White echoes understated luxury: Parasol envisions a holiday home amidst the serene locale of Kerala

What’s an ice cream order you can never go wrong with? Vanilla. Simple but classic. When the brief is a minimal modern home, you can never go wrong with a classic white-toned house. This house envisioned by Shirin Shahanaz, Principal Architect of Parasol, along with Anjum Ali is strikingly simple yet incredibly complex in ways it displays its assembly of colours, textures and furniture indoors. 

Situated in Aluva, Ernakulam — a serene location immersed in frondescence and a plot away from the tranquil Periyar river is a holiday home designed for a family, who originally resides in Dubai. The green peaceful exteriors and calmer white interiors draws the family in for a luxurious escape.

The curious brief

White could symbolise the idea of a muted colour canvas or could reflect being all colours at once. White is ambiguous, surprising, complex but seems so simple and straightforward. And that’s what formed the basis of this abode.

It’s everything the homeowners wanted in this oasis. They wanted it to be cosy, inviting and soulful. White homes have an understated luxury, which Shirin balances with classic, subdued elements whilst echoing the personality of the dwellers. 

Tour every turn of this home

This white wonder as one enters through the foyer has all staple pieces of furniture in white with sheer curtains giving the oh-so-dreamy look and inviting ample light.

When we say well balanced, it means incorporating structures that make a room look charming and elegant, complementing the overall theme. The formal living room is a white shell with a deep red sofa and black square coffee table— a classic balance of deep accented elements with a subdued palette. The Pierre Jeanneret chair replicas add warmth and balance to this room. 

The living and dining area has cream marble flooring allowing these two areas to flow into each other with a common backdrop of a white panelled wall adding a textural element. The dining area has a double height ceiling with varied size pendant lamps suspended like snowballs. The black stained wood dining table is paired with soft pink upholstered chairs. 

The chequered credenza and the deep green credenza balance out the dominant white. The rug in the living area adds a pattern and character. The light marble finish tv wall faces an I-shaped sofa which leads us to a slatted teak wood staircase. “The most challenging element was the staircase which was originally intended to be a metal staircase when the house was initially conceptualised. We had the idea of wrapping the whole thing in wood and using teak wood slats for the railing to give it some porosity and to add another pattern to the space. We covered the bottom in plywood and painted it white so that the staircase does not look too heavy,” divulges the architect.

From the living room, one enters the semi open kitchen which is finished in light wood laminate and black handles to distinguish the rooms from one another whilst having a cream flooring to keep it united with the rest of the house.

The guest bedroom has a light beige upholstered bed with a wooden bench in front. Balanced with a dark green dresser and purple pillows, the guest bedroom also has an ottoman and armchair to create a hospitable environment. 

The primary bedroom has grey glass cloth wallpaper as a backdrop with a four poster bed and tufted bed as the main elements. The corner of the bedroom has a green armchair and a brass floor lamp adding luxe. Walk in wardrobe has wallpaper on the shutters and wood laminate for the carcass with a deep blue nightstand and a fabric table lamp.

Ideas to bookmark

Every motif is carefully curated by the designer to avoid whitewashing the home and keep things interesting. 

“The basic theme of the house is white, minimal with lots of restraint shown in terms of materials. Furniture pieces from different eras and styles have been used in different spaces like the bold red sofa and the wood and glass coffee table which is modern to the curved mirror, arched console, the caning chairs and flour posted bed depending on the feel we wanted to achieve in the space,” says the designer.

Contrary to ‘white noise’ this home evokes peace and stillness perfect for a holiday. An effortless usage of the white palette that feels as if it was always meant to be in white, complementing the beauty of Kerala and snuggling anyone who enters.

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