Adding style and cosiness to the home

A stylish and cosy home – those were the features that attracted visitors at the Home and Living section of The Artisans Haven exhibition at The Linc recently.

“Many of them were impressed by the decorative cheeseboard, a creative piece by Dot & Pour.

“They also liked the jelly cats, soft toys by Abbie & Friends, especially the avocado and egg yolk,’’ said Peterson Iruthayanathan who was promoting Home and Living at the exhibition.

Dot & Pour

The love for colours is warmly reflected in the ‘dot and pour’ art by Riffat Bukhari.

From table tops, coasters, trays, wall hangings, cup cake stands, mirrors and calligraphy, her creative works are borne of her love for art, where 20 years ago, she had already started off with pen art.

“Dotting is a kind of meditative therapy that we call mandala; it sends healing vibes to those in need of calming and relaxation,’’ said Riffat, an ex-banker from Pakistan, who’s been in Malaysia for four years.

The meaning of mandala in Sanskrit is circle, a spiritual and ritual symbol representing the universe.

Pour painting with a mixture of resins and pigments, is an innovative way to create an art piece where fluid paints are poured onto the surface in a variety of ways.

“Riffat produces unusual and beautiful art pieces,’’ says her client Samar Manzoor who has bought five or six pieces of ‘dot and pour’ art from Riffat. “She puts her heart into her work, and they are very reasonably priced.’’

Riffat had become interested in dotting and pouring when she went for classes in mandala and resins, for which she also offers courses now.

Each class consists of four students and lasts for two to three hours; on the duration of each session, Riffat says “they have to achieve something out of it.’’

Clients like her products as they are durable and aesthetically beautiful; a lot of clients like to match the products with the colours in their homes.

‘Dot and pour’ art requires patience, time and focus; ‘’it’s a way to show my inner self, my love for colours and the challenges of the art,’’ saysd Riffat.

Abbie & Friends

Offering the largest collection of genuine Jelly cat products from London and Settlers Bears from Australia, Abbie & Friends is featuring new products that include the Blossom and Bashful Dusky bunnies and Sage Dragon.

In chalky blue and gorgeously tubby, Jellycat Blossom Dusky Blue Bunny has beautiful bunny ears and paws, bringing in springtime scampery.

He is worth adding to your collection, and will certainly bring smiles all round.

For soothing bedtimes, Bashful Dusky Blue Bunny is here to hug. A gentle friend in heather fur, Bashful Dusky comes with squashable feet and long, snuggly ears.

Most dragons are depicted as fearsome, winged creatures but Sage Dragon is a pretty laid-back dragon in calming sage green.

He is certainly fun to have around as friends may pop up comments of gentle surprise ‘Oh, what a cute little dragon!’

There are loyal clients of Abbie & Friends who have been with them since they started four years ago.

“They have a personal connection with each of the Jellycats,’’ says founder Chan Chi Leong, an IT professional with a love for fine toys.

“When they come and pick their soft toys, they will always look into their eyes and faces, and if they feel that they can connect, they will buy them,’’ added Chi Leong.

A couple, KJ and Cass, have collected 60 to 70 of these Jellycats that are all placed in their house, and it is a growing collection.

Clients like Abbie & Friends as the toys are very soft, tested with Euro safety standards, and are also safe for newborns; personalization of soft toys and gift boxes is also offered.

Candle Pit Stop

Wax cubes, a facelift for the 180g candles and new scents will fill your home with a cosy charm and renewed freshness.

Candle Pit Stop’s highly scented wax cubes are made from soywax and infused with its house blend of botanical fragrances.

These cubes release an instant burst of aroma and can be re-used up to three times.

The new designs for the 180g candles are reminiscent of vintage tin cans with a touch of country style.

New scents that tempt include dark chocolate, berries, plum and strawberry shortcake; coming soon is wood and leather for men.

For Mother’s Day, create that perfect space and ambience for Mom who would like a nice breakaway without leaving home.

These come in soft floral bouquet scents to start her day, to a mid-morning cuppa of her favourite brew of coffee, and later, a tea time scent, and finally a nice, relaxing scent.

Each scent is accompanied with a playlist of music specially created for Mom on this special day.

For Hari Raya, three new limited edition scents will come in the newly-launched travelling tins.

To give a hint, it’s to do with every Malaysian’s favourite dish, and will be a topic of discussion at family get-togethers.

Motivational candles are upcoming in May, replacing the 100g mini candles.

Lightweight and durable, they still give a burning time of 28 hours.

Enjoy and carry your scented candles anywhere while being uplifted by the motivational quotes.

These tin candles can be customized for weddings, parties, birthdays, hens parties and as gift ideas.

Dreamshop Home Treasures

Home and Living is about family and bonding. And food plays an important role in sharing and bonding among family members.

Cooking together also improves emotional well-being; nice food served in beautiful dining ware and cutlery sets from Dreamshop help to enhance the good mood all round.

“Having a bad day? Sip your sorrows away over a cup of latte or coffee with your besties, and to lighten the mood, we recommend using unicorn mugs,’’ said Dreamshop founder Rosalie Lin.

And it’s nothing like Mother’s love; the stainless steel lunchbox is ideal for packing in all that love.

Yearning for a get-together with the little ones in the family? Those Zoom classes and meetings can wait.

While having your kids’ party, the 2D dream unicorn and Kitty plates from Dreamshop are a delightful accompaniment.

For the festive season, rainbow coloured candy jars lend an air of celebration, these rainbow colours are also thought to be symbols of good fortune.

Fruits and nuts may be served on crystal-like fruit deco plates.

Asian Esteem Magic Frames

Asian Esteem, with its own artisan team of frame makers, has been coming up with new designs for creative wood products.

To boost the stylishness of a home interior, Asian Esteem founder B.K. Ng has created wainscoting products, which are decorative wooden panels installed on the lower portion of the wall.

Typically rising to chair-rail level, wainscoting designs are based on a variety of wood products that add texture and style to a room.

“Asian Esteem is trying to embark on new designs to show the world that our home-grown artisans and designers can have a place in the world of style and chic,’’ said Ng.

A multi-use bench from Asian Esteem was put on display at the exhibition at The Linc; made of pine wood, this bench can be creatively used for landscaping purposes.

The bench can double up as a coffee table with a glass top, a counter stand or display rack.

Other new products by Asian Esteem include a cheese cutting board made from forest stewardship council (FSC) Lithuanian pinewood, and a simple wall decorative frame for pictures or ornamental display, from FSC Eastern European natural pinewood.

Corvan

Enjoy cleaning your lovely homes with stylish and functional products from Corvan.

With the Corvan cordless vacuum, cleaning dark areas is a breeze, with its bright LED headlight.

It has ultra strong suction power, with a dust mite and mattress cleaning tool which is good for cleaning beds, sofas, mattresses, car interiors, while a dusting tool enables us to clean the ceiling fan.

Stress free mopping comes with the Corvan cordless mop that saves 60% of your time mopping, and an average of 10 litres of water.

It helps to eliminate the use of floor cleaning chemicals while providing a polishing effect.

The Corvan power scrub has a high and consistent torque motor that can push down on areas with stains while maintaining its scrubbing power.

It can be used in aquariums and pools, as it is waterproof and can be submerged in water up to one meter consistently for 30 minutes.

With Corvan personal air purifier, you can remain fresh and revitalized while driving; enjoy quality sleep with pure air; and capture pollutants in 360 degrees.

Raecare

Amid the trend towards environment-friendly products, Raecare has come up with six plant-based, non-toxic and biodegradable homecare products.

Of the latest dishwash liquid and hand wash, the hand wash has become the best-selling.

“Our customers are really happy that these plant-powered cleaners don’t just smell good but they actually work,’’ says founder Azzrizal Zolhaili.

Caring for two allergy-prone children with eczema, Azzrizal worked hard to find eco-friendly products that are free of parabens.

Raecare products are scented with natural essential oils.

Eumicare

‘Stay close to nature with Eumicare’ is the tagline at EUMI, or affectionately You and Me.

Having been in the personalized beauty and healthcare services line since 2015, founder T.S. Yap had researched on safe, ethical and natural ingredients to formulate his range of personal care products.

Currently, Eumicare has sanitizers in two sizes of 50ml and 500ml, and is targeting to launch natural feminine care products this year.

“What our customers love about our products is the natural formulation that they can use on themselves, their children’s toys and in food packages,’’ says Yap.

With a hint of a refreshing scent, Eumicare sanitizers are made from ethyl alchohol, aqua, natural tea tree oil, natural aloe barbadensis and Vitamin E.

It is hypoallergenic and suitable for use on babies, plushies, baby’s bedding, as well as on sensitive and dry skin.

Akarana

Shower your baby with love; Akarana of New Zealand has designed products with safety, flexibility and comfort in mind.

We feature three products that can help you take care of your baby in a safe and convenient manner.

Aroha II portable playard bassinet diaper changer, an elegantly designed baby crib, enables you to lift and lower side panels for easy access to your baby’s feeding or changing.

It has a diaper changer that comes with a washable fabric pad and storage shelf.

The playard is suitable for toddlers under 35 inches tall, while the infant bassinet is suitable for newborns up to 15kg.

The Tuhinga organic baby lounger allows you to safely lounge your baby in the living room, bedroom or anywhere.

It has a groove on which your baby can rest, nested naturally in it.

There is a removable soft harness, and a simple Velcro fastening that is easily adjusted as baby grows.

The Toru II convertible high chair can be converted from high to low chair position, and into a portable booster or floor seat.

It has a removable tray and tray top, while the chair feet comes with rubber skid proof protector and adjustable safety belt.

Tassiny

Emerging from a period of low sales resulting from the closure of schools, Tassiny is again a hive of activity with children being allowed to go back to school.

It specialises in selling schoolbags and other items for school going children, thus making a name for itself in te neighbourhood of Spectrum Mall in Ampang.

Customers come for the large selection of schoolbags that are colourful and of good quality; many types of uniforms for school and extra curricular activities are also available.

But they don’t just come to shop at Tassiny which was set up more than 20 years ago, they join a community of parents who know each other well; they have also earlier followed their own parents to shop here.

Kakiseni Junior

Cultivating a love of the arts in children is the upcoming focus at Kakiseni Junior which will be launching its website soon.

Through an online listing of creative classes, children will be able to learn life skills as well as the performing, traditional and visual arts.

“We want to cultivate the love for traditional performing arts to young people,’’ said Kakiseni digital content manager Shulfitri Mohamad Shukardi.

“We go to schools and do readings to them as we find that the creative arts is under-represented in schools,’’ added Shulfitri.

Kakiseni, a non-profit organization set up to drive the appreciation of the arts, has introduced the Hikayat stories highlighting traditional art forms to children.

The titles are: ‘Shadows’ that speak of courage; ‘The Girl Who Loves to Dance’ on doing what you love and to be committed to it; and ‘Rahman’s Big Break’ on the journey of an artist.

With so much love put into styling and spicing up of our homes, we also nurture our young children to build this wonderful place where they can live and grow.