Interiors & Designs

Dazzling décor

Decorating hotels is as critical a selling strategy as it is an art. Dr Debjani Maitra, who heads Garden & Flower, speaks of the importance of dressing up an edifice to bring forth its beauty to the beholder

Dr Debjani Maitra

It has been a while since India has been offering world class service levels in the hospitality industry, measuring up to every detail that ensures a comfortable and pleasurable stay of our guests. Along with other fields, decoration is an integral part of this business of luxury. Interiors of any hotels are done at the project stage in line with the hotel design concept.

Following this are soft decorations. Namely, each property is done up in sync with the original concept - conventional, classical or contemporary, as the case maybe. Apart from this, hotels are decorated for special occasions such as festivals, be it Christmas, New Year or Deepavali, or for promotions. Food and wine festivals organised by different F&B outlets and special events like book or product launches or corporate events and private functions are also reasons for hotels or certain parts of it to get dressed to the occasion.

Deconstructing decorations

Any decorative work needs to be preceded by a certain amount of research work regarding the particular type of function, where it is to be held, the climate and the season. Also the theme, the colour scheme if any, the size and shape of the venue have to be taken into consideration before a sketch is worked out of the plan. Then deliberations need to be made on the material to be used, the design to be created and finally, a final blueprint taking into consideration all the inputs. This has to be presented to the client for approval and incorporate preferences and inputs if any. The execution process is started after all this has been taken into consideration.

Trend tips

People are moving towards simplicity and using more contemporary materials and motifs. The use of natural materials is preferred as opposed to more complicated creations using artificial materials. However, there is a vast range of high quality flowers, plants, containers, and props that are available these days.

Most luxury hotels prefer good quality designs presented in simple fashion. These days hotels across the country get ready for festivities especially during the winter season for Christmas and New Year. Ideally, the preparations for decorations should be carried out behind the scene and be ready before the event, moving out immediately after the event is over. For example, India attracts a large number of business travellers from the West. But they all head back home by the second week of December to celebrate Christmas with their families. Thus decorations for the season should definitely be put up before the second week of December so that guests enjoy them, and removed immediately after January 1.

Freshly floral

Theme weddings are getting popular day by day as clients are always in search of something newer and want something different. Wedding decorations are based on these themes. Here, floral displays are preferred. For floral displays, one should use fresh flowers of the best quality available. Along with them, high quality containers, vases or contemporary creations are most appreciated. Colours can vary. There was a time in India when we seldom used white flowers in weddings or any auspicious

ceremonies, but now times have changed. One gets to see so many wedding functions done up elegantly with fresh white flowers. So the colour scheme is completely subjective and varies from project to project.

Case study

My brief for Grand Hyatt Mumbai was to do something futuristic at the centre of the lobby for Christmas. I took a short visit to the hotel as it is very important to see the site before designing. Post the visit, I was sure that I wanted to design a piece of art for the festival that will blend with the hotel's simplicity and elegance. The hotel has a lot of straight lines in their design and overall has a very contemporary look. Moreover, I was given a colour scheme of silver and gold to work with, which automatically indicated that I would work with materials like metal, or with items that evoked a similar effect. That triggered me to design and develop the cones with twigs and lights, which was very unique as a Christmas concept, yet it complemented the fever of festivity and brought forth the joy of celebration.

As told to Neeti Mehra

The writer has 14 years of experience in operations, studies, training and research in the field of horticulture, floral decorations and landscaping with a special focus on global standard hotel properties. She can be contacted at debjani1966@yahoo.com)