Dine in style

That line may seem very clichéd. But I wholeheartedly believe in that adage. When you dine, do so in style. An elaborate table is what I like. I know some of you may say; what the heck, it is the food that matters. But I say eating is not only about food. It is an experience itself and should titillate not only the taste buds. When you go to a restaurant, does not the ambience make a strong point in your decision? The lighting, the layout of the table, and of course the dinner set all play a part in ensuring you of a killer meal…and I mean killer in a positive and nice way. My family has always set a lot of store on dinner sets. We must be having almost 10 dinner sets at home. Some of the bone china sets we have could well be rated as antiques.

Keep your silver sparkling

I am still focused on the kitchen only. But, what I am wondering is whether any anyone is benefiting from my blog. Any visitor to my blog site, I would appreciate if you could make some time to comment on any of the posts. If not for anything else, at least to let me know that there is someone who is visiting my blog page. Okay, now let’s discuss the issue of getting your silverware sparkling like they should. All your silver cutlery would be shining like there is no tomorrow when you first buy them, but they tend to loose their sheen as the years pass. I have used silver polishes on all my silverware. My mom was a stickler for cleanliness and tarnished cutlery was not tolerated. Guess that is where I got the idea of getting my kitchen spruced up. These silver polishes are handy to use and keep your silverware shining.

A drainer cum rack

I can just go on and on about kitchen accessories. There is one I want to talk about today. The dish drainer. I have recently bought one. Initially, I used to place all the dishes on a rack in the kitchen cabinet. But when the doors were closed the plates used to remain wet till almost the next day. I don’t think this would have been a very good idea or very hygienic either. Also, at that time I had a wooded kitchen cabinet and the water from the just-washed plates would spoil the wood. So, what I would do is place a plastic sheet below the plates. On day when visiting a home décor exhibition, I stumbled upon a dish drainer. Actually stumbled upon it…it was lying on the ground at the entrance to the stall. I did not buy it there and then, but the idea stuck in my head and I bought a dish drainer around a week later. Now, I just place my plates in a vertical manner on the dish drainer on the kitchen platform. The excess water drips away and I have clean and dry plates.

Get bowled over

I have a thing for bowls. There are bowls all over my house. I find that bowls are the most multipurpose kitchen accessories. You could keep leftovers in the fridge, mix the dough, beat eggs, and perform just some of the millions of tasks you usually perform in the kitchen with bowls. I find that bowls are better than soup plates as bowls are bigger, deeper and can be used to whip up a mixture without any fear of the mixture spilling out from the rim. Nowadays, I have seen bowls in varied shapes and sizes and they are made of different materials too. Most mixing bowls are made one of these three materials – metal, plastic, and ceramic. When buying bowls, I would recommend that you buy bowl sets, so that you would get bowls of different sizes and sporting the same color or design.

There are stool and there are stools

A stool is a stool, whatever name you give it. Nowadays almost every furniture item is a given a more glamorous name. While stately pieces of furniture such as cupboards and sofas may be rendered with innovative names, who would expect the humble stool to be offered this pride of place. What I am talking about is the vanity stools. A vanity stool is a normal stool in all respects except that it generally has a soft padded seat. Also, the name I guess comes from the practice of using the stool when sitting in front of the dressing table with the vanity case in front of you. Generally, vanity stools are more elaborately done up as compared to normal stools and may also have arm rests. My mother had three vanity stools in her bedroom and she was very meticulous in their maintenance. Apparently, the stools came down to her ownership after being in the possession of our family for generations.

The curtained shower

Nothing beats shower curtains to get your shower that cozy feel. Shower curtains are so handy to draw across the shower when you are taking one. Mostly made of plastic, these curtains are rendered with rings that can be dragged over a pole at the top to either open or close the curtains. It is seen that most modern households have a shower curtain to shield the person having a bath. The shower curtain could either encircle the shower area or the location where the bath tub exists. Mostly opaque, for obvious reasons, the shower curtain is a handy bath accessory. Nowadays, shower curtains sport interesting designs and varied colors. When you buy a shower curtain, you would usually get a shower curtain liner and shower curtain hooks along with the actual shower curtain. A few days back, I was at my aunt’s place and I a real cool shower curtain. It was predominantly blue and had a sea-like design on it.

Frame your collection

Here is a good way to get your room to reflect your taste in art. Get some frames on your walls. Framed art can be set up in any room of the house; of course the living room is the ideal place for picture frames, but even other rooms could serve just as well. Framed art offers your house a kind of an intellectual air that cannot be duplicated. There are varied kinds of artwork that can be displayed in frames ranging from country sceneries to modern art to abstract drawings to even artistically done up photographs. Framed art makes for good conversational items too. With the wide array of framed art being available in the market, I don’t think it would be very difficult to build up a real nice collection of artwork to adorn the wall of your home.

More on the outdoors

I am now enamored by the outdoors after opening this topic in my last post. I guess I will be talking about the outdoors in a couple more posts. Let’s discuss some garden tools Of course, the main tool you just cannot do without is the shovel. There is the conventional shovel and then there is the snow shovel on wheels. This is a handy accessory for those days when show has piled up in your backyard. And of course, for any plant lover, you cannot ignore the watering can. With a spray nozzle, this can water your plants in an even manner. As far as the garden seeder is concerned, there is so much I can talk about, I will have to keep it for another post. Till then, I would suggest that you stock up on all the garden accessories that would be used to get your garden looking like paradise.

Backyard benches

Let’s take a break from office and set out for the outdoors…I mean just the backyard of your home. This is the place for relaxing after a hard days work or even a hard night partying. An outdoor benches is what you need in a situation like this. I, personally, like outdoor benches that have a backrest. I have seen too many benches in friend’s houses that have just the base to sit in and no back rest. This just does not make any sense. There is a thin line dividing comfort from style and I find that the garden bench with a neat wooden backrest says it all…looks good and feels good too. And to add to the comfort factor, you could place some soft cushions on the bench. There are not many benches that one would see that have cushions; however, I am in favor of these. One thing you need to make sure. As the benches are going to be in the outdoors, they should be sturdily constructed to absorb the rigors of the various climatic changes.

Office storage

It is often that you would feel the need for a proper solution for all the various items that keep piling up in the office. Office cabinet are what we need. While wood looks cool and adds a posh touch to the office, I would go for steel. Steel cabinets may look cheap, but they are set to last you for decades. Wood could warp with climatic changes and there could be an infestation of termites which could eat into the wood and cause the documents within to be reduced to powder. Also, there is a chance that wood could rot in the presence of water or any moist conditions. So, between wood and steel, I would go in for steel. Steel office cabinets are resilient. With judiciously arranged shelves, these office storage solutions are a great space saving solution.

More desks

Still on the topic of desks, there are many desks other than executive desks. One such desk is the
conference desk. In my working tenure, I have seen some really humongous conference desks. Long and stretching across the conference room, these desks are designed to be intimidating. I don’t really mean that…but the thing is I have given so many tough interviews and attended so many grueling conferences on these tables that the table itself seems to have a dominating life of its own. But on a more serious note, the table could be seen in varied shapes ranging from round to rectangular to oval. I think oval is the most common shape for a conference table. While the conference tables I sat on could seat more that 30 people, there are conference tables that could accommodate just around 3 to 4 people.

Executive desks

I don’t know why these desks are called executive desks as in today’s connotation, an executive in a company may not be very high up the rung of the corporate ladder and may not even have a cabin. However, whatever these desks are called, they are truly executive. I have seen desks that are designed for flamboyance. Most desks are made of teakwood and are rendered with a rich finish. Desks have a open space in the middle for you to extend your legs, but the sides may be occupied with a series of drawers running to the floor. Also, there may be a raised portion in the center of the desk that is used as a writing surface. I have seen simple straight desks as well as extensive L-shaped and U-shaped desks. These L-shaped and U-shaped desks are designed to fit into one corner of the room, spread across two adjoining walls.

Lets get our files in order

I think I must have written as many as 40 plus blogs so far, but not a single reply or comment. Now, I am beginning to wonder if there is anyone out there who is reading these blog posts. Anyway, I will go on saying my piece. Today, let’s talk about getting your office space in order. I know that is today’s IT driven workspace, there are almost no papers around. However, I also know that when documents pile up, they really do pile up. As for me, I just dig file organisers. There are some cool ones around. Now, you can get your files in one place; in one folder. From single-pocket files to multi-pocket files, I find that these files are very convenient. I keep just about any papers in these files. They really free up space on the desk. It is very difficult to segregate all the files in the file organizer, but I have got around the problem by having three of them on my desk.

The ultimate in style

Truly, the napkin is the most artistic of dining table accessories. Besides adding an aristocratic air to the table, napkins also have a functional purpose to perform. It is seen that napkins have been in use for centuries. The designs on napkins are truly innovative and some of the older napkins have even become collectors’ items. Some of the napkins depict pictures from certain historic events. Brightly colored and with placemats too, napkin sets are made to order for the family who loves its tastes. Napkins can be used to wipe the hands while eating and can also be used to dab the mouth when particles of food may be sticking therein. Napkins usually come in sets of around 12 pieces. There are napkins of different sizes and shapes. We have a number of set of napkins in our household from the simplest of colors to the most flamboyant. There is one napkin set in our closet depicts the American War of Independence. This set is truly a treasure in our home.

The microwave’s pride of place

How could you forget the microwave oven? This is one accessory in your home that is truly modern. A great boon for the whole family, this device can be used to both cook food as well as warm eatables just prior to a meal. This device really deserves a respectable position. You could keep the microwave lying on a kitchen shelf or on a microwave work center. This work center is designed for this ‘queen of the kitchen’. With 2 open shelves on the top and a cabinet below, the microwave work center is made for the person who believes in keeping the kitchen ship-shape. With the microwave on the top shelf, the middle shelf can be used as a work space for cutting vegetables, marinating the meat, kneading the dough, or just about any other task. The lower two shelves are usually covered by doors and can be used to store condiments, spices, and other jars.

A home for your television

The TV Armoire could well be called the home for your television. An ornate wooden cupboard-like accessory, the TV armoire is just right to add a touch of class to your living room. With a big compartment at the top to accommodate even a big screen TV, the TV armoire has shelves at the bottom for your DVD player, DVDs, CDs, or even caste tapes. Systematically arranged, the TV armoire has a capacity to accommodate around 70 to 100 DVDs in the lower shelves. Now, you can have all your entertainment electronic accessories in one place. Most of these TV cabinets have perforated backs to allow for proper ventilation to prevent overheating of the electronic items contained within. Also, there are openings for the electrical wires to be slid out to be connected to the wall sockets. I do not have this furniture item in my house, but I sure want to get one. It is really nice – looks good and a great space saver too.

A bed office?

I really liked this bed desk. Now, here is cool product that allows you to loll in bed while you carry on with your daily activities. With stands on the sides this ‘mini table’ can be placed over your chest while you sleep on your back. Additionally, the height of the table is such that there is no undue pressure on your chest. So, you do not need to worry about you being crushed under the table or have the breath squeezed out of you. The table is light enough to be just lifted and placed away when the job is done. You can catch up on your reading while being in bed and also have an early breakfast while still lying down. A solid construction enables the table to support even relatively heavy dishes and books. Some bed desks have compartments along the sides to hold magazines, writing stationary, and any other odds and ends.

Cradle your Ladle!

Spoon rest is a piece of kitchenware that serves as a place to lay spoons as well as other cooking utensils to prevent curry stains, drips, and spills on stovetops and kitchen counters. Spoon rest are heat resistant, stain resistant, and dishwasher-safe.



Spoon rests can be made of varied materials ranging from wooden ones, acrylic, ones, steel ones, to plastic ones. They are also available in a comprehensive range of shapes and sizes. Double spoon rests, triple spoon rests, standing or vertical spoon rests are some of the varieties available. With contemporary designs and shapes, you are sure to find a spoon rest that matches your person as well as your home décor. Get one today!

Cut, Chop, Slice!

A cutting board is a useful kitchen accessory that is used to chop vegetables, fruits, salads, bread, cheese, meat and poultry, and just about anything that needs to be chopped or sliced. A cutting board has a durable board that can be used as a surface for cutting and chopping.


Using a kitchen counter to chop materials instead of a cutting board can permanently damage the sharp edges of the knife and damage the counter top as well. Wooden cutting board usually use bamboo, Maple, Birchwood, India Rosewood, Basswood, Beech, Sheesham and Walnut wood. Some are tight grained i.e. end-grained which means that the grains of wood are arranged vertically making it look like a chess board. They are of high quality and are durable and resistant to knife cuts. Acrylic cutting boards and synthetic (plastic) cutting boards are also available.

Cook with a book!

With so many different country cuisines yet to tasted, it makes sense to get hold of a cookbook or a recipe book that lets you read and cook. With these cookbooks, you can tantalize yours as well as your family’s taste buds and have the best of many worlds right on your dining table. Cookbook holder is an important kitchen accessory that holds your cookbook in place while you are cooking.



Cookbook stands, under-cabinet cookbook holders, acrylic cookbook holders, and wooden cookbook holders are some of the varieties of cookbook holders. Stainless steel recipe book stands are also available. These cookbook and recipe book holders come in a variety of contemporary shapes and designs. Some cookbook holders also have the provision to hold the particular page in place so that you don’t goof up in your hurry to cook.

Can it!

It can at times get very irritating when you have to open a can before you can dig into your favorite baked beans or other canned foodstuffs. Handy can opener have made it much easier to open those cans in an instant. With their sleek and cordless design, these handheld can openers make opening cans of all sizes a breeze. Big cushioned handles make opening a can easier on your hands and the oversized knob turns easily.




The sharp cutting blade is made of sturdy stainless steel and the soft, comfortable handles absorb pressure. Some can openers also features a built-in bottle cap opener. Automatic, battery-operated can openers are also available. You have simply place the unit on top of the can and push the button and the blade/cutter makes its way around the edges or the can’s rim opening the can in seconds. Your hands remain free all the while allowing you to do other work.

Take your pick

With a number of novel appliances emerging in the market, life is made simpler and easier by the day. With everything available right in the comfort of your home, the need to step out of the house is diminishing by the hour.




Carts are available to make your appliances mobile so that they are easier to re-position. You can use these carts to enhance the mobility of your refrigerators, washing machines, and other heavy appliances that are often difficult to move. Automatic soymilk makers make it easier to have the nourishing drink at any time of the day. Gourmet coffee grinders let you have that gourmet coffee right in your home. Movie-time popcorn carts allow you to have that fresh and crackling popcorn that you often love having at movies. Cotton candy makers, old-fashioned gumball machines, dish dryers, digital convection cookers, automatic yogurt makers, rice storage and dispensers are some of the other novel items available on stands.