Growing on air...!!

Hi people!.....The rainy season has put a shroud of green on anything and everything ouside these days...nature has completely taken over and my garden is being overrun with grass, wild weeds and myriad wild plants with beautiful flowers of many hues...and I've stopped trying to tame it for the time being...Nature throws up many surprises everyday and its fun to watch tiny plants growing in the cracks of cemented walkways and joints of tiles...One would think that plants always need some soil to grow from...but think again, for that is not the case!!

Take a look at some of these babies....They're called Air plants-

 They just grow in air...no soil required at all...easy care and need only a little misting now and then...so they can just be placed on decorative pebbles in a glass container and you have a marvellous centrepiece...

 Or they can be placed in a piece of driftwood...they just look as if they are growing out of the wood, and you can boast about your green thumb...

How about making some terrariums with an interesting glass container, some sand, and a couple of airplants?
Wow...I would love to have one of those..wouldn't you?
These and more airplants can be found here

dry branches

One of my favourite natural things to decorate with are dry branches...the ones that you find lying about in wilderness. There is something about these twisted and tortuous branches that is so attractive, and no matter what you do with them, they always look good. eg, you could simply pop them into a container...

You could also add embellishments on the branches, like these adorable butterflies...

 Another wonderful idea is to make a family tree out of a dry branch...just stick the branches in a pot/vase, add pebbles if you like, and stick pictures of all family members onto the branches...Place this in the foyer where every visitor to the house would see it first..what a lovely way to welcome people into your home!!

Or make a chandelier / candlestand out of your dry branch...hang some tea lights and you  have a home made exotic centrepiece for your dinner table (guaranteed to have your guests oohing and aahing!!)

All these are simple DIY ideas that anyone can try...no special equipment required and no expensive purchases to be made.
For  more of these wonderful arrangements,  see here.

Leaf Jewellery

Ever heard of leaf jewellery people?
  I had heard of dried leaves and branches being used for centrepieces and decoration, but never for jewellery.
Look at this beautiful work of art..

This is a real leaf which has been electroformed.
                                                                           That means that the leaf is dried, and then given a mild acid bath to dissolve away the pulp, which leaves behind this skeleton. This leaf skeleton is then hand painted with copper based paint and dipped in an electrolytic solution. In this process, metal deposits onto the copper based surface of the leaf...that metal can be gold or silver or any other....and voila... you have gold or silver coated leaf jewellery!
                                 These jewelled leaves can be combined with swarovski or diamonds and worn as earrings and neckpieces. Here is a pair of earrings made out of electroformed oak leaves...

Aren't they out of this world?    

 Would love to own something like this !! 

          These stunning pieces are handcrafted by Crystal Allure.

Article Source: Designer handcrafted beaded jewellery by Crystal Allure (http://www.crystalallure.com) 

Paper cut art

The world of art is a rich place, and when you wander around in it, you come across many valuable treasures.  Internet has made it even easier to explore the rare and the uncommon. While surfing the net, I came across a form of art in which images/silhouettes are created without any brush or paints; rather the only tool used is a sharp blade. The image is created by cutting out shapes from the paper, and it is then displayed on another paper of a contrasting colour. This form of art is popular Polish folk art known as Wycinanki...also found in China, Japan and also in India where it is known as Devasthanakala( depicting images of Radha-Krishna). In India, it is practiced mainly in UP, in the temples dedicated to Lord Krishna. This is one more of those dying arts in our great country as very few people practice it now.

I was fascinated by the art, and decided to try my hand at it...here are a few of my early attempts.

 A Peacock in moonlit night...

Girl feeding birds...

I am so in love with this art form that I'm determined to keep practicing it further. So you people can expect to see more of this in the coming days....

I hope you enjoyed seeing these as much as I enjoyed making them. You can check out more Indian paper cutting art at www.papercuttingartprabal.com  

Candles..

Dear people,
                     I just love candles...all sorts...coloured, scented, round, square, tall, short etc., etc...They are an absolute essential for decorating the house...and even when they are not lit, they make a superb centrepiece. They also make wonderful gifts. Do you agree? If you dont, I have put together here some unusual candles which would tempt you enough to try them out....I absolutely love the "wacky" appeal of some of them..check these out...(and if you liked them, be sure to leave a comment)-

      Pretty cactus shaped candles...even unlit, they look awesome sitting there on your table..

   Beautiful piece of art...candles shaped like a pair of crows sitting on their nest..

     Which hand gesture would you choose?

    Cute and colourful- slipper candles

  Burning rocks...

   Anyone want to burn their money ?....not unless its a candle shaped like money..

   These candles look normal when unlit....however when you light them, they start oozing out blood-like wax.
They take away my prize for wacky..

  Guys would love these...They not only look like beer, but also smell like it when lit...

  These are the blocks that we all used to play with as children..

Close to nature- pine cone candles..

 These  candles are glass bottles filled with lamp oil and some greenery..I would love to place them in the verandah..

 Weird - sponges or candles?

  Peas in a pod..

 The focus in this one is the way cool reindeer shaped candle holder...
         Those were the ones....hope you liked..byeee..
(Images from the internet)

confessions

There's a new book on the market, people-- its called "Go the F to Sleep" by Adam Mansbach. Its a children's book for adults. Now what in blue blazes is a children's book for adults, I wonder, and do some research, read some reviews....Here's the explanation-
                        Anyone out there who's ever brought up a child would have a list of harrowing experiences
 When my son was born, he was a proper little angel with a halo around his head and all. Two years and two months down the line, somehow evolution has happened, the halo has gradually disappeared, and two little red and curved  horns have grown on his head and also a pointy little tail on his behind..the trident is missing still; though it should not take long for that to come as well.
                                                                    The whole day passes in a whirl of activity- making him eat, giving him a bath, fighting with him to brush his teeth, fighting with him to wash his face, getting him into clothes( for some reason he hates wearing clothes), begging  him to stop pulling my hair (if this doesn't stop soon, I'm not going to have much hair left on my head anyway). In the evening, its play time; and play to him means jumping up and down continuously.....and he expects me to do the same ! What's play for him is the hardest form of exercise for me...
                                                   After all this, again persuade him to have some food...and afterwards when you are sitting down for your own dinner, the little tyke wants you to get up and dance with him to the latest bollywood number. Its a job calming him down enough to make him lie still on the bed....and is only possible if you switch off all the lights in the room and make it pitch dark...and then he finally settles down; and as you start hoping that he's asleep and you can finally have some time on your own now, a little voice pipes up in the dark, saying "mama, gana shunao"...........and that is the time you can't help thinking-
                                                                                                                    Go The F To Sleep...Grrrr....

P.S.- After he goes off to sleep, the halo around his head returns and he's my little angel again..muahh..