check it out.

Furnishings, Upholstery etc.: Floating Walls (floatingwalls.in) in Jayanagar has everything that one might need at a price that is approx 30% lower most other big names in the market.

This is all that I can think of at this time of the night (yaaawn!!!) will add to the post if I remember anything that I missed out. As mentioned earlier if you find a good place for shopping for Home interiors ..... do let me know and I will add to the list (with due credits to you of course)

Bye for now

NM

Photographs of my recent work at Elita, JP Nagar, Bangalore

So what is a modular kitchen? .... and some best practices

I recently came across a customer who was told by his "designer" (more carpenter) that the kitchen he has made for the customer is Modular because ... "see it has these steel baskets and I will also put in a magic corner". Ha, haa I thought, this needs some explanation, why don't I use this topic as my first post in the blog. So here goes....aaaum ganeshaya namah...

With so many scrupulous and un-scrupulous designers, carpenters, interior-walas selling what they call "modular kitchens" these days it is good as a customer to know what exactly is a "Modular Kitchen".

So here it is....

1. As the name suggests a "Modular" Kitchen consists of modules that are assembled together. Each module consisting of the Carcass (box) and the shutter is independent and can be taken in and out of the full unit separately. This also helps in repair work when the kitchen ages as for example, you can completely replace the wet unit (unit under the washbasin) if it spoils after some years of use without disrupting the rest of the kitchen.

2.  The Carcass in a Modular kitchen rests on 3-4 inch legs, typically 4 legs under each module. It does not rest on a wooden plank. The legs are hidden behind a PVC (not wood) skirting. The legs & the PVC skirting help because (a) As mentioned in point 1 earlier the unit/ module can be independently moved in & out and (2) the wood does not touch the ground, hence no chances of any damage caused by water, mop etc.

3. Height is usually more than the normal kitchen. Most designers (Carpenters) would keep the height as 32 inches and this is usually what the builder also gives. However typical Modular Kitchens will have a height around 36 inches.It is good to keep this height because (1) We Indian women are nowadays taller than in the past :-) and therefore it is more convenient to work on a higher slab and (2) If you want to fit a dishwhasher under the slab it will not fit in 32 inches and (3) A higher height gives you more storage space underneath.

4. While steel baskets and accessories in the drawers etc. are good, they nowadays cost the same as soft closing drawers & by that I mean the same price as Hettich Innotech drawers (http://www.hettich.com/uk/carpenter/1109.php) which are considered as amongst the best drawer systems in the world. The choice is however left to the individual.

I guess thats it. I am sure this will give one enough gyan to "sound" intelligent and knowledgable to your designer/ carpenter so that he does not take you for a ride.

Happy home making

NM