Tuesday 12 November 2013

A Floor Lamp to Drool Over!




I recently did a post on this side table






Now I want to show you just how UGLY







This floor lamp started out...






When I saw this piece at a garage sale, I loved the lines of the legs and the double lights. I hated the brass table part. But I had a vision for this.

But wait, be patient with me because I must start at the real beginning.



This lamp was found in this exact

Indian Art: Tanjore Art Of Tamil Nadu

Posts in 'Indian Art' series on my blog is my endeavor to bring back the lost charm of various ancient Indian art forms and to let more and more people know about rich culture and heritage of India.

Tanjore or Thanjavur is an age old art form of South India and got its name from 'Thanjavur' a place in Tamil Nadu where this art form originated and it was the capital of Chola Empire. Origin of this art form dates back to 1600AD.

Tanjore Painting
Image Source: Click Here
Origin: 
Tanjore originated during the reign of 'Nayaks' 'Marathas' and 'Cholas'. Marathas encouraged the art form and it flourished during 16th to 17th century.

Style: 
These paintings are very ancient and miniature type of paintings. Paintings mainly consist of a main figure usually deity, figure appears prominent in paintings with well rounded body and cherubic face. Main figure is enclosed in a meticulously crafted enclosure in form of arch or curtain. Paintings are bright and vibrant. 
Most striking feature of the paintings are that they are decorated using 22/24 carat gold foil, semi precious stones, cut glasses and pearls to give it a rich look. 
Tanjore Painting Krishna
Image Source: Click Here
Theme: 
Theme of the painting is mainly Hindu God and Goddesses, mainly Krishna, Balaji, Lakshmi & Ganesha.
Paintings are bright and faces of main figure are made divine.

Tanjore Ganesha
Image Source: Click Here

Process:
There are several steps involve in making Tanjore painting.
1. Canvas Preparation: Canvas is prepared by pasting a clean cotton/muslin cloth (that is dipped in glue+water solution) on plywood. Let it dry. Now apply a coat of chalk powder paste (Chalk powder + Water + Glue) on canvas and let it dry for a day. Now rub canvas with emery paper to make canvas surface smooth.
2. Choose and then trace the design on canvas using carbon paper.
3. Muck work or embossing: Muck or paste of chalk powder + Arabic gum + glue is then applied on the desired area of the painting using round brush. Let it dry
4. Gem setting or decorating: Now stick stones, gems and pearls on the design and let it dry for a day.
Apply one more layer of embossing paste to make painting more beautiful. use ball pen to make design on embossed areas. Then comes the most important step of the painting, pasting of gold foil on the embossed design. Apply glue on the embossed area and paste gold foil carefully on it and press gently with your thumb, cut the extra part of foil using cutter. Now remove gold foil that is pasted over stones, gems and pearls. You can use any needle like sharp object to remove foil that is over the stones.

Tanjore Painting
Image Source: Click Here
5. Last step is painting the remaining area of the painting, like body of the main figure and the background. Body is painted mainly in white color with tint of pink or blue. Slight shading is done on main figure. Background is painted in bright colors like red, green or blue. Once the painting is complete it is then framed.

I found Tanjore paintings breathtakingly beautiful and process of making these paintings make them even more special. This framed art in any place never fails to add charm and beauty. Hope you enjoyed reading about this art.
Read more about different ancient Indian Art forms here.



Friday 8 November 2013

Fall in the Breakfast Area

Thanks so much to my sweet friend, Laura, from Top This Top That for including me in a fun "Better Late than Never" Fall gathering!


Will you be hosting Thanksgiving this year?  While I'll be cooking a few staple holiday goodies for the upcoming day of thanks, we won't be dining in our breakfast area.


BUT, if we had, I hope that our guests would've felt welcomed by my simple vignette using my favorite chicken wire basket (from Pottery Barn) in the middle of our table, filled with colors and elements of the season,


along with a book of thanks reminding us what Fall is all about.


Over on our dry bar (which, by the way, I STILL love in its shade of Annie Sloane's "Chateaux Grey"), I would've gladly moved our Fall pieces out of the way to make room for all things carbs! 


Yes, this glass cloche filled with tiny pumpkins nestled in between corks and pinecones, could easily have been "scooched" on over to make room for the loaded mashed potatoes! 



Mr. Roo (and his surrounding Fall picks and oversized acorns) would gladly have made room for the turkey!



And, um, WHO wants to even *see* a scale on Thanksgiving, right?  Pumpkin and apple pies would be much easier on the eyes!



Another reason why it's probably a good thing that we're not eating our Thanksgiving meal at this table is because, well, it doesn't quite look like this anymore.



That's right, it's now filled with all things Christmas!  Stay tuned ...

Oh, and before I go … IF, by chance, you have a double pedestal antique table that you'll be seating guests at in a few weeks, make sure you check your legs (to the table, that is) to make sure that one of them isn't loose or cracked.  I'd hate for you to be greeted by this lovely scene that I experienced in our dining room last week … oops!  Thank goodness, I somehow managed to laugh and not cry!  LOL!




Thanks so much for visiting our Fall breakfast area!  Be sure and pop on over and visit these incredibly talented ladies who are sharing their Fall spaces, too!



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Thursday 7 November 2013

Some Glitters and Sparkles

Hope you all had great time with your family and friends during this festive season.
Mine was glorious one. Here are some sparkling moments that I am sharing with you.


Welcome...........

Toran at the Entrance

Rangoli made at the entrance.......

Rangoli


Diwali Vignette


Buddha


Diwali decor ideas


Diwali Decor Ideas

Here's bougainvillea that I planted in my 'Pot full of happiness'.  Spreading happiness all around :)

Painted pot



Diwali Decor deas

My heena candles all lit up and adding warmth and glow.

Heena Candles

Here is 'Stained glass jar' with candle inside it, to add some more cheer :)

Stained Glass Jar


Serene corner in living room.

My Home


My home bathed in light....

My Home


My Home


Hope you enjoyed this virtual tour of my home. 
Stay tuned for some DIY posts.



Edgar's Bed!




This story is pure Kismet.


Here's my story as it happened!


In our new hobby garage, we have an attic storage space above with a drop down ladder.


I was up there selecting furniture to bring down to paint.


As I was stacking things up for Hubby to help carry down, I stacked an old vintage leather suitcase on top of this...






I noticed that the suitcase fit the top of this stool base

Online Furniture Store: FabFurnish.com

FabFurnish is India's largest renowned and well known online home decor and accessories store, featuring an interesting range of tastefully-picked furniture and homeware products from across the globe at amazingly reasonable rates.

No matter what decor style you are picking for your home FabFurnish has the best for your home to suit your style and taste. Living room looks complete only when it has an stylish as well as comfortable seating. At FabFurnish you can explore the whole new range of Sofa sets. They have luxurious sofa sets to add class and flamboyance to your home decor.



They have everything for everyone. Sofas and recliners, single seater, double seater and three seater. Material used are premium fabric, wood and leather. You can choose from vast variety available in their online store. A well supported, ergonomically designed structure with integrated cushioning assures ultimate comfort. Premium materials used make it a practical as well as stylish buy for your home space. Just kick back in and plunge into the lush comfort!
Each piece in the selection is masterfully crafted using a combination of age-old craftsmanship and contemporary techniques. The entire range exemplifies subtle, timeless elegance and brings a classic touch to your home decor.

Choosing a right furniture can make a big difference in overall look of your space. So pick one wisely. Hop over to their web site and choose the right one from wide collection available there. I know you will be spoiled for your choice once you go through the range of furniture they are offering. 

Hurry up readers they are offering some discount too. 

Don't forget to visit FabFurnish GOSF 2013 page during the Great Online Shopping Festival, organized by Google, during December 11,12,13 2013.

Happy shopping!!



P.S Image is provided by FabFurnish and subject to copyright




Monday 4 November 2013

Wedding and Courtly Check Tea Service!


I took some time off from my blog to work on wedding things for my son's wedding. I was asked to make a couple of chalkboards and here is one, Friends of...












 I was also asked to make all the burlap table runners...



And a banner for the Couples table...





And decorate the arbor they were married in front of...


 And ALL the vests for the guys! Gladly they all fit when I arrived