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Showing posts from November, 2012

Green Lovers, Welcome

I met Madhavi Chandan who runs a plant boutique from her Koregaon Park residence. Her potted plants can be good gifts. Following is the interview, which I did for a daily. ---- From outside the walls, the garden looks ordinary — a swing, a few potted plants and a patch of grass. It’s only when you step into Madhavi Chandan’s tiny green space, you’ll wonder how she’s accommodated a whole lot of things — a bird house, a bird feeder, an artificial waterfall, ceramic swans, frog pavers and a cast iron stand full of plants, containers, ceramic and fabricated planters and fibre barks! The answer’s simple: Space is never a constraint for her. Madhavi can work on the tiniest space and transform it into a beautiful garden. “ That’s the whole idea — to make use of the smallest space! Not many people today can afford a big home, but that doesn’t mean they can’t have a green corner! Which is why I have come up with bottle and vertical gardens and so on,” says the owner of Naturecr

Spreading festive warmth

Ratna Khurana makes candles alongwith her sister. I met Ratna at her house, where she was busy sorting out candles and packing them in gift boxes. Following is the article I wrote on her. --- Immersed in work, Ratna Khurana busily gift-wraps the handcrafted assorted candles so that they reach her clients just in time for Diwali. Adept at candle making, Ratna has been exploring this art for more than a decade now, but it’s been just a year that she’s set up shop. Talking about her enterprise Candle N Beyond, which she started along with her sister Yogita Lal, Ratna says, “It’s just been one year since we got into the business. But, we have been making candles for 12 years now. I did a basic candle-making course, in which I learnt how to heat and colour the wax.” But what kept the duo going was their energy to explore and their passion to create exotic candles. Quips Ratna, “I was always inclined towards the art of candle making because candles are universally associ