On A Different Note

Create a serenity zone

Swirling dark clouds transform a calm midnight, a busy morning or even a clear evening. The rhythmic sounds of falling rain and a cool breeze come as a respite from a hot summer day. The rains are here, to bring a breath of change into the monotony of the season.

When you find stress levels soaring, it is time to seek harmony in your home decor. When life becomes too busy and too complicated, it is time to simplify your home décor. You may find yourself making many changes before one small shift. Open a window, bring some plants, move a huge table, add a small sitter, hang wind chimes, add some wicker, cane and straw accents- do any of these to create a new atmosphere.

Dhaka is a busy city, with a mantle of concrete, hiding its green beauty. Not everybody is lucky enough to have a huge garden. This is all the more reason why I always suggest decorating verandas. The size is irrelevant. The main point is that if you are a plant lover, you can place plants in many different settings, according to the space you have. While they feed the spirit, plants also benefit your physical health. Some researchers believe that certain varieties of ordinary foliage bring life-affirming peace.

When you are stressed it is especially important to make sure that your home feels nurturing and life affirming. A ceiling high ficus tree and hanging pots of orchids or ferns will bring their own quiet energy into your space. A garden, no matter how small, can become an important area for releasing stress and finding hope.

If you have a yard or garden, plant flowers that will lure butterflies. Even a veranda with lots of flowering plants invite in butterflies and bees. Inside your home, birds can also be a continual source of joy and inspiration. Some of the most beautiful sounds come from nature. Inside your home, birds can also be a continual source of joy and inspiration. Because of their easy flight and seeming weightlessness canaries and finches seem to represent the eternal spirit.

This week, we focus on a narrow veranda. The photos show a red-vented bulbul who built a small nest in a ficus plant. This plant is a pot plant and placed in a corner of the slick bushy verandah. The house owner encouraged the flying creature to live on her veranda. She loves birds very much and encourages her children not to disturb them. She has hung a wooden bird as a wind chime in the false ceiling, which attracts the feathery friends to the veranda.

The homeowners enjoy the beautiful chirping and chattering of the bulbuls. We are used to sparrows coming to nest in our homes. Bulbuls are more of a rarity.

Music- both vocal and instrumental truly is food for the soul. Surely there is nothing more peaceful than the rustle of the leaves or the patter of the rain, or the chirp and chatter of birds. To create a small heaven, look for spaces that can be transformed into an indoor garden.

By Nazneen Haque Mimi
Interior Consultant
Journeyman
E-mail: journeym@citechco.net
Photo: Moniruzzaman
Special thanks to Mrs. Farzana Azim Kanta