a shade of simple brilliance in opulence

Most people know them as maharajas (kings) of Indian fashion, the reviving kings of chikan, jardozi and sequins & beadwork craft. They claim that they do not make garments, they make heirlooms.

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        a high chair with mirror inlay done in wood

 

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                                traditional entrance

The designer duo Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla is known for words like opulence, magnificence and splendour.
Few people know that this maximalist to the core duo also does the interiors. They are sought after by India’s Hollywood actors and top businessmen for their ‘architecturally-designed chairs’.
What; I like, in their work is a shade of brilliance here and there.(See the chair, mirror work ceiling and dining table with chairs like drawers).

Interesting is to note that both have started their work with design related fields but lack proffessional training.

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     ceiling with embroidered mirror work

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     earthy restroom with Dholpur stone

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                 fibreglass mask lights

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          dining table with slide in chairs

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                        slate and mirror study desk

paper battery

Take a piece of paper, take carbon nano tubes and some electrolyte solution. Lo! And behold energy is produced!

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Paper battery is made from plant cellulose which is used in making paper. So it is environment friendly. It has carbon nano tubes. And it produces energy.

It is a paper thin, can be bent battery prototype. It is small, light-weight and has endless design as well as application possibilities. The prototype has been made using inexpensive materials.

Each gram of paper produces about 10 milliamps of current at 2 volts, which can power a fan and LED light.

It is not only a battery but a capacitor too.

It looks, feels and weighs like a paper. It can be twisted, trimmed with scissors. Like paper you can stack one sheet on top of another to increase the power output. Researchers have experimented with 10 sheets. It can be given any shape even of a car door.

Potential uses of this battery would be in medical equipments like pacemakers and insulin pumps; in combination with solar cells. It is also going to change how we charge our cell phones, digital camera and laptops. It would be useful in aircrafts, boats and automobiles where power source gets bulky.

A team of scientists headed by chemist Robert Linhardt, materials scientist Pulickel Ajayan, and engineer Omkaram Nalamasu of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, New York has developed this wonder nano battery.

Interestingly scientists believe that they would be able to mass produce it like newspaper on rolls of paper.

Continue reading paper battery

My Pet Views

 I call them my pets, in a Room-View. Love living with all of them!

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                                                   Artist Kathleen Lolley

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                          Artist Samy Charnine

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(Image sources: House of Pictures,  Jonathan Aadler, Kelly Wearstler, John Pawson, artist Kathleen Lolley, Arte Luise Kunsthotel, O at Home, Elle Decor, Max and Sara Kate’s home at Apartmenttherapy, Get Decorating and 8th (left) image is a creation ‘ Dreaming’ by artist Samy Charnine, and Better Homes and Gardens.)

(I apologize for not giving credit (if any left) to a few other images. I had collected these images a long time ago. If anyone can point out I will be happy to give credits or take them down – Thanx!)

spaceship resort 2012

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I am doing this post (1)to satiate the teenager/child inside me who wide eyed used to dream of space colonies after reading any  articles about space in magazines.
(Though this news is 4 days old, I still have to do this post)
(2)And also for a special post I am going to do a little later.
Once again we have been promised space transportation, and inhabitats. Report in brief:—

The orbital resort: Galactic suite
The place: space
The architecture: tube like
The interiors: 4 meters high X 7 meters wide capsule rooms      with Velcro walls and huge windows
The view: 15 sunsets in a day
                   And the sphere of blue earth.
3 nights stay cost: $ 4.15 millions
Feeling: comfy-no, have to stick on walls like a spider
Thrilling- yes, to the bones
Transcendental-no/ yes, only if I stop feeling excitedly scary.
Recommended for: all of us who have weight issues,
                                      As in galactic suite we would be feeling       absolute weightlessness.
Reservations: already on
Resort foundation laid: no
Project: being designed
                Constructions plan requirements underway
Architects and space engineers, if you want to, you can join them.

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This is what Xavier Claramunt, the architect, designer from Spain has envisioned.

Earlier (a few years ago) Robert Bigelow has also announced similar plans of space hotel which was to realize in 2008. I checked their website. They are making advances but yet not talking anything concrete about the date of launch.

For now, a space theme hotel on the earth would suffice.

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          Space park hotel, Bremen, Germany

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