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Steel is making a lifestyle statement. Namita A Shrivastav takes a look at designerware in steel

If you wait long enough, fashion comes around. The big logic applies to things other than clothes as well. Steel - the humble alloy - used and abused in grandma's house, is today making a lifestyle statement.

Steel As It Is Today
Steel has been repackaged, recycled and transformed so beautifully that today it confidently struts around as objets d'art. New finishes and designer shapes are giving steel a class it never had before; making trend barometers declare steel stylish. It's also sleek, smart and contemporary. And if that isn't enough, fusion in steel is leading to more innovative designs. Consider steel with leather, porcelain, wood or glass. The result - exotic, hip, classy and dynamic.
Lifestyle stores are lined with steel designerware - porcelain teacups with steel saucers, tea glasses with steel handles, leather and steel wine racks and stylised spoons or steel mixed with cast iron.

The Makeover
Not too long ago the functional steel vessels in Indian homes were confined to the kitchen and at best made to the dining room. They disappeared as soon as guests appeared. Cut to the present. Interior designers are talking of steel tiles, wall panels and the stainless steel look in kitchens, bars and bathrooms. Steel is also being spotted in offices and restaurants. "It's contemporary, neutral and here to stay," says interior designer Aparna Karve. "You can play it up or tone it down."

Steel style is surely catching up. Rajiv Shroff of Elahe - In Vogue, a lifestyle store in Hyderabad, says, "Steel is the new new thing. It's moving faster than we imagined. People always end up carrying home something from the Art D'Inox range. It's funny how they steer towards the display island without even realising it!"

This explains why brands like Magpie, Art D'Inox (from Jindals), The Home Store and Westside are creating stylised designs in steel. They've literally put steel on the mantlepiece. Funky home accessories by Alessi and handcrafted spoons by Michael Aram make high fashion statements. Who wouldn't want a Philippe Starck lemon squeezer or Alessanadro Mendini's famous 'Anna Corkscrew' in their bar set?

Thanks to modern design, even our good ol' thermoses and colanders can now look cool.

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