Sunday, October 9, 2011

Ikea - Portugal style!

I am not really a huge fan of IKEA furniture. I mean, there's nothing wrong with IKEA, I had a ton of their stuff when I lived in Seattle, and their store was 2 miles from home so any free afternoon I would go window shopping....to get some great design ideas. Their furniture is stylish and affordable...but...well....it's so IKEA! Its easily recognizable.....strong linear Scandinavian lines, easy-to-assemble looking, contemporary styled. It is a great place for families starting out and college kids!

But be that as it may, I LOVE their new IKEA family website and the Home stories section. You have to hand it to them, they know how to engage their customers and their marketing guy is a genius.

OK, enough blabbing! I came across this colorful psychedelic home in Portugal, and even though I do vaguely remember seeing it featured in other blogs a while back, I had to engrave it on my blog too. For those who haven't seen it, it is serious pink, eye candy and the color in the home will leave your head spinning for days!

The home belongs to Interior Designer Maria, in the charming little village of Sintra, outside Portugal. (If I had known I would have dropped by when I went to Sintra 2 years ago).

I'll let you read up on the design story and her ideas here. I just want to hurry up and post the pics because they are soooo lovely!










Got your dose of pink today huh? Maria is certainly not afraid of color!

9 comments:

Harshika said...

Naaah! Didnt engage me...just too much going on. The colours are indeed pretty, but thats about it. Infact I think she needs to declutter and create some calm in her house. Just because something is pretty doesnt mean we can force it in to use...because then it does start looking too forced.
Hear you about the IKEA designs though. :)

Kamini said...

Harshika - believe me, I am the queen of de-clutter myself, but there is something so cozy and comfortable about this home with all the stuff! Its a barefoot home meets shabby chic - where I can be totally comfortable, lounge around without worrying about, plop myself down on those cushions, surround myself with color...its a place where I can see dogs and kids all running around and the homeowner not freaking out!!! For someone who abhors kitschy stuff, I love it. :-)

My Dream Canvas said...

Lovely, vibrant home! Ikea is great!

Anonymous said...

huuumm.. I like something about this home.. but Im not sure what.. I do love love the colours.. the bright pinks.. and the yellows and blues..

Love the white walls.. and then the burst of colours in the room.. Thats stunning!!

Some parts my eyes don't know where to look.. Like the pink wall patterned wall paper.. with blue glass.. and other shelves.. and the purple elephants.. Just about too much happening there!!

rk said...

Riot of colors but as you aptly put "there is something comfortable" about this home. Re IKEA furniture, my grouse is that they are not sturdy but it's a great start for beginners (i.e. students or brand new couples just getting started in family life).

rk (aka Rupa) said...

Kamini, instead of sending an email to you directly, I am writing this here. Japanese govt is issuing 10,000 free return airfares to Japan to bring back lost tourism. Since you were supposed to go and it got canceled, you might want to keep an eye out for that website to be up and apply. You will have to write your trip report on a blog, something I know you will do beautifully! Good luck.

A room with a view said...

Very interesting - a way of "undecorating" and it works..the layers of fabric and textures add warmth and the colors are predominantly pink and blue with red and green thrown in so it is harmonious in a way.

Harshika said...

Yes Kamini, I suppose now that you put it that way, maybe you are right...

And I dislike kitschy absolutely too.

Shalini said...

Interesting, but very busy. I could only take this for a few days. As for Ikea, I love their clean and spare lines. We grew up with Scandinavian design furniture so I love a lot of the stuff. I agree that some of their products are just too "ikea", too recognizable, but other less publicized items are really great. I've found some really lovely curtains and cushion covers there.