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HOUSE
DECORATION
Bed Rooms
were spacious with two or three wall cup-boards,
mirror or glass paneled with highly ornate wood
work. They were full of all sorts of knick-knacks,
valuable heir-looms, crockery, cut-glass Family
photos, pictures, well-framed, paintings and landscapes
adorned the walls. Well-to-do families had a safe
or two, used for guineas and gold ornaments. These
safes were kept in the bed room. Huge wooden chests
stacked with mattresses, rugs, razais, sawars, farasis,
pillows, woolens were also kept in the bed room.
Solidiron trunks used for keeping hand embroidered
linen-bed sheets, pillow cases, cushion covers table
clothes, napkins, a part of the trousseau for the
growing daughters, also were part of the bed room.
Some
of the almitants would be full of eats, sweet meats,
jars of Murabba, Chatni, dryfruit, Varas, bottles
of scintillating Sharbats, exotic Sindhi wines etc.
All were securely locked.
There were niches
in the wall, in which tiny idols of Goddess Laxmi
and Satyanarain were kept. Combs, Oils, rose water,
hairpins etc. occupied some niches. There were no
rouge, lipstick, mascara and what nots at that time.
Only Cuticura powder Afghan snow, and pond's cream
entered some houses in the later years. For the
curiosity of the reader it may be recorded here
that for the Sindhi lady milkcream was the nourishing
cream and besan mixed with water, the cleansing
cream. Brisk rubbing with a dry towel would bring
roses on my lady's cheeks. 'Musag' served the dual
purpose of mouth freshner and lipstick and 'Dandan'
(babul or neem twing) that of tooth paste and tongue
cleaner. Ritha and Shikakai, were used instead of
drying shampoos. Fuller's earth was the face pack
and soap. In place of the hair remover, ladies used
ash. |
