THE MIDCEYLON-TURY AT HOME: BALAGALLA, LIVING ROOM

Or as Sri Lankans like to call it, the "sitting room"! This is where guests are received and entertained, so it's usually the best-kept room in the house. In fact, in poorer and/or smaller households the living/sitting room is pretty much all guests will see when they visit, the back rooms of the kitchen, bedrooms, etc. being closed off from company for the most part. Unless, of course, a closer relationship is eventually established, which is when Sri Lankans let their guard down and visitors get to see the rest of the home. 

The Balagalla living room is one of my all-time favorite rooms in Sri Lanka! The mid century furniture takes center stage:

 

 

We can't wait to go back and visit our family here and see this beautiful home again! Our memories of it are still fresh in my mind. What a beautiful afternoon that was!

THE MID CEYLON-TURY AT HOME: BALAGALLA, BEDROOM

Here are some photos of one of the many bedrooms in my husband's uncle's estate house in Balagalla. I was just over-the-moon to see the beautiful atomic-era lines of the furniture here!

Here's an adorable vanity table (still in use today):

Detail of the distinctive '50s lines ... superb!

To the side was a little desk. You can also see a part of the bed. All are mid century pieces, made in what was then Ceylon:

 

A view from one of the bedroom windows into the grounds of the estate beyond! I love the fabulous '50s metal grill!

This was pretty much a dream room for me! I love the openness and airy feel of mid century Sri Lankan homes, with their many wide windows. Of course, this was a necessity those days because there was no air conditioning in private homes, and the open windows let the breezes cool the homes, which were also surrounded by trees and gardens (even in the cities). In fact, to this day there are no air conditioners at Balagalla: on the day we visited, the continuous flow of air throughout the house made it very comfortable.

THE MID CEYLON-TURY AT HOME: BALAGALLA, KITCHEN & LIGHTING

My husband's late mother's family hails from Balagalla, a tiny village near the town of Divulapitiya on the southwest of Sri Lanka. Last summer, we went there to visit the estate of his uncle, who was recovering from a minor fall at the home he built in the late 1950s.

I could not quite believe what an amazing mid century time capsule of a home it was! Everything was pretty much left as-is since the '50s, and it was beyond marvelous! To start, here are some photos of the informal dining area and overhead lighting:

In Sri Lanka, such beautiful home decor, with its sleek modernist lines, would probably be considered "old stuff" and not the gorgeous treasures they are. They were all either made in Sri Lanka, copying European and American mid century masterpieces, or sometimes the smaller items like lights were imported from abroad. I took many photos of the Balagalla house, and will post them in groups, so stay tuned!

THE MID CEYLON-TURY AT HOME, PT. 2: BREEZE BLOCKS

One of the most prominent features of mid century Sri Lankan architecture is the use of breeze blocks, or concrete masonry blocks that allow for airflow. These were used to make outer walls that formed a barrier for the home but allowed breezes to cool the home in the tropical heat.

During the 1950s and '60s, Sri Lankan breeze blocks came in wonderful "atomic" style patterns that are both striking and beautiful even today. Like these, from one of the outer walls of our brother-in-law's home in the Colombo suburbs:

This "starburst" pattern was very popular in '50s Ceylon, when this home was built. Today, you can see a motor mechanics' shop courtyard on the other side of the wall. It goes to show that everywhere in the world, nothing quite said "1950s" like the starburst!


Another popular mid century breeze block came in a sort of "inverted diamond" pattern, like this one found in my great-aunt's home along the southern coast of Sri Lanka. This breeze block wall was built on the side of a more old-fashioned, colonial-style home, so you can see both the traditional architecture of 19th-early 20th century Ceylon right next the modernist wall! I found this fascinating: 

Seeing all the beautiful breeze block patterns made me long for a wall made of them in our own home in California! If we have a home in Sri Lanka one day, it will definitely be a must. These mid century walls brought back so many memories of my childhood, when they were everywhere! What a shame you don't see them in Sri Lankan homes built these days.

THE MID CEYLON-TURY AT HOME, PT. 1

Unlike Americans, Sri Lankans tend to hold on to antiques passed down from family or friends. Thus, it's not uncommon to see modern homes with 19th century furniture! There are no thrift stores or charity shops in Sri Lanka, probably because people never donate their possessions for public sale. They may pass them on to family or donate them to their local Buddhist temple instead.

However, in the 20th century people began to build their own homes when they got married and started families, and needed new furniture because the old family furniture remained with their parents. Or the old furniture may have not survived the passage of time. Hence, you can find a lot of mid century homes with matching furniture from that era. 

One such house is the ancestral home of my husband's brother-in-law, who inherited his parents' 1950s furniture because he was their only child. I was thrilled to see these pieces because they were built of solid wood in a wonderful '50s style!

Here, their living room set, recently reupholstered. In contrast is the traditional brass oil lamp that stands at the entrances of many Sri Lankan homes. 

The sofa and loveseat are arranged around the television, and in this pic you can better see the curving "atomic" lines of the chairs:

 Another view of the armchair:

My favorite chairs from their home are these graceful canework chairs at the front entrance. Note too the mid century style geometric metal grills on the windows. These were present in most houses to keep out intruders. This home, especially, is right on the very busy main road so that's a needed precaution.

Seeing this home brought back many fond memories of my grandfather's 1950s home, where I grew up, and made me realize why I'm so obsessed with mid century decor! It's a great example of how well-built and beautiful (not to mention stylish!) Sri Lankan furniture from that era was ... and still is!

THE TREE

When I was growing up in our family home in California, there was a beautiful old tree in the front garden, right outside my window. I loved watching the change of seasons played out in its leaves, and the little birds who built nests in its branches. It was there when we moved into the house in the early 80s, and since it was so old we thought it must have been around since the house was built in 1947.

Sadly, a couple of years ago it just died, and came crashing down in a bad winter storm:

My mother paid a neighbor to cut it down. I wanted to save it, so I asked for it to be sawed into stumps that we could use in our own home, one day (we had not bought our house at that time).

Since I don't have any DIY experience, I looked online for tutorials for making a tree stump into a side table. I found the best one here, on The Art of Doing Stuff blog. It was wonderful: very detailed and didn't look too hard!

First, we let the stump dry out for over a year in the hot summer sun. Then, we pried off the bark with a prybar:

With the bark off, it looked like this:

Then we sanded it with an electric sander. You can do this by hand, but since our stump had so many bumps we just didn't have the time to do that.

When sanded, it looked like this:

Then, we decided to fill in a big gash running down the stump with wood filler. We could have left it alone, but worried about bugs coming out of it one day. I wasn't thrilled with the filled-in effect, but in the end it wasn't too bad:

Even though it was a pale shade of filler, it still stood out a bit:

Then, we sanded down the filled-in gaps:

Afterwards, it looked like this:

Then, we sealed the entire stump with several coats of Minwax "Polyshades", or stain-and-polyurethane in one can. This took over a week since you have to let the stain dry out for at least a day before applying another coat.

Finally, we decided to paint the top since the filler was so prominent there. First, a coat of primer:

 

Followed by some leftover paint, and voila, here's the finished tree stump (side without the gash):

And here's the side with the filled-in gash. Though it's visible, it doesn't look bad:

 

It stands next to our mid-century rocking armchair: 

I adore this little stump table, and am so thankful that the tree that stood outside my window will now be with us forever. It's more than a piece of furniture -- it's an old friend.

THE MIDCEYLON-TURY: FURNITURE FROM THE PAST

Now and then you can find fascinating examples of the mid-century influence on Sri Lankan furniture. I grew up surrounded by this in my grandfather's home, but by the 1990s it had pretty much disappeared, to be replaced by ornate, heavy furniture in the antique and "British colonial" style.

But that didn't happen everywhere. In my grandfather's home, for instance, there were chairs like these in the front area, where guests sat when they came to visit:

I almost teared-up when I saw this photo on the OkayArt website because it brought back so many memories! Reminds me why I so love all things mid-century: I'm trying to recreate the look of the lively, happy place where I grew up.

You can get a similar look with these "Kennedy" chairs from Thrive Furniture:

We're saving up to get a pair of them! :-)

Many Sri Lankan homes also had chairs like these (and still do): 

As you can see in the above photos, cane seats were very popular. Cane is a traditional Sri Lankan material that's durable and easy to care for in the humid, tropical environment.

Without the cane they're similar to these "Arnold" chairs from Joybird Furniture:

The mid century influence could also be found in Sri Lankan school furniture when I was growing up, like in these old wood and metal chairs:

These were the kinds of chairs in my schoolroom! Nowadays this look has become quite trendy here in the U.S., with reproductions sold in stores and online, like this "Kyoto" chair by Dot & Bo:

I was very close to my grandfather, and his home was my favorite place to be in Sri Lanka. He passed away in 2007 and his house was sold off, but I cherish my memories of it to this day. And I'm trying to recreate the look and feel of it in our own home here in California. I think that's what makes it such a happy place, as people who come into our home always say. I know it would make my grandfather proud!

MOTHER'S DAY 2014

Hope everyone had a most wonderful Mother's Day, whether you're a mother or not, whether you're close to your mother or not, whether your mother is here with you or passed on, I truly hope that your day was happy and fulfilling. I believe all women who nurture children and play positive roles in their lives are in a way "mothers" of those children. 

I feel lucky to be have been born to my mother, who I truly think is one of the greatest mothers ever. She sacrificed so much for us, and my only hope, wish and prayer is that I am born to her in every life to come!

Here she is, a brand new mother (I'm her first child), in a groovy graphic-print dress that looked to be a staple in the wardrobes of women all around the world ... at least, if this picture's any indication, lol! Happy Mother's Day to my beautiful Ammi!

I also found some beautiful vintage gifts for her! One was this collectible Mother's Day porcelain plate from 1972, the year I was born!

She went crazy over it! The design is painted in 24 karat gold, and the ladies at the shop where I found it also loved the fact that it was the year my mother became a mother -- it's like the plate was meant for us!

I also found this lovely little vintage magnet, which we gave as a gift from our son, her first grandchild.

My mother love decorative magnets, and this one has hooks for things like keys, which she's always misplacing lol! She loved this little gift too.

Our son caught that stomach "bug" that's been going around this weekend, and although he was much better today, everyone's Mother's Day plans had to be postponed (our grandmother's passing was also a factor in that). So we'll go out to celebrate probably at the end of the week. 

Despite all that, ours was a lovely happy memorable day, and I'm so very grateful for that!

MY GRANDMOTHER: IN MEMORIAM

Last Saturday we got the saddest news from Sri Lanka: my grandmother, who helped raise us and who looked after us while my mother went to America (and then brought us to her over a year later), passed away in her sleep. My aunt and her family were looking after her, and my mother even got to go and visit her for a couple of weeks right before she died. She was in pain, so no-one wanted her to suffer. But it was still a huge blow for us all.

I now have no living grandparents, and my mother has no living parents. But cliched as this may sound, as Buddhists we believe that they are still looking after us, and depending on our karma we will meet again in another life. 

But for now I'm in this life. And I want my grandma.

Here we are, three generations of women - my mother, me (at around one month old) and my grandmother:

I will miss her for as long as I live.

MOTHER'S DAY 2013!

Happy Mother's Day to all the moms and caretakers of children out there!

I'm new to Mother's Day, having celebrated it only for three years now. But I love it! And I love celebrating all the mothers (both birth and like-a-mothers, including single dads!) I know, including my own mother.

This year, I found this adorable 1970s stoneware mug for her! I went crazy when I saw it because it was a perfect container for the pretty pair of earrings I also got her. They're wrapped in the tissue paper:

And here they are! She loves post earrings, so I got her this elegant and tastefully bling-y pair from Macy's:

I hope she'll love this little gift as much as we do. It was one of the cutest Mother's Day gifts I've ever found. 

Happy Mother's Day everyone!

Update: My mother loved the earrings and started wearing them the next day! Yay!
Hope you all enjoyed a fun and peaceful Mother's Day!