Designing a Home..

Designing living spaces is one of the simplest yet most complex tasks for a designer. Its simple because there is no fixed norm to design a designer can be limitless in his creativity. It is complex because the creative design must conform to the desires of each family member and must ensure practicality & functionality. A design that reflects the inhabitant’s soul & lifestyle could be a daunting task if not addressed passionately.

A ‘home’ is always referred to as an entity, independent in its entirety. Not only should it provide a comfortable haven to its inhabitants, it should be adaptable as a work space, a celebration space and be able to accommodate design changes/enhancements over time. Therefore, following are the 3 basic principles listed to throw some light upon variousaspects of designing a quality living space. 

    In the lap of nature -The layout of the houses should be such that it readily lets in nature and its intangible elements like air, rain and sunlight. Features like courtyards, skylights, terrace gardens, pergolas etc. help in welcoming these essentials.  This should be done as an ‘ode to nature’ as it is always the built that invades the un-built and it’s necessary to respect the balance between these. This will help the inhabitant to be in complete proximity with natural surroundings, even if the same is limited by cityscapes.

  

   The zones have to be right - Public and semi-public spaces co-exist in every building. However, a private zone for an individual only exists in his/her house. Zoning in a house has to be done right in order to make the house proficient and proactive.Depending on their functions, the privacy levels required in each house are different for varied spaces. A designer’s job is to analyze the functions correctly and zone the spaces accordingly.

   A home should be able to inculcate a sense of repose - After a hard day’s work of, everyone wants to head back ‘home’.This is so because the aura it evokes in a person, the feeling of content and relaxation, is something which cannot be experienced elsewhere. Therefore, the design has to be such that it enables an individual in attaining tranquility and comfort. Using subtle tones and a minimalist approach towards design helps in building these qualities.

‘Living the Space’ & ‘Loving the Space’ go hand in hand. Hence, a design should consist of elements that instill in the inhabitant a reminiscence of their roots, an introspection of their present and a forecast of the future. Successful living spaces are the ones, which impart the sense of freedom and solace to an individual.

DCA with its residential projects tries to work with these principles in an effort to transform a house into a home. With the aesthetics and the layout, most of the projects focus on the client’s comfort and lifestyle rather than being mere structures decorating the skyline of the place.

Evolution of Indian Luxury Retail by group DCA

Aerin Lauder (American heiress and Business owner Estee Lauder) rightly said , “Luxury is anything that feels special. I mean, it can be a moment, it can be a walk on the beach, it could be a kiss from your child, or it could be a beautiful picture frame, a special fragrance. I think luxury doesn't necessarily have to mean expensive” 

  

In keeping with this view, we at DCA believe Luxury to be an experience.

DCA’s contribution to Luxury Retail in India, gives it the much-desired opportunity to create an exemplary experience for the customer. Through DCA’s expertise, the brand owner gets the opportunity to showcase the brand product in the deserved realm of opulence and finesse, thus attracting the most decorous customer for the product.

Having designed the best and foremost jewelry, watch and other lifestyle product showrooms in the country, some of DCA’s design essentials are laying utmost importance on the following aspects:

Façade - The façade of any showroom is the very first impression of the brand. It is the one element, which needs to reflect the aesthetics and individuality of the Luxury Brand as also attract the customer into the showroom. Needless to say, it needs to be exemplary.

Due to its importance, a façade goes through intense design development stages. Starting with inundation of ideas & brand vision, the design practicality, material selection, the design proportion, originality, longevity, and adherence to budget is given sufficient thought. After a series of design developments, presentations, approvals and amendments, the resulting design is one that is inherent and unique to the brand.

Spaces - The spaces inside a showroom often flow into one another. The idea being to ensure the customer has had an opportunity to view the entire range of products on display. In addition to this, the spaces are designed with opulence, thus giving a special space to showcase the product, as also giving a luxurious feel to the customer seeing the product. It is ensured that the opulence borders towards warmth & coziness - so a customer feels comfortable being around the product, and feels special being in the showroom, which eventually fuels the desire to own the product.  This also fosters good relationships with the customer. The entry and exit to showrooms, the spaces behind the display counters and in front of them, the placement of showcases and billing counters are all designed around this essential need and encourage ease of movement of both staff and customers.

Lighting– No part of the design exercise can ever underestimate the importance of lighting. The color of lighting is important to set the mood of the showroom. The brilliance of light is important to correctly showcase the product. The lighting design makes or breaks the beauty of the overall showroom design. Optimizing the number of lights to be used, decision on the use of concealed lights in some places and detailed lights in others also becomes an important decision in the design aesthetic. While working out all this, it is imperative to optimize the energy usage as well.

Since, finding lighting, which meets all of the above requirements, is a herculean task, DCA very often designs lights for the showrooms. Having specialized vendors on its panel, DCA thus, customizes lighting for a brand, making it unique and functional.

Other Elements – Utilization of small spaces & corners, maximizing display areas, ease of movement within the showroom, ease of entry into and exit from the showroom (even to the extent of working out the parking facility), multi-functionality of elements & spaces, are some other design essentials that add to the virtue of the showroom, the brand and the product.

Some of the design accolades to the credit of DCA are:

·         Hazoorilal, New Delhi

·         Anand Jewels, Indore

·         Punjab Jewellers, Indore

·         Mallika Empire, New Delhi

·         Abhishek Zaveri, Ahmedabad

-Amit Aurora and Rahul Bansal

Crafting Engaging Spaces

DCA works on a wide scale of residential projects, ranging from contemporary to classic architecture.

A residence-being a dream, a haven, a place of comfort for any individual. The client’s aspirations are given utmost importance and are pivotal in shaping the design of a residence. All residential designs of DCA have their own inherent character, reflecting upon the owner’s disposition. 

With the vast knowledge of materials & products and experience on possibilities, DCA plays the role of a catalyst in achieving the client’s yearnings and desires through their designs. The resulting space is always unique.

One of the finer examples of this is the Aggarwal Residence at Chandigarh, Punjab.

Clean geometrical compositions for the facade with a culmination of exposed brick work and beige colored extensions make the elevation and entrance look modern yet organic in nature. Color schemes are kept simple to emphasize on the form of the built mass. The material used in the façade is such that promotes least maintenance and longevity. The scale of the built is kept such to make an individual feel the grandeur at the entrance. The relation between the inside spaces and the outside; inter-woven with the landscape at various levels, is given a lot of importance to enhance the user’s experience while residing in the building. The fenestrations are wide with clean lines and glazed glass, so as to promote airiness and make for an exhilarating affair. Wooden flooring has been given in most of the areas to retain the harmony with earthen feel of the space.  Art works that speak have been encouraged in open spaces, walls of bedroom, study and other areas, so each space speaks of its relevance & importance in the residence.

Function and aesthetics are believed to be the two pillars of the design process. While DCA gives importance to design, it lays equal importance on its functionality, practicality and budget. Residence designs for Mr. Ahmed at Noida and Mr. Mehra at GK-1, New Delhi, hence are such that foster multi-functionality of elements. For example: window sills are used as platforms for the planter boxes. Spaces are designed strategically on the basis of locality and climatic conditions. Here the location of windows is such that it restricts the harsh sun in summers and welcomes it in winters. While doing this, it also ensures sufficient natural light in the residence at all times.

Whether its plotted residences or large scale housing (Mount View Apartments, Faridabad, being a fine example) DCA provides highly luxurious, comfortable and captivating interiors, designed such that opulence is not restrained by the budget and is felt in all the residences. The layouts of the interior spaces are done in a way that manifests it into a highly modern, well lit and a spacious place. The ceiling height, wherever possible, is kept high in areas like drawing rooms and dining rooms – adding to the grandeur and is kept low in areas like bedrooms and family lounges adding to the cozy feel of the space. Each space is highly personalized as per the individual utilizing it. The colors and finishes of the walls and floors are generally kept muted with the intent of giving due emphasis to the pieces of furniture and art in the room. This also ensures the client the flexibility of changing color schemes and look of the place as the time goes by. All details like color scheme, floor skirting, selection & design of furniture, drapes, art, wall murals, lights, landscaping & foliage etc. go through an extensive design development process as per the current fashion, set budget and the client’s desires.

Our beliefs, knowledge & experience have helped us in making beautiful homes for very satisfied clients.