U and I Designs create clean lines and warm tones that emphasise minimal forms and a laid-back sense of refinement in this apartment for a nuclear family.
Curated by: Deepa Nair
Photographs: Nayan Soni; courtesy U and I Designs
The brief
Sited on the 5th floor of an upscale apartment complex in Bengaluru, this single floor 2BHK apartment covers 1,500 sq ft of space and is shared by a young couple and their five year old daughter. The crux of the project lay in building a living space that emphasised simplicity, clean living, and an uncluttered lifestyle. The owners wanted to blend a relaxed farmhouse revival aesthetic with a chic, minimal design narrative. As a caveat, their daughter loved pinks and expressly wanted them worked into her bedroom decor.
The foyer
Open the door and you are met with a curious blend of elegance and informality. A roomy storage unit to the right is upholstered in blue and white and extends into a circular ottoman. A black and brass, farmhouse-inspired chandelier dangles from a robust set of hardwood rafters, while a carved antique mirror adds even more vintage character to the space. A set of simple wooden shelves with spindle supports in an asymmetric layout is placed along one wall, where books, decor pieces and plants can be displayed. Since the client wanted to use this space to showcase their dasara dolls during the festive season, a bank of unobtrusive track lights on the ceiling was added. The hand-carved spindles also bring a touch of the traditional to the foyer, and the asymmetry was chosen to drive home an unexpected dash of chic.
The living area
The foyer opens directly into the living room, where a matte tan Chesterfield sofa takes centre stage. Arrayed around the sofa are a tufted barrel armchair in porcelain white and a single ottoman, striped in navy and white. Both these pieces feature spindle legs, echoing the aesthetic of the foyer shelf, but in a more laid-back, comfy setting. A live-edged coffee table is used to add an organic contrast to an otherwise minimal space, and when paired with the sofa, it also brings a unique sense of quirk to the room. Behind the sofa, what used to be a recessed wall space bordered by a column is now covered with a set of white wall panels to create a single contiguous surface and reduce visual clutter.
High above the Chesterfield sits a solitary floating ledge shelf, while on the opposite side features a TV unit in black steel and light teak. Structured with sharp clean lines, simple shelving that extends right up the wall, and handleless grooves for the storage, the TV unit is an homage to modern minimalism. The TV itself is framed by a pair of black metal poles that lend both shelving support and a pleasing sense of symmetry to the wall.
The dining area
Walk into the dining room and you’ll notice that fabric on the foyer ottoman is reflected in the upholstery of the curved back master chairs. Together with a chunky, X-frame wooden table and a set of classic spindle-back chairs, these lend a timeless farmhouse allure to the entire dining area. A Tiffany-style pendant light blooms from the ceiling, capturing the elegant glitz of the Art Nouveau era and underlining the country chic aesthetic of the home — custom-crafted from blue and white stained glass cut-outs, it adds a refreshing pop of colour to this area.
Along one side is the kitchen entryway, framed by crockery cabinets with ribbed glass shutters, cross arched shutter frames, and black hardware. The far wall is almost completely unadorned, except for a cluster of picture frames populated with a pastiche of AI-generated, zebra-striped geometries.
The kitchen
The kitchen was designed to house a radical symphony of wood and white. An entire wall here of cupboards here feature teak grain, while the rest of the cabinetry is finished in a stark alabaster. A pair of open wooden box shelves set into the cabinets above the countertop breaks the expanse of white, and along with the all-black hardware, offers a mellow, minimal contrast. A bright Prussian blue finds its place in a mosaic of Moroccan tiles along the backsplash, adding oodles of rustic appeal. The same Moroccan motifs are also cut into the pooja cupboard ensconced in the entryway.
The bedrooms
The focal point of the master bedroom is the rattan headboard, juxtaposed against a gorgeous sage green accent wall. Understated tropical elegance comes by way of exquisite wall lamps, shaded with swirling banana fibre cones and two-tone pillow cushions featuring leafy jungle prints. Flanking the bed, they form a delicious symmetry with a brace of solid wood side tables finished in black. A rounded bowl vase competes for attention with the series of framed black and white botanical sketches above the headboard. Directly opposite the bed a comfy little reading nook was created with a brown mid-century modern armchair set against monochrome tropical wallpaper that’s bordered with wall beading. A minimalist floor lamp sits next to the armchair, offering convenient lighting without cluttering the room.
Over on the other side of the space, a tall sage green cabinet with built-in wooden box shelves is installed. A study table made from a single piece of material extends from the cabinet out along the wall, the tabletop gracefully arching downward to act as a support on one side. The spindle-back chair makes another appearance, this time in a combination of teak and black. A walk-in closet with an arched entryway leads to a dresser and a wardrobe, where just like the kitchen another teak and white contrast is created, but with antique brass hardware instead.
A space full of soft contours and gentle arches, the kid’s bedroom features a curved wooden bed base that rises to a scalloped headboard in deep Adriatic blue. The bed is bordered with two windows shuttered with unicorn printed blinds. The smooth, curved lines of the baby pink bedside tables are captured in different materials throughout the room — in the teak archways of the box shelves, in the scalloped blue colour blocking on the wardrobe doors, and in the rounded frame of the dresser storage. Across the bed a simple teak-finished study desk is accompanied by the now ubiquitous spindle-back chair, and a mix of hanging and box shelves. This is adjoined by a wooden wardrobe that features arched open shelves, to make both storage and display that much easier.
Fact File
Project: The Country Chic Home
Location: The Central Regency, Bengaluru
Area: 1,550 sq ft
Principal architect: Aniketh Bafna
Principal designer: Sonal R Mutha
Design team: Khusbu Murarka
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