Goodbye from Sanctum

It's been a truly wonderful journey and we've enjoyed contributing to all your tiny sanctums! 

Thanks for the support and love!

On a Wing and a Prayer

We opened our doors in 2011 with big dreams and a lot of enthusiasm...and we're happy to report that nothing has changed on those two counts. What has changed is the market around us and of course, the consequences of some of the choices we made. All of us, from team SANCTUM, would like to say a big thank you to each one of you for having made our journey so special and for walking the road with us.

We will be closing our doors on April 30 but we would like the SANCTUM spirit to continue...create your warm and special space and enjoy the small things always. We would like to leave you with some new beginnings too...the launch of a fabulous brand of vintage propellers WOODFEATHER.

So join us till the end of the month...check out the aviation decor, take a piece of SANCTUM home, all of our stock is on clearance, help us recycle anything - our furniture, computers, lights...and of course, the team that you know so well is also looking for work.

Thanks for the wonderful times, and we hope we've made you happy too! To new beginnings!

Propeller Art

        Who doesn't love airplanes? They're sleek, able to fly and best of all take us to wonderful places! While we all wish we could travel by them everyday, we know this isn't really plausible.

         But who's to keep us from using their many parts to make travel inspired decor in our homes?! If you're goin for a chic industrial vibe combined with a wanderlust expression, you need to get these pieces into your homes!

FURNITURE:

          Fancy a propeller bar or a desk made from recycled plane parts? These strong bold pieces carry a sense of the machine from which they've come from.

LIGHTING:

            A tiny airplane lamp is just the touch of vintage chic your room needs!

DECOR:

          Don't want to go big on the airplane decor, try out smaller pieces then. A little propeller coaster set or a cluster of hanging airplanes, says "I love travel" in the subtlest way possible!

WALL ART:

           If you don't have place for airplane pieces, a bare wall is all you need. From airplane blue prints to fun plane comics, tell a travel tale with your wall!

               Love the plane plan? We have a propeller decor exhibition at Sanctum on April 8th 2017 too! Here's a sneak peek into pieces you can purchase!

             These pieces from Wood Feather can be propped up on a wall, suspended from a ceiling or just placed against a wall. What did I tell you?! Sleek, stylish and vintage all in one "propeller-ly" packaged decor piece!

Painted Points of Focus!

           
              The eye loves to be worked up and that's one of the main points to consider while dressing up a room. Don't ever let yourself get bored while looking at a room. This doesn't mean you go overboard with color or molding or crowd up the place. One of the best ways to spruce up a room is to create a focal point in the room. And we think painted furniture is one of the most fun way to do so!

               Painting an old piece of furniture is a fun task to take one. It gets to be this interesting piece in your room about which everyone will love to hear about.

              Here are a few of the supplies you'll need before starting:

• Oil Soap
• Medium Grit Sand Paper
• Fine Grit Sand Paper
• Primer
• Paint

• Step 1: Prepare your wood 

          Your furniture piece needs to clean before you begin. So using an oil soap clean away any dust or dirt on your wood.

•    Step 2: Sand away

             Using the medium grit sand paper strip away the glossy finish that's already present on the wood. No need to sand down upto to bare wood though. Just enough to give the paint a surface to grab onto is enough.

• Step 3: Prime

          Slap on a coat of primer helping to paint to adhere better and faster.

• Step 4: Re-sand

          The fine grit sand paper is to be used before every coast of paint. Make sure to remove the sand particles with a tack cloth before you paint

• Step 5: Paint

          Now that your wood is dust-free, sand free amd primed, you're ready to roll on your coats of paint. You can give your furniture a base coat and then create some prettyill designs on top in colorful shades.

• Step 6: Protect  

           You leave your paint to dry out completely for 30 days or you can apply a coat of wax to protect it.

        Now that you've got the basic idea in place. Here are a few images to help you get started.

         There are some great ideas out there! If time isn't on your side but you still want to create a colorful focal point here are some great pieces we have at Sanctum!

      

Rope Art

        With summer around the corner, we thought we'd revisit our rope related skills and get our nautical on! This natural fibre is visually, texturally and functionally pleasing. An easy item to work with, it has lots of DIYs associated with it.

         We've rounded up a few of our favorite ones. Here's the list!

• STORAGE

          Want to make yourself some pretty vases or storage baskets? Rope's got you covered, literally! Cover a vase or holder with rope, ensuring that your gluing the previous layer of rope to the next one. Allow the rope to dry, remove the inside container and you've got yourself a rustic vase/ storage container.

• LIGHTING

          From covering the base with rope, to stringing fairy lights and rope, having a rope shade or just covering the wire with rope, the ideas of rope lighting are varied. You can accomplish industrial, sea side or rustic lighting with just a bit of rope.

• HANGINGS

          Tie ropes to mason jars to make hanging lamps or planters, use long ropes to create beautiful partitions or railings too, or string them along with curios to make some decorations for your walls.

• SEATING

          An old tyre or waste basket can really come to use with this trick. All that you have to do is wrap your rope around the seat with ample glue and you've got yourself a refurbished shabby chic seat! You can even remove the upholstery of an old chair and make a rope network seat.

     We're still learning the ropes on these gorgeous DIYs. Hope you'll try them out too!

The Holi Special

      With Holi just past us, our minds are filled with images of color splashes, powdery kaleidoscopes and wheels of brightly colored hues. While playing Holi, we don't really bother about the mix of colors that we throw on each other (unless we're in a Balam Pichkari video shoot), because at the end of the day we end up into a group of dark purplish faces! But when we're designing our homes, I'm pretty sure the pressure to create a perfect blend of colors is way more high!

      Today's post is going to walk us through the different color schemes that have been tried and tested by designers over the year.

#1 The Monochromatic Color Scheme

      A tricky scheme to pick, this one makes use of various tints, shades and hues of a single color. A balancing act between completely boring and downright fabulous, you'd need to put a little thought into this in order to tip the scales in your favor! This scheme can be calming a few high contrast pieces or a number of other colors need to be added in to balance the entire outcome.

#2 The Analogous Color Scheme

      This scheme uses colors lying adjacent to each other on the color wheel. With this scheme one usually ends up with a warmly colored room or a cool themed one, either of which can be peppered with tinier accents of contrasting colors.

 

#2 The Complementary Color Scheme

       The Complementary Color Scheme is a simple one that makes use of two colors lying on opposite sides of the color wheel.  Color combinations like red and green, blue and orange, and yellow and violet would work well. This high contrast scheme should be mixed well with a number of neutrals for a well balanced look.

#3 The Split Complementary Color Scheme

      Like the complementary scheme, this scheme uses colors on the opposite sides of the color wheel. Pick a dominant base color on the color wheel, and use accents in the shades of the colors on either sides of the opposite color. Mix up the shades and tints for a muted wholesome effect.

     For example, the use of blue with red and orange works well in this bathroom. Other choices to go with are green, blue and red, purple, yellow and green. etc.

#4 The Tetradic Color Scheme

      This is a double complementary color scheme that gives a rich and fuller outcome. It makes use of two complementary color pairs on either side of the color wheel. It uses varying hues, tones and shades of warmer and cooler colors. It is a trickier scheme to pull off. The key lies in finding the connection between the shades and balancing the whole look. Avoid using pure colors in equal amounts and try to use subtler shades for an even balance.

#5 The Neutral Color Scheme

       A great scheme to have in places like yoga houses or accounting firms, or even your home interiors, it uses a blend of neutrals to create a calm, soothing wholesome ambiance. Using a fine balance of shades and hues, light and form, this scheme gives a solid statement without being too boring.

    Great colors to work with would be light shades of blue, grey, whites and browns.

     Hope you guys had as much fun discovering these color rules as I did. Remember the basic rule while forming the color scheme in your room: Your colors must fit together like pieces of a puzzle, to create a balanced, beautiful picture.

      

How to Pull Off a Metallic Mash Up

     In fashion and design, from going home to take off that silver strapped bag to slipping off the gold watch into the bag, we've always been cautious of letting gold and silver display themselves alongside each other whether it be on our attire or in our homes. But as it turns out Gold and Silver can be pals too! As a matter of fact, lots of metals can hang out together and have a fabulous time at your home.

 Looking for a few tips before you get in on this? Well,  look no further! Here are a few to help you along the way.

#1 Create a decor space and put your gold and silver action to display
   
    It's a great idea to step into this trend by trying out the mix and match on a small area of your house. You can mix and match a few metallic frames and create a decor wall, or even adding metallic elements to a horizontal space like a side console is a great idea.

Source: Pinterest

#2 Assign spaces to the silvers and the golds while letting them sit comfortably as a whole

       If you feel the mix is clashing, group up your silver ware to one area while your gold can sit on another end. This way they can politely smile at each other from a distance while standing strong in their own space.

       You can create this division vertically or horizontally.

Source: Pinterest

#3 Use a festive season to try this look out

      Christmas, Diwali and such are great festivals to try this classy mix up at. Throw in a bunch of sequined metallic cushions, hang silver and gold buntings or light up your silver ware with gold lights.
      If you love the outcome, keep it around the whole year!

                                                                         
                       

Source:Pinterest

#4  Use a color to blend with one metallic while allowing the others to stand out

       Against a solid background like a grey tone, your silver will blend in beautifully allowing your golds to play dress up. This illusion can work both ways. This tip will work wonders in places like your kitchen where you want a touch of gold but are held back by the silver of the electronics and faucets.

 Source:Pinterest 

Source: Pinterest

#5 Use a strong color to tie up your metallics

        You can spread your metallics around the room with this tip. Neutral shades like white and cream or even bold ones like black and navy will not interfere with the gold and silver interplay but will instead compliment them subtly and attractively.

Source:Pinterest 

Source:Pinterest

           I love my silvers and golds! I hope you love em' too. Too afraid to turn your house into a metallic mash up? Try out those gold and nude pumps and those silver earrings. If you can pull those off, your house will definitely be able to too!

Top Trends of 2017: The Materials that are in!

     Marbled wall paper, indoor vines and the gorgeous Hygge concept, we've walked you through some of our favorite design trends for 2017. As February ends, always a bit too early, we bring you our last post on what's in for 2017. So here's the scoop on the materials you want to splurge on this year!

Copper:

  Copper is shiny but not too shiny, soulful and warm. It's a great material to add around your house in small amounts or as accent pieces.

   Copper walls work well in minimalist neutral toned spaces. You can also mix the marble and the copper trend to create this gorgeous wallpaper effect.
 

          Copper looks great on small decor accents like vases, planters, mirrors etc.

       Still want to add copper as an eye catcher? Lamps and lanterns are the way to go!

            Exposed pipework is a trend that has continued from 2016 to 2017. It looks great in bathrooms as the images shows!

Acrylic:

     This modern material is making waves this season! For the minimalist chic look, this clear material looks great as photo frames, coffee table tops and lots more! The best thing about acrylic is that it is like glass but a lot lighter and remains clear even when thick!

    How pretty are these acrylic storage pieces! They lighten the room in a beautiful way.

             Acrylic wall decor like these stickers act as functional mirrors while prettying up your wall1

         Adding small pieces of acrylic furniture like the coffee tables in this living room and the chair by the study table, is a great way to lighten the visual weight of a room. Pieces like compliment wooden furniture in a truly striking way!

Wood

        The last material we are looking at is none other than the age old favorite- wood. But 2017 asks that wood be displayed in your tile work! Wooden tiles come in various tones, colors and shapes! Choose from grayish whites to warm rusts, hexagon shaped to chevron patterns. 

Wooden tiling works on floors, walls and many other surfaces! It's definitely a material that speaks volumes of warmth and coziness.

           So there you have it! The "in" materials for 2017. Definitely ones that can be mixed and matched and added in varying amounts.

Top Decor Trends of 2017: Indoor Vines

      We're back this week with another top trend that's been predicted for 2017. This one's natural, pretty and oh so green! Climbers, creepers and vines are definitely pieces that will remain in style every year. Because who doesn't like the freshness and beauty that comes from an indoor plant?

       When we think of vine, we think of a trail of green gorgeousness making it's way up a wall or a trellis - both outdoor creations. However, there are quite a few ideas to add creepers to your indoor decor:

Wall Decor:

            With vertical gardens, you have a lot of options. Create wooden boxes that can be hung, place a planter in and let the plant fall out.  A wire wall trellis is a pretty idea too, if you have a large wall space available. Or how about a wall hanging that makes plants a fashion statement?
  

Source: Pinterest

Wall Hangings:

                  You can also pick a corner and hang your creeper pot from a macrame or iron hanger. These take up less space horizontally but build up a beautiful vertical space!

Source: Pinterest

Shelving Decor:

              Make use of  a bookshelf, a ladder or wall shelves and add a planter amongst your books or other decor items. The cascading effect of the plant really makes for a pretty picture!

Source: Pinterest

              

            If you don't have the times to take care of real vines indoors we have some next-to-real creepers at our store. We also have some gorgeous rustic plant hangers and planters. Check them out here!

            Pretty Artificial Plants!        Plant Hangers      Terrarium Holders and Planters

               You can also go the old school way and group a bunch of creeper pots in a corner on your floor. This trend is definitely an all-time favorite and we just might have to repost this next year to reminds ourselves to "Go Green" Indoors too!

           

Top Decor Trends of 2017: Hygge

          Denmark can get really cold around winter time and the last and first few months of a Dannish year can be accompanied by bitter chills, mind numbingly long frozen nights and endless grey skies. To sum up the picture, let's say winter can get pretty depressing there. But if you have a Dane's spirit your winter world can turn into a beautiful place.

         To combat the dark winters, the Danes have a strategy, a mindset, a way of life called "Hygge". This spirit in which they have chosen to face life with is pretty inspiring and definitely worth incorporating in your life, decor and much more. What you and I may think of as "dreary" the Dannish people have managed to make "cheery". A pretty difficult concept to describe, "hygge" has the world inspired this year with its courage, warmth and simplicity. And like all European "in" trends, hygge has a fancy pronunciation. Say hoo ga and get on this deliciously warm and wonderful trend with me!

     

Here's what you'll need to get your home in on this trend:

Let in Light and Warmth:

   Get rid of  harsh bright lights and add some natural light into your homes. Light up candles wherever you can and open up those windows to let the sunlight in during the day. Build a fireplace if you can!

                                       
  Change harsh white lights for soft orange glows and hanging up some fairy lights won't hurt either!

Create Coziness:

      A huge part of surviving a raging winter outdoors, is to be as warm and comfortable indoors. Let loose all your colorful dhurries, rugs and throw pillows. 

You can even change a formal seating area into a comfy floor seating option. Hygge in Danish equals cozy in English, if loosely translated.

Relax

   Your room should be a space you can relax in as much as possible. If relaxing means adding a bath tub, do that! 

If it means creating a cozy reading space, have one built it!

Add the outdoors indoors:

        Add in as many natural elements as you can to your home decor. Choose naturally finished furniture over polished, painted ones, indoor plants are friendly decor and usage of natural materials like jute, cotton and linen is a must!

Be Creative:

     Now that your space has been created to suit your version of coziness and warmth, let your creative juices flow. This space should invite you to be nothing but yourself. A perfect spot to do what you love most- whether it be painting, reading, cooking or writing!

   We can think of no better day than Valentine's day to get in on the "Hygge" trend. Candles, flowers, blankets - remind you of anything? Create the perfect cozy spot to share with a loved one and make sure it deserves the "Hygge" title!

    We think the Dannish people were onto something with this beautiful, heartwarming mindset. Definitely one to hold onto throughout the year, don't you agree?