Gorgeous Karma » Beauty-Full Ideas

Before and After: Disposable Curd Box Pen Holder

Rashmie Jaaju — Fri, 07 May 2010 11:07:01 +0000

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‘C’ for Cat is oh-so-boring!
How about – ‘C’ for Creativity; ‘C’ for Craft ?

Spending time doing art and craft projects with Pari – my 4 year old daughter – is much more than just nurturing a love for creativity in her.

It’s a therapy for both of us that helps calm our anxieties, give vent to nervous energy and keep us focused. And most of all – it’s our best way to bond and share and exchange ideas…

So, honestly speaking, it’s as much for my own sake as it is for her

Among various activities that we do using water colours, poster colours, plastic crayons, wax crayons, glitters, oil pastels etc., we also absolutely looooove doing the ‘before and after’ projects.

I have always encouraged her to reuse and upcycle old items to create something new and nice. This habit, now, has been internalized in her to an extent that she brings back disposable glasses from coffee shops, icecream cups and sticks, popcorn glasses and what have you – so she can recreate those into something else.

Recently, we saved the curd/yogurt box to convert it into a pen/markers/pencil holder.

This is the ‘before-and-after’ picture!

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Pari applied the glue happily. While, I helped her stick the tissue. She coloured the base ink-blue all by herself. I sought her ideas on decorating. She wanted flowers. So, I helped cut the felt flowers. She stuck them and also adorned with the stones. I added the details with the tube colours!

And here is the step by step process:

What you will need:

1. Disposable box/coffee mug/curd box
2. PVA Glue/ Fevicol
3. Acrylic/Fabric/Poster Colours and Brush
4. Colourful Felt
5. Stones/Beads

Process:

1. Clean the box thoroughly
2. Apply PVA glue and stick 1 layer of tissue paper all over – except the inside.
3. Let it dry for a few minutes and once again apply OVA glue and second layer of tissue.
4. It should be firm upon drying.
5. Colour the box with acrylic, fabric or poster colour. (we used ink-blue fabric colour)
6. Cut some colourful felt into flower and letter shapes and stick them on (we cut the felt into ‘c’ – for craft/creativity)
7. You can use beads or stones to further adorn the felt flowers (we used some red stones from her broken hair-band!)
8. Use tube colours to do detailing and add some dimension

Other views:

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Will come back and share more ideas with the same box. Pari’s school summer vacation has begun and I have already prepared a mile-long list of projects to do!

What art and craft did you do with your kid recently? I would love to hear your fresh ideas…!

Unique Gift Guide for Someone who Loves the Art of Gifting!

Rashmie Jaaju — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 11:49:25 +0000

Tweeet this!

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Ginger tea (more than the 2-a-day dose!), craft fairs, gift shopping, trees covered in lights, henna clad hands, the ever-so-happy Santa, bridal lehengas, scented candles, blossoms, snow carpeted landscapes, icy cold air during morning walks, being able to see your breath in the air, lighting up the fireplace, cuddling up in a fluffy blanket with a book to devour, hot pakoras, traveling after a long stint of all work and no play…

These cold months are host to a host of warm feelings, festivals and festivities – Diwali, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year, Valentine’s Day. One may love winters or detest winters but you have to admit – there’s something about this season that brings warmth and hope and change. And gifts! Haha! Well, receiving as well as giving!

But then, gifting is not an easy task. May I put it this way – it’s an art! More so, when you don’t want to gift anything run-of-the-mill. You want to convey creativity and thoughtfulness and warmth. You want the person to go ‘wow’!

I would like to share some gifting ideas and trends that may help you next time you are scouring for that unique gift for your friend or family.

Gifts For Women:

For someone who loves nature and natural products and is eco conscious:

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1. Aroma Therapy Natural Oils

2. Handmade Scented Soaps

3. Sun dried Flowers

4. A kit containing all natural products that serve as excellent beauty agents

a. Organic Honey (for skin, slimming)

b. Rose Water (cleanser)

c. Extra Virgin Coconut Oil (for skin, hair)

d. Extra Virgin Olive Oil (for skin)

5. Organic Perfumes/Ittars

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For someone who’s into home décor, art & craft, gardening

1. Subscription to magazines like “Home & Garden (www.bhg.com)”, “Good Housekeeping”

2. Plants, bonsais, arty planters, seeds of exotic flowers, gardening tools

3. Hammocks, wind chimes, water fountains, bird items, garden furniture

For the fitness conscious:

1. Yoga and gymming accessories like fitness mat, wrist bands, yoga-pilates socks

2. Fitness music, meditation music, DVDs

3. Fitness Nutrients

4. Fitness and Healthy Eating Books

For her mind, body and soul:

1. How about gifting her a rejuvenating experience at a spa or an ayurvedic centre!
Being pampered with aromatic oils and ancient relaxing massage rituals is the perfect
gift for any woman (or for man, for that matter)!

This online gifting site offers these gift packages and other unique gifting ideas: http://www.excitinglives.com/experience/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=5

2. When talking about gifts, romance cannot be removed! Candles, flowers, chocolates – can any woman not be swept off her feet with these clichéd but always helpful and easy-to-find ideas?!

But then, you know best who to give these “clichéd” gifts to and who not

What will work for every woman?

Did you say “Jewelry”?! I couldn’t agree more

Yeah, jewelry is something that strikes a chord with every woman’s heart irrespective of age, culture, geography..! And India has such a wide variety of handcrafted jewellery (gold as well as costume jewellery) that no woman can ever resist.

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a. Some of the latest trends in Indian costume jewellery are Kundan and Polki jewellery studded with semiprecious gemstones. Kundan jewellery saw a grand come back recently thanks to the Hind movie – “Jodha Akbar”. The jewellery worn by Jodha (Aishwarya Rai) has heavily (pun intended!) inspired the bridal look in North India. More recently, the TV serial ‘Balika Vadhu’ has set the trend for Rajasthani Gold Plated Polki jewellery. Outside India, in the western society, Victorian-inspired jewellery has always been the hot favourite. Recently, jewellery hand-made with paper, jute and recycled material has found many a takers.

b. When a man is gifting jewellery to a woman, he must keep in mind what can be gifted to whom. For instance, you cannot gift a ring to any other woman except your wife or your girlfriend who you are committed to. So, you both know that formalizing the relationship with a ring is the next obvious step!

c. Whether you’re gifting traditional Indian jewelry, western-style jewellery, diamonds or gemstones, you must definitely have an inkling of her likes and dislikes. For example, some women are head over heels in love with pearls, while there are many who would rather not wear pearl at all. Some like Victorian-style jewellery whereas to others, the antique look does not appeal.

d. Other things to keep in mind is – does she go to office, does she socialize much, attend weddings and parties a lot or does she attend more business meetings etc?

Gifting Memories – for men or women

These days online photo printing has become the norm and infact has gone a step ahead. You can order photo prints on T Shirts, Bedsheets, Cushions, Coasters, Curtains, Mugs, Mousepads and what not. You can get a giant photo collage, a jigsaw puzzle or even jewellery made with your personal photo, I, for one, find this option a very warm, thoughtful and everlasting gift. Because, this way, you are actually gifting some cherished memories.

There are many online photo printing sites that offer all these services and products at a great price. Some of them are:

· www.picsquare.com

· www.snapgalaxy.com

· www.snapfish.com

· www.bighugelabs.com

What about for men?

Well, however much I am always up in arms against those women-bashing jokes doing the rounds on email forwards, I still have to admit that men are easier to please and the options are less complicated too J So, its relatively easier for us to gift the men in our lives – our boyfriends, hubbies, bros, dads , sons..

Having said that, since the options are far less, it can get tough at times. We end up buying the same boring gift – a shirt, perfume, book…. (oops! I’m already running out of options L)

So, what unique options do we have for the guys?

Well, come to think of it – quite a few optons that I mentoned for women, may actually work for guys as well. For exp – yoga and workout gear, gardening tools and supplies, treat at a spa or ayurvedic massage centre.

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Gift him an exotic holiday! (if budget permits, of-course )

And some more for him (he could be your hubby, dad, son, bro…)

1. Annual subscription to a magazine catering to his hobby/interest (sports, politics, business, photography)

2. Membership to a weekend club where he can spend time playing his sport, hanging out etc

3. Tickets to a sports event (cricket, soccer, tennis)

4. Golf Kit and accessories, Sports Memorabilia, Motor books (books on cars, bikes, auto racing)

a. Here’s a great site to buy motor books: http://www.motorbooks.com/

5. Beer and beverage accessories

6. DVD of his favourite TV programme/series

7. More personal and personalized – organize a surprise party inviting his buddies and laying out some of his favourite dishes. And favourite music/movie to boot! A wise lover values not so much the gift of the lover as the love of the giver.

Socially conscious gifting or gifting for a cause:

I recently came upon this organization – GiveIndia – that helps willing people donate to NGOs. They describe themselves as “a donation platform that allows you to support a cause of your choice from about 200 NGOs that have been scrutinised for transparency & credibility”. “We do not raise funds for ourselves. We help you donate to these NGOs. We tell you exactly where your money went and also give you proof of it through the feedback report.” Check it out here: http://www.giveindia.org

This list could be a good starting point. But there are as many gift ideas as there are people because every gift giver is a unique personality and so is the receiver.

Now, get ready to splurge (some love ) and sweep your receiver off his/her feet, because, as they say “the greatest gift is a portion of thyself”.
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Authored by Rashmie Jaaju. Owner, Gorgeous karma (http://www.gorgeouskarma.com)

All the photos and content in this article are copyright Rashmie Jaaju and should not be copied in any form of media without written permission from me.

Gorgeous Karma is an online boutique for Indian traditional and western costume jewellery, including – Kundan, Polki, 1 gram gold jewellery, Victoran-style, Diamond cz, emerald ruby pearl and more. Gorgeous Karma jewellery is known for its unique array of designs, life-long quality and customer service.

Gorgeous Karma Jewellery:

www.gorgeouskarma.com
http://ebay.gorgeouskarma.com
www.gorgeouskarma.etsy.com
blog.gorgeouskarma.com
Twitter: http://twitter.com/Gorgeous_Karma



Always strive to excel, but only on weekends :-)
Rashmie Jaaju — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 09:36:03 +0000
Tweeet this!
I guess I need to hide quickly! Your employers (I am self employed  ) will be after my blood reading this post title! But what the heck! Why are we always doing the opposite..? That is – why are we our least spirited selves on weekends? It may sound weird  to you but wait a sec! However much gung-ho we are prior to weekends, when it is actually there, all we are found doing is clearing that long list of mundane ‘To Dos’ – wardrobe cleaning, piles of laundry, doctor visits, grocery shopping, parent-teacher meetings (PTMs), visiting friends and relatives (yes, sometimes that can become a mere ‘To Do’ rather than fun). The list goes on…
Amidst all these, we never really take the time to indulge in a thing or two that we love doing. Let alone ‘doing’, there are some of us who don’t even know what is it that we LOVE doing – on a regular basis. Do we?
How many of us can name 5 things that we love doing or we would love to do? I would request you to go back and think about those 5 things. May be take a paper and start jotting down. When you do that, don’t think about how trivial or un-useful it is. Don’t care for the ROI! It could be as banal as ’sleeping the whole afternoon’ or it may sound as extravagant as shopping for big brands. Just brainstorm. And then, start ticking those that are doable and something that you will have lots of fun and satisfaction doing. Once you have done that, take it seriously. 
Take the resolution to do something about it. But yes, first and foremost, share it with your family (spouse/parents/kids), tell them how you want/crave to do it and you’ll see how they will rally around you so you can do what you want to do. And then, remind yourself everyday, write it down on a white board – in office, at home, block some time for it on your calendar (in your mail box) and when the weekend is there, just grab some time for that love of your life! 
Okay, now that you’ve started to scribble down what you’d like doing, let me share some of the things to do that you might want to consider:

1. Grow a green patch in your balcony/backyard. You could plant herbs (basil, mint, bay, thyme…), flowers, and vegetables – without investing much. You will need to find a sunny spot in your house if you don’t have a backyard. A balcony, porch or a large sun-facing window sill is enough! The returns on this investment are an immeasurable amount of satisfaction, fresh bounties for the kitchen, a healthy  workout, a house with natural beauty and much more..! You can even start a ‘green group’ in your society/neighbourhood to connect with people who have a similar interest. You could barter seeds, saplings, bounties. Plant trees in and around your neighbourhood and more.

2. Start a tiny library: If you buy books, you will read them. Fiction, biography, self-help or even comics – find a quiet, cozy corner in the house, coffee shop, park or a beach; sit back with your big cup of tea or coffee, and devour your Jane Austen or a Mills & Boon, a Harry Potter or the ever so readable – Paolo Coelho. From the country side of England to the vineyards of France and from the carnivals of Brazil  to the ‘gullies’ of Varanasi; as they rightly say, books let you travel the world without moving an inch! And then, you can start a book club with friends and neighbours to get together for a review, exchange books etc.

3. Take dance/music/singing classes: If you have an inclination/bathroom talent for music or singing, consider yourself lucky. There’s nothing more relaxing, more spiritual and more fun than music and dance – be it singing, playing an instrument or shaking a leg. And, its the best detox for your mind and body!

4. Educate a child: Well, this sounds more like a social service but there’s immense satisfaction and fun one can derive from this. In India, we have a humongous percentage of kids and youth that are illiterate. If you genuinely feel for this cause, why not spend some time shaping a child’s future and in the bargain, connecting with the person inside you who’s yearning to give back to the society.

5. Decorate a corner of your house: I find this very very therapeutic and I am sure many of you do too. The catch lies in doing this as a fun activity every weekend. Not just when we are expecting guests. Because, a hobby is something we do for our own pleasure and not for someone else’s   There are some excellent online sources and blogs to gather ideas from – http://www.bhg.com/, http://anindiansummer-design.blogspot.com/, http://www.thekeybunch.com

6. Ah…..the flavours from your kitchen are making me hungry (again!): Many of us love cooking but do not have the time (or energy) to do it at or own pace and as suits our fancy! Why not keep the weekend aside to explore the varied flavours from your kitchen and lay the table with a surprise new dish for your family? Actually you could even do a pot-luck by calling over friends and family and getting to eat a potpourri of dishes without spending a buck for a buffet outside…  

7. Time to let the camera manual see the light of the day! I know how you appreciate a nice photo, and how you happily clicked away to glory the last time you went on that vacation! So, its time you recharge your camera batteries, bring out that manual that you never read beyond the cover page, and start clicking around at the first sign of a photogenic beauty (well, I didn’t mean your next door neighbour  )… Jokes apart, photography is a creative pursuit and is very rejuvenating. You can also join some photo community network like flickr (www.flickr.com) to share your clicks and see others’ works and make new friends in the process. I share mine here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/rashmiejaaju/

8. Start a blog! If you are the sorts who keep a diary, love writing mails rather than mere forwarding and are always reading up and seeking information, you may pretty much find it fun and worthwhile writing a blog and connecting with the whole wide world. The subject could be anything – an expertise area, your hobby, a news journal, a photo gallery etc. There are many free and paid platforms – www.blogger.com (free), www.wordpress.com (free), www.typepad.com (paid) and many such.

9. Travel/Explore: Well, you might ask me – “how’s it possible to travel every weekend?” Nah…not travel as in travel outside your city. What I mean is – go see different places. These could be outside your city/state/country AND, they could be right there in your own city – just miles away from you! How many of us can confidently say that we have seen every single interesting place in own city. I, for one,  have not   There are at least a hundred places to see in and around Delhi that I have not seen yet…! So, go plan your itinerary – for your own city  
10. Movies, movies and more movies! – Hey folks, how cool is this! We all love watching movies. Well, most of us! But, making it a regular weekend activity and a planned one? Not really. Not many of us do that. Not me. As yet. There are hundreds of movies made by master filmmakers that are worth a thousand experiences. Why not start watching them one by one every weekend to rejuvenate and regale in the kaleidoscopic journey to Hollywood, India, Japan, Iran, France, Italy, Ireland. Check out this Wikipedia page to see an elaborate list of the best movies from various countries and across genres.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Films_considered_the_greatest_ever

11. Play a sport, be a sport! Soccer, Cricket, Squash, Swimming, Badminton, Table Tennis or Lawn Tennis – take up one sport and sweat it out. This is much fun and physically rewarding than a boring treadmill or push-ups!
Someone said, “The only reason why we ask other people ‘how their weekend was’ is so we can tell them about our own weekend.”
So, go on – rave about your weekend love…! Or better still – blog about it!
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All pictures and content on this blog are copyright of Rashmie Jaaju. Do not use photos or copy without my explicit permission.