Caring for teak and marble
Oil the wood twice a year, seal the stone, and wipe spills quickly.
How to light a room in layers
One ceiling light is never enough. Use three kinds of light at three heights.
Most Indian homes are lit by one tube light or a ring of downlights. It is efficient, but it flattens a room and makes evenings feel like an office.
Think in three layers. The first is general light, from a pendant or ceiling fitting, to move around safely. The second is task light, a table lamp by the sofa or a reading lamp by the bed, where you need light on the page. The third is accent light, a floor lamp in a corner or a light washing a wall, which makes the room feel deeper.
Keep all bulbs warm, around 2700 K. Mixing warm and cool white in one room is the most common mistake we see. Put the pendant on a dimmer, and after sunset switch it off altogether and use only the lamps.
Place light low. A table lamp at 1 metre or a pendant 70–80 cm above a dining table casts pools of light that bring people together. In a 12 by 14 foot living room, one pendant, two table lamps and a floor lamp are usually enough.
