Kerala Bon China, Pondicherry Furniture and Painted Tiles: At Lifestyle Store Xanadu

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Xanadu, a new home decor and lifestyle store on Lavelle Road, offers one-of-a-kind upcycled furniture, lightings, home linen, and more.

Home Sweet Home

While the newly-opened lifestyle store, Xanadu {just over a week old, in fact} might appear to be a fancy home decor store from outside, there’s more to it than meets the eye. So, step in, and don’t be surprised if it feels almost like entering a home. Think spaces arranged with a dining table {set with crockery}, a living area with comfy sofas and chairs, and even a four-poster bed with a dressing table and cupboard in a nearby corner! Ask Susanna Chandy {a freelance writer by profession}, who runs the store with her cousin, Susan George {city-based stage actor} about this interesting setting and she’ll tell you about the unique, homely experience that they wanted to offer to visitors. From the one-of-a-kind upcycled furniture pieces to the handpicked linen, everything in the store is a personal favourite of the two ladies. And, they stick to classic, elegant pieces, steering clear of kitschy options.

Function Meets Design

Taken from Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s poem Kubla Khan, Xanadu is described as a ‘stately pleasure dome’ and the 2,000 square foot store may not be too far from being the same – a space of little pleasures to do up your home. While they make pieces from scratch, they also source vintage pieces and redo them, keeping it timeless yet contemporary. So, you’ll see pieces like an old mahogany record stand which is now a bar, vintage chairs done up with plush velvet upholstery and a distressed chest of drawers with bursts of colours.

While you’re there, don’t forget to take a look at the chandeliers and lights, all picked up on the duo’s trips to China. We loved the French-inspired bird cage chandelier just as much as the industrial design lights made with reclaimed pipe {one even included a bicycle wheel!}. Some of the delicate crockery you see around are from Kerala’s Tata Ceramics, the only company that makes fine bone china in the country. They also stock leather goods from The Leather Boutique {our favourite is the butterfly seat}.

Artsy Picks

The store also houses products from artistes. There’s handworked linen from Namrata Singh, children’s illustrations by Pallavi Nopani and painted tiles by Paul Fernandes, among others. Look out for the furniture made by Pondicherry-based artiste, Tejaswini, whose style involves natural edged pieces in organic shapes {made with single planks of wood}. We spotted an entire log of wood which was carved out to create an interesting glass-top end table. Also on offer are fitted sheets and bolsters for babies, jewellery {from three different brands}.

#LBBTip

Stock up on their clay mugs, glass water bottles and beer mugs.