Design inspirations from Sri Lanka (Part 2)

MY recent trip of discovery and inspiration to Sri Lanka culminated at its capital, Colombo. Following the short but wonderful sojourn at the Galle Fort Precinct, we headed north towards Colombo using the new highway linking Galle and Colombo. The journey took only two hours — half of what it used to be! Progress indeed.

On the interior décor and style front, Sri Lanka continues to be a hotbed for creativity and design. One person making a positive impact on the design scene for many years now is Shanth Fernando.

An advocate of tasteful living and a keen art collector, Shanth established the Paradise Road brand of locally crafted homeware in 1987. He went on to open the first Paradise Road Galleries at the late architect Geoffrey Bawa’s former office some 27 years ago, filled with a personally curated collection of décor and lifestyle objects.

The Paradise Road Galleries has now been expanded into a series of shops, art galleries and luxurious accommodation.

Known for his stripes-inspired designs, Shanth’s interiors usually feature a restricted colour palette of black, white and beige with highlights of Chinese lacquer red.

Besides him, one of Shanth’s two children, Saskia, has an art gallery featuring some of the brightest stars of Sri Lankan contemporary art and a jewellery label, Papillon du Thé.

Visiting the home decor shops, cafés, art galleries and hotels here has certainly provided me with many design ideas and inspiration to share with you. Ideas that can be easily adapted to our homes. Enjoy!

01.

Bring the outdoors in! In this ocean-facing room, the designers have deliberately incorporated the colours of nature with the inclusion of fabrics in various shades of green and pops of “ocean blue” as illustrated in the upholstery of the arm chair. The floor tiles are also in the colour of the soft sand complemented by wooden accents in dark taupe. This is an idea you can adopt in your space especially if you have rooms that open out into a garden or water feature.

02.

The Oriental theme continues with the use of this Chinese Shanxi lacquered cabinet as useful storage in a dining room and a pedestal for this antique wooden horse from the Jaffna region of Sri Lanka. Notice also the collection of vintage handwoven seed baskets that have been framed and presented as artwork. Hanging above is a French-style crystal chandelier. Similar pieces are available at the Paradise Road shop.

03.

At the recently refurbished Galle Face Hotel in Colombo, I spotted this marble top table of at least 1500mm in diameter complete with a wonderful assemblage of clear glass vases of different heights filled with fresh colourful blooms. Each vase features only one type of flower. Rather than your usual large, single carefully manicured arrangement, I found this set-up most refreshing. You can easily do this at home.

04.

Don’t be afraid of stripes. Inside the suites of the Paradise Road Tintagel boutique hotel, you will see Shanth Fernando’s trademark use of stripes everywhere. Here, there are thick bold stripes running horizontally on the walls, stripes echoed on the timber head board and even on the bedcover. These stripes create an illusion of space in an otherwise small room.

05.

Make a dramatic statement! These four simple black glazed jars (at least 900mm tall) sitting on this two-metre long antique Chinese table certainly capture one’s attention. It’s the juxtaposition of the precious and the ordinary that makes this vignette so interesting, even though the corridor where this table was placed was rather tight.

06.

Venturing further out of Colombo, I discovered the newly opened Heritance Negombo. Strategically located with a spectacular beach front, this terrace caught my eye as it incorporates a shady pergola, four planter’s chairs and a water feature that surrounds its three sides. You could do the same and create a spot to enjoy a cup of tea with the vista or your garden around you! Just make sure you select weather-friendly furniture such as teakwood chairs or powder-coated metal tables with a quartz or granite top.

Raymond Lee is an interior designer and founder of Xceptional Interiors. He can be contacted at Email: [email protected] or check out www.xceptional-interiors.com.

This story first appeared in TheEdgeProperty.com pullout on Sept 2, 2016. Download TheEdgeProperty.com pullout here for free.