State of the Art

The Saffronart Blog

Posts filed in Prime Properties

Breathing New Life into a Period Flat

June 8, 2012

Shivajirao Gaekwar on one of Mumbai’s most exciting new restoration projects in historic Colaba

Mumbai: Hidden away on the second floor of an old period building in Colaba, Mumbai’s historic district, this rare gem has been transformed by internationally known philanthropist and interior decorator, Reita Gadkari who lives for the most part in London.

Introducing a fresh and elegant style throughout, this 3 bedroom flat has beautifully proportioned rooms and polished 16 foot high Burma teak ceilings throughout. Being a period property it has been thoroughly treated to prevent damp, and re-designed slightly to let in more light whilst at the same time, suit modern day living.

Here are a few glimpses of the property – before and after

Before

After

Before

After

This property will feature in Saffronart’s upcoming summer edition of Prime Properties.

Click here to view the current selection of properties.

NIVIM Goa: Rooms are pavilions / bringing the indoors-outdoors

June 2, 2012

The Saffronart Team’s latest update on NIVIM Goa

New York: While being fundamentally connected to its site and location, Nivim Goa is built in a distinct contemporary tropical style. It offers a modern open plan layout where there is seamless interaction between the inside and outside.

Interior view of the main living area showing how the front wall opens to connect indoor space to outdoors

To blur the boundary between indoor and outdoor, the house is designed such that two walls in each room can completely open to make the rooms a part of the surrounding landscape. Each bedroom is designed like a pavilion in the garden with its own private verandahs and green space as well as large bathrooms that can only be built in the countryside with their own dedicated open space and open baths. The remainder of the site is designed with overlapping courtyards and gardens.

NIVIM Goa is built with tremendous love and that is evident in every small detail in the house. Anjali can talk at length about the big design concepts to smallest details like the choice of custom made wash basins and brass inlaid floors.

Read more on newyork goa diaries!

* Please note that Nivim Goa is under-construction and the images on this blog show the work-in-progress and not final finished product.

NIVIM Goa: Let us start from the beginning…

May 24, 2012

The Saffronart Team goes back to when it all began…

New York: The design concept of Nivim Goa is to allow the user to reconnect with nature (reason to come to Goa) and to preserve the beauty of the site and its surroundings (hence preserving the reason to be in Goa).

Site photos before construction

The luxury country house achieves these goals by creating a home that is built around the site’s natural topography with emphasis on local climate, materials and building typology. The house’s architecture takes advantage of the site’s slope, existing trees, views and orientation.

One of the first site meetings before any construction activity

Before construction, the site had 14 fully mature trees. The design of the house incorporates these trees that include two jackfruit trees, one mango tree, two tamarind trees and one telful tree. Two trees in particular are located bang at the center of the site and look like they have been there for 100’s of years. One of them rises up almost 15 meters, or 5 stories.

Anjali says, “These trees have been here way longer than we have, we could not even conceive of removing them…they are instead now an integral part of the house design and lend it a special character that is hard to replicate.” She adds, “The new owners of the house can even consider building a treehouse or a machan to further enjoy these large trees based on their specific requirements…” The new landscape design of the house adds other native fruiting and flowering plants to the site including chikoo, kokum, champa, etc.

For more about the design concept and inspirations, read Anjali’s newyork goa diaries!

* Please note that NIVIM Goa is currently under-construction and the images on this blog show the work-in-progress and not final finished product.

London Calling!

April 30, 2012

The Saffronart Team on buying property in London.

London: Mews? Maisonettes? Mansion Blocks? Leaseholds? Freeholds? Mayfair apartments? Kensington penthouses? Looking for a house in London requires a good degree of patience and perseverance, but once you get hold of your dream house, the satisfaction is endless!

London is a magnet for the world’s wealth and due to the large number of people wanting to live in London, the competition for good London properties is high for the good catches, and the real estate agents are not always on ones side. In fact, in the UK the estate agents work for the seller rather than the buyer. So, no matter how hard one tries to specify ones essential requirements for a London property, one will be shown houses that do not match at all ones original ideas (estate agents can only show you a small percentage of houses) and until the end you are not sure the house will be yours. Also, the estate agents’ task is to sell the property to any client and not to help the buyer find one.

However, having said that, do not give up because here is where Saffronart Prime London comes to the buyer’s aid! Whether you are house hunting in London, would like an idea of London property prices, or simply curious to learn more about the London property market, Prime London is the guide and service for you.

Saffronart will accompany and help the buyer throughout the entire process, from looking for the house to finding a decorator, and will never leave the buyer to fend for himself.  Saffronart understands that various people have different needs depending on age, employment and so forth, and also that everyone wants and expects the best value for their money. Thus, Saffronart services are very personal and adaptable to suit every individual client. After helping find the property, Saffronart, on the buyer’s request can provide a team of lawyers, surveyors, and financing to ease the bureaucratic side of things. Once this is completed, it is time to think about how to decorate and maintain the property, and Saffronart can help suggest decorators too.

Saffronart looks forward to helping home-seekers in their quest for their dream house and making sure the entire process happens smoothly.

Order your copy of Prime London

NIVIM Goa: A Journey from the Drawing Board to Reality

April 30, 2012

The Saffronart Team on one of Goa’s most interesting homes.

New York: NIVIM sits on a 1025 square meter site on a hill in a sleepy village in Goa – an ideal country home. The house is currently in its final phase of construction and scheduled to complete next month.

NIVIM Goa is the labour of love of Anjali Mangalgiri, a New York returned architect who moved to Goa with the sole purpose to build this house. The house is a culmination of her vision to bring architectural excellence and sustainable design to mainstream construction in India.

The core principle behind the design concept and decisions is ‘to be true to the place where the house is being built’ – Goa! Anjali explains, “We asked ourselves this question: Why would a person choose to live in Goa?  We realized the underlying theme is because Goa allows a person to reconnect with nature-  its untouched green environs, mostly unpolluted waters, clean air, abundant biodiversity… This aspect has since been central to our design concept.”

Watch NIVIM’s year long journey .

For more about the design concept and inspirations, read Anjali’s newyork goa diaries! 

The house is projected to be the first green rated building in Goa. National Geographic is doing a documentary on Green Buildings in India. Read Anjali’s interview on Green Buildings in India for National Geographic’s upcoming documentary and watch this space for more snapshots and updates as we chase time to the finish line!