Modern living at Imara Gardens

By Shirley Genga

Located in Imara Daima behind Sameer Business Park, right next to Riara Springs exists this diamond in the rough — Imara Gardens.

The apartments seem a little ‘misplaced’ as they appear to have been uprooted from the leafy suburbs and plastered right here in Imara Daima.

The above effect is what Abdullahi Dahir, a director at Imara Gardens, had in mind. He wanted to create houses that were just as posh as those found in high-end areas but at the same time practical and affordable.

“We have endeavoured and worked towards providing our clients with high quality standards in Imara Gardens that can match apartments in upmarket areas of Nairobi such as Kileleshwa and Kilimani.”

Abdullahi’s idea to create modern, chic and reasonably priced homes is nearly complete.

Luxurious living

When I perused their website www.imaragarden.com, I was intrigued by its promise to bring ‘luxury to life’, so I had to ascertain the features myself.

The outside area of the apartments is simplicity at its best. “I wanted to capture the top deck chocolate colour scheme by mixing dark brown and cream, nothing too bold or screaming,” he says.

True to his words this is the recurrent colour scheme all throughout the apartment, both inside and out.

When you walk into the show room apartment, the first thing that draws ones attention is the kitchen area. They say that the heart of the home is the cooking area and Imara Gardens has a roomy living and breathing kitchen. It boasts spacious cabinets, which surround the stove and sink area. The strategic placement of the cabinets- both top and bottom level is what facilitates the creation of a spacious cooking area.

The cabinetry is strategically placed and this allows everything to be hidden-so there’s lots of storage space, but you don’t see it. Extra storage has also been gained by making use of cabinet depths and wide drawer units — both key storage solutions. The cabinets come in a variety of designs; both close ended plus open ended, and made of medium density fibreboard.

For aesthetic and practical reasons the kitchen surfaces are made of pure granite, which not only introduces an interesting texture into the kitchen area but also adds practicability and functionality.

The most standout feature of the kitchen though, is the smoke extractor found above the cooking stove. This impressive gadget not only provides intimate lighting for the cook but also facilitates the extraction of smoke- and helps to facilitate the constant flow of clean air in the kitchen.

The cooking area interconnects with the dining room courtesy of an open passage, found on the separating wall of the two adjacent areas.

In the dining room, the fresh modern feel of the kitchen continues to resonate but with a more minimalistic theme to it— no clutter. The choice of furniture here is natural, simple and light. The chairs are made of hardwood with an unpretentious finishing. The table and chairs are low in height, a restaurant type of ambiance — modern and chic.

While everything in the dining room area is simple, the only bold feature is the carpet, which continues with the top deck chocolate colour theme and also adds some fluff and much needed contrast to the eating area.

Fluffy feel

The dining room then flows into the sitting room, where the centrepiece is a television stand, made of glass, aluminium and natural wood,- on which sits a 32-inch television. The furniture in the living room is modern. The seats are made of black leather with white stitches on its surface. This gives the chairs a sophisticated and unfinished arty look. The carpet is fluffy and comes in a mixture of colours; red, white, brown and cream.

The three bedrooms which are located close by are all spacious and simply decorated. The beds, in particular, stand out as futuristic — made of bamboo with metal finishing.

Perhaps one other curious aspect here is the servant’s quarter. Would you believe it? The apartments have a servant’s quarter, a small room adjacent to the laundry area with its own bathroom and toilet. They way space has been utilised to create room for the servants quarter is simply brilliant.

Indeed at Imara Gardens, they are clearly bringing luxury to life.