Special

Home styling bonanza...

As we have the festive season officially knocking at the doorstep, a lot many things are on our shopping list other than clothes. Your home needs a treat too. Starting from bed covers to doormats, you can change all or can bring some little changes just to bring back "life" in your daily schedule. The heavily decorated shopping malls, craft shops and markets are open day and night to cater your tastes. So choose any one among the suggested list and see what changes you can give to your sweet home.

The market is filled up with home decor objects. With an emphasis on handcrafts (which is in style now a days) you will get nice bed covers, pillow covers, cushion covers, mats and table placement mats, everything at any given budget. Appliqué, block and prints all are available at any store near you. Aarong, Nipun, Banglar Mela, Probartana, Folk International, New Market have stocked many exquisite items especially in their decor section.
Run by an internationally famous NGO, Aarong is the country's largest store where you get handmade products from all over the country. Within a reasonably comfortable budget, you can put an entire house together. The huge range of decorative candles, dry flowers hangings, vases are completely mind-blowing. "Nipun", situated in Sobhanbagh and "Probartana" at Mohammadpur both have a friendly atmospheres offering you items you would like to have at any given situation to brighten up your rooms. They have more or less the same type of handmade products with a difference in style and but in a large spectrum of colours. The price is better compared to Aarong. Banglar Mela has been gathering crowds for the past two years since it was established. Starting its career with Emdad Huq's clothing collection, it has now brought in new and fascinating bedding items. They have a very comfortable bedding range. Though the collection is not as huge as the ones at Aarong or Nipun, the products are very good and extremely reasonable in price.

Folk International, with the huge wooden crafty door, leads to a tribal world of South Asia. The ethnic decor and clothing were the main objectives when it was established. The second floor, which is the curtain floor, has curtains and rods with variety in style for your home. Centre tablemats, placement mats and other home decor items are available at this folk store which is one of its kind.

There can be nothing more to say about New Market. The country's largest shopping market has the biggest range at the minimum price in its home decor section. The pilled up shops at the last row of the market offer you printed bedding and drawing room items in a low price.
These places are more or less common in choice. We often forget to allot a little money in home styling activities. Our homes reflect our minds. A well-furnished house symbolises an artistic, orderly spirit. At this time of the year we must remember that our furniture could also do with a little attention. A little goes a long way…

By Bohemian Soul

Chic chai
Most of us crave for a cup of hot tea during Iftar. An attractive tea cosy will make this mouth-watering drink more palatable. So before inviting guests at your place for a sumptuous Iftar, grab a brilliant tea cosy to add taste to your food arrangement. Check out Banglar Mela for really sweet tea-cosies; these handy tea accessories are available at Tk.100.

The secret of your energy…
After hours of fasting, a cup of hot drink energises us with new vigour. Or even at Sehri, a warm drink provides strength for the upcoming day. Malted drinks like Boost can be taken either hot or cold. Boost promises to speed up energy release from food for efficient working of body cells, formulate healthy blood for more energy and make bones stronger; each 450g bottle will cost you Tk.140. Boost is available in most of the local stores of Dhaka.

Skin-tastic!
Winter is coming up, and in this season your skin needs extra pampering. Famed brands like Dove, markets high quality body lotions especially manufactured to take great care of skin. So in this winter, buy a bottle of Dove from supermarkets like PQS and other popular general stores for your winter skin treatment. A bottle of Dove lotion will cost you around Tk.400.

Terra-cotta Masks
So you want to buy something to decorate your abode for the forthcoming Eid? Here's a great idea for you. There are eye-catching terra-cotta masks in different sizes and patterns available at the branches of Banglar Mela. They would definitely highlight your walls in the coming festival. Prices of these masks will vary according to size. For about tk.1000 maximum, you can purchase these artistic masks for your home.

Issues with tissues
Paper tissues are handy indeed. From cleansing your face to wiping your glasses, these thin wipes have become somewhat essential for modern day living. Fay has been a trusted name for paper tissues for quite a long time. Fay facial tissues in different attractive paper boxes are available in most of the shops of the capital. Each box contains 120 sheets and is available at tk.25.

Instant meal with cup soups
Maggi has introduced delicious cup soups for their valued customers. Each small pack is available for only tk.5. You empty the packet into a cup of warm water and sip. Not only are these cup soups mouth watering, they are also quite refreshing. A cup of this nourishing Maggi soup during Iftar will drive away the fatigue of your entire day.

Handmade CD Albums
A CD album is a great way to keep your favourite CD collection with you. If you're of an artistic bent of mind, you might want to try out the ones available at Jatra. These are made from handmade paper and cost around Tk 85. They are sure to jazz up your music collection.

By Wara Karim

 

 

Essentials

Wasting precious time
It is a common practice of medical representatives from different medicine companies to visit doctors while they are in the chamber seeing patients. These representatives waste precious time of the doctor and the patient. Most of the patients wait for a long time to visit the doctor. These representatives cut in between lines disturbing ailing patients. Sometimes several of them visit the doctor. Proper health care is being disrupted because of this. Medical representatives should not be allowed in the chamber until the doctor is finished with all the patients.

Prevent VAT dodging
VAT dodging is a common practice among our businesspersons. When you buy something and do not take the receipt you make it easier for them. You can prevent VAT dodging by collecting the receipt whenever you buy something at store or eat out. The receipt books are records of how many dealings were done by a company and how much VAT they owe to the government.

Occupational hazards
The term occupational hazard is not quite known in Bangladesh yet. Some occupations pose greater risk than other jobs. Garment workers, ship breakers, firemen, and traffic police, all these people face a high rate of occupational hazards. However, it is observed that these people do not receive any extra payments for taking the risk. In fact the salary of a garment worker, ship breaker, fireman, or a traffic policeman is very poor. These people should be rewarded, taking into account the high risk factor of their occupation.

Honking and noise
pollution
Unnecessary honking is a major cause of noise pollution in the city. You must have noticed the rush of traffic just before Iftar and how the drivers use their high power horns in the jam as if honking will help them go home earlier. Be it cars or local buses it is the same case. People become frantic to reach home and join their family during the fast-breaking ritual. They (the drivers) fail to apprehend that honking only increases the pain instead of helping. Refrain from frequent honking and contribute in reducing noise pollution.

By Shahnaz Parveen