DIY weekend

A lazy Saturday afternoon, great ideas doing the rounds in my head and some lovely music to accompany - a perfect setting for a craft project that has been pending since long.

So I get the object I’ve planned to work on. It’s a grater. Yes, a grater! The paints and brushes finally get to step out of the cupboard and all arrangements made, I get down to business.




Getting my hands dirty in paints always leaves me feeling happy. The neck strains, the back aches as I try to paint the little corners of the grater, but nothing seems to bother me while I’m absorbed in that moment.

Finally, the humble grater gets metamorphosed into an objet d’art.




But the purpose of painting it all pretty was something else. Those who know me well know about my huge collection of earrings and how I’m always on the lookout for a nice jewellery box for all those lovely pieces. So to make my morning looking-for-the-earring-pair ritual easier and add a kitsch angle to the boring jewellery box, this was my solution.



:)

P.S. Use an old paint brush as the sharpness of the grater can easily spoil the brush bristles.

P.P.S. Try going for an aluminum base as it’s much easier to paint.

P.P.P.S: Acrylic colours can easily stain the clothes so be careful. Else feel sorry about spoiling your favourite pyjama, like I did.

Colour me happy

My fondest memory of a birthday gift remains to be a box of camel oil pastels. With a typical scenery of a beautiful sunset showcased in enigmatic shades and expert strokes, the box promised to be something I had never seen before. With eyes that shone as if I’d won a million dollars, I slid the case open. My heart skipped a beat as I saw a spread of 24 breathtaking colours. For an 8 year old who always wished to have more than those 12 basic colours for her drawing classes, this was like a double promotion. For minutes, I kept staring at those wax jewels. Then held them closer to my nose to inhale that characteristic whiff that felt oh-so-comforting. This was it, I said to myself. ‘I’ll become an artist someday,’ I proudly announced to my folks, thinking that with this gift the power was purposefully bestowed upon me.


The new box opened up a whole new world for me. 24 colours. TWENTY FOUR colours!! I meticulously rearranged the box and divided it in 2 sets, exclusively putting aside the 12 new shades I’d never used before. As much as I was fascinated by the colours, I was curious to read their names. So there was a sunset orange, a blue-grey, a mint green and some others. With every name I read, I actually imagined the colour in its rightful place. How could they’ve come up with such exact descriptors, I was amazed to see. Then, as a challenge, I went about observing everyday things and coming up with my own set of shades.


For beginners, there was the Sindhi Kadhi colour – a mix between yellow and burnt orange. Then there was the very fresh Chutney green, which was unlike any other green the new box offered. Winters brought with it the Jaipuri Razai blue, while summers were spent slurping the kala-khatta colour off ice golas. A trip to nani’s house meant revisiting a Lifebuoy red and a Bajaj Chetak blue. And school was all about the chalkboard grey (or was it a dirty green?) and ofcourse, the Sisters with their faded muddy brown sarees.


With years, my love for the name-game has only grown stronger. Not to say, now I have a new colour vocabulary altogether. From the Deep Kiss Pink to the Lonely Lavender, from the Old Book Yellow to the Dried Rose Red – there are colours that have chosen to stay with me, while there are some that have just thrown a hint and left never to return.


There are so many more colours to explore, so much more to ‘tag’. And someday, I’d love to capture it all and stack it neatly in a box to be able to pick one everyday and live the colour I wish. But for now, I continue to occasionally stop by stationery shops and take a closer look at the colour boxes to read the names on the wax sticks.


I’ve realized, you need to think out of the box for things that go into it.

More Kettles!

A couple of months ago I talked about my idea of making handmade gifts like this. The idea was quite a hit and 2 of my aunts asked me to make the same for them. So here I am, with 2 more kettles as my Diwali gift to them :)

It’s no secret – I absolutely love warli and try to use it wherever possible.



This one turned out to be quite interesting and for once, I was really tempted to keep it for myself! ;)



I tried to bring in a couple of things together and even attempted some birds and beasts.


For the next one I took a brighter base and did a little freehand.




Though floral is not my forte, I quite liked the final result.



I didn't do a double coat of the base this time, so the aluminium is visible in some places.




Learning from experience, I didn’t put in plants this time.
a) not many species can survive in the little space that a kettle provides
b) without the plant, it can be used as an adornment in any corner of the house





I just hope after seeing each other’s kettles the aunts don’t complain, “Bhumi gave you the better one”. You know how aunts are...

In queue are two more friends. But I believe now I’m done with kettles. Looking for another interesting base. If you have any suggestions, do let me know.

And yes, wish you all a very Happy Diwali! :)

On gifting

Gifts reflect as much about the giver as they do about the receiver. As for me, I always prefer giving anything that’s handmade. So it’s nothing like going and picking up a hallmark card (not that I hate them), but something that’s personalized – something unique that’s made keeping the receiver in mind.

Last month, my aunt invited us for her house warming ceremony. Since she loves plants, I thought of gifting her one. But then, I didn’t want to give it in a usual pot. So I decided on experimenting a bit. An aluminum tea pot, some acrylic colours, inspiration from my rangoli designs and voila! I had a gift which I knew she would love!











My aunt loved it it and has placed it on a lovely mahogany table at the entrance. I’ll soon be making some more – have got orders from other aunts :P. Will try some more designs then.


P.S.: 30on30 was a huge success and Prashant collected almost double the amount for the initiative! A big thank you to all those who made a contribution towards the cause in their own special way.

A Sunday

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Sundays are to unwind, to get lazy and watch loads of television. But if you are in Ahmedabad and are looking for something to recharge your senses, head to the Sunday market. Known as Ravivari, this market promises to be a treasure island that will surprise and enthrall you at every step.

This was my second visit and I was particularly looking for some good books. When we reached, the booksellers were still arranging the books.

There were books everywhere you looked. Tied in neat bundles, they awaited the glance that would give them a secure place in yet another bookshelf.

Literature, history, art, law, religion, science, photography – these booksellers have an extraordinary collection of second-hand books. All you need is patience to browse through thousands of books that lie in no particular order.

And if you’re lucky, you may find a 1950’s National Geographic magazine, a book showcasing photographs of the Vietnam War, a rare edition of a classic or an advertising journal that can inspire you for years to come.

Neha picked some 6-7 books. Not to mention, she went crazy looking at the collection :)

After enough browsing and sighing and buying at the book corner, Neha and I went around seeing other interesting things at offer. Gleaming utensils, vehicle parts, loud speakers, gardening tools, wrist watches, perfume bottles, pigeons and chickens – the list is unending, and at times bizarre.

These reminded me of the 'sigdi' we illegally used in our hostel room :P

This man would put the blue rings on the pigeon's feet before giving it away

And there’s a whole section dedicated to second-hand clothes. Stacks of them lay displayed on khatlas.

No matter how small the shop, people always do some puja before beginning the day

Barely used clothes, old-fashioned silhouettes, slightly defective clothes and those that don't fit anymore - this market serves as a perfect recycling agent that gives new life to the old.

But what fascinated me most was the brassware.

I loved the tiffin :)

I just couldn’t get my eyes off the amazing pots and locks.

Each little piece was a work of art, telling a story of a bygone era.

I was very tempted to buy the scorpion lock

The carvings, the designs and the finish were so great, if I could, I would pick all of them!

But then I settled for this cute high-heeled ashtray.

Meanwhile, I received many calls; it was my birthday. Everyone sounded surprised when I said I was at the Sunday market. “It's not the best way to begin a birthday”. I didn't argue. I know they wouldn't understand. They had to experience it to believe how breathtaking this trip can be.

Here, old is new…

Trash is treasure…

Bizarre is beautiful...

All you need to do is look carefully…

And learn to see things in a different angle.

I couldn't have asked for more on my birthday :)

Floored!

For me, the most exciting part about Diwali is making a rangoli. Everywhere you go in India, you find a unique style of floor art or rangoli. This tradition goes back to 5000 years in India. While certain designs are created for special occasions such as weddings and religious festivals, a majority of the time, the only limitation is the artists' creativity. 

Traditionally there are two forms of floor art. While rangoli, characteristic of Western India (Maharashtra, Gujarat, Rajasthan) is a rainbow of colours, the other side of the spectrum are the floor art of Eastern India - Bengal, Orissa, Himachal where they use Alpana, a line drawing in rice powder paste. Since I'm more comfortable with the brush, I prefer the later, though with a difference. Instead of the traditional rice powder, I make use of gheru - powdered red clay. 

Ever since we shifted to the new house (some 10 years back), our rangolis have become bigger and more experimental. Afterall, floor is one of the best canvases an artist can ask for! 

Here's a showcase of what I've been doing since the last few years. 

I'm a big fan of warli painting and tried to use it in this rangoli.

Next year was a bigger, geometric design.

This one's done by my elder sister. She applied gheru on a chart paper and made this neat design with poster colour. The flowers and diyas completed the beautiful design. 

The best part is that this design mat is reuseable!

And this one's one of my favourite. Inspired by mehendi design, I made this rising sun which made best use of the entrance space. 

The mirrors, the decoupaged matki and the diyas gave it a very pretty look at night.

And this year....

my younger sister gave me a helping hand :P

Measuring 9 equal squares was quite a task

But the final product surely brought a smile on my face :)

Hope you all had a beautiful Diwali!