Diwali Craft Tutorial - Lantern

As I promised to post a Diwali craft idea in my last post, so here I am with a talented guest today on my blog who will be sharing an awesome Diwali craft tutorial. Welcome Suprita Shetty,  please let us know something about you.

Suprita: Hi!! I am Suprita Shetty from Pune. However since past 5 years I am living in Doha. I am an air hostess in one of the leading airlines. My hobby is dancing actually but ,whenever I get some spare time I try my hand on some creative stuff. However this is the first time I tried my hands on making the lantern. Here the steps are:

1) Take a jute mat roll which u can easily get from a bouquet shop/stationery shop.

2) Roll it according to the length and thickness you want. I made it 40cms long and rolled it 4 times.

• 3) Staple the ends and use glue to stick it lengthwise.

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  • 4) Use any of the cardboard sheet to stabilize the roll. Cut it around 2-3 cm thickness and staple it inside the base and the top of the roll.
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• Just like this.
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• 5) Now steps to make butterflies. Take a chart paper of your choice of colour in square shape.
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  6) fold it's corner (like a triangle). Just like the below pic.
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• Like this
  
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  It will look like this after folding it the way I showed above.
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• Now take the edges of rectangular sheet and fold it inwards on both sides
  
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• Now fold it exactly half and now you will get a small triangle.

• Now cut the corner of open side of this small triangle and make rounded. Now turn it upside down. Rounded corner that you just cut should be facing upwards. Now the important part, you need to fold the rounded corner as I shown below.
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• Now fold the remaining part as shown in image below and cut two thin and small stripes of paper to make antennae of butterfly. Now paste these butterflies on the jute roll in random manner or as you like it.
  
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  You can add any decorative item as per your choice and then put LED bulb and see it adorning corner in your home.
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Whoa!!! That's great Suprita. I am sure lot of my readers will enjoy making this for Diwali. It's an easy-peasy and very beautiful Diwali craft idea. I am definitely going to try this. Thank you Suprita for sharing this lovely tutorial on my blog :)

Now a tip from my side: Try to make it in different colour and size and display them in a corner/on mantel/on side table. They will add instant cheer to your space. 

Well do try making this lantern and get ready to celebrate Diwali Carnival on my blog with lot of other inspiring friends across the globe. Link party will be live next week. 

Have a happy and creative weekend :))

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Ruined Art?...Make New!

What do you get









 when you mix a little boy









 with dimensional art? 













Initially, I had made this dimensional art (below) 

for a friends new home...



I simply took blank canvas' and after painting with acrylic paint, I glued on the plastic flowers in various sizes. It's up in the kid's living room and it became a game of "hit the art with balls and see how many

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Inspiring Eminent Artist: Eesha Kolli

Festive season is here and I bring to you a post exclusively on handmade cards. Don't you love sending cards to your dear ones on special occasions. When I was kid I used to send cards to all my dear ones on festivals and on their birthday too but I never bought a card from market I always preferred handmade cards and I still prefer handmade stuff. So today on Design Decor & Disha I have pleasure to introduce you to an artist who makes beautiful cards for every occasion. Each card is unique and beautiful. Welcome Eesha Kolli,  please let us know more about you: 

Eesha:

Thank you so much Disha for giving me the opportunity to share my art with your readers.

About Me

I am married to a wonderful and very supportive man. I am currently living in New Jersey, USA. I hail from Andhra Pradesh, India. I am an IT consultant by profession. However, my innate passion for art and crafts has made me grow into a freelance ‘Pencil Portrait’ artist, Mixed Media artist and Storyboard artist. I enjoy getting my hands on any of these - 'Card making, Designing, craft making, sketching, doodling or painting with any medium'. That’s my ‘Love For Art in Many Forms’

Love Birds Card

What drew me into Card making:

I have developed a great interest in Handmade Greeting cards lately and have been working on them since 2012. A wide array of tools, colours and techniques involved in card making, probably, drew my attention. You could apply almost any technique, use any medium of art and make a greeting card. Handmade cards reflect the personality of the artist. Handmade cards reflect the time, effort, thought, planning, wishes, exclusivity and creativity that you have undertaken for the person you want to greet. They are unique and not one in a lot of hundreds or thousands. Card making is not time consuming like many art forms, with right tools in hand. For a working woman like me, this is an advantage.

Anniversary Card

My blog and Me

‘Love For Art in Many Forms’ has been started in June 2012, with the idea to showcase all my crafty creations which involve paper as a medium. It is a great way to connect with fellow crafters and also participate in multiple challenges.

I was able to make it into several design teams through this blog. This is the point where I draw all my inspiration from.

Long Distance Relationship Card

What are the tools I use for card making

There are a plenty of tools that I use for card making. Paper trimmers, punches, stamps, ink pads, heating and embossing tools, knives, water colours, copic markers and several kinds of adhesives are a few to mention.

Colourful Best Wishes Card

My Inspiration

Anything colourful and striking inspires me. I visit the kwernerDesigns and  RaspberrySuite blogs very often, as these women inspire and motivate me like no other. Pinterest is another important source of inspiration for me.

Vintage Birthday Wishes

Where to find my art work

All my art work can be found on my art blog  ‘Love For Art in Many Forms’ primarily. I also have a Facebook page andPinterest board where I post my cards regularly. I will be more than happy to get connected over an email (illokashee@gmail.com)

Colourful and Bright Card

Other interests apart from Card making

I love interior designing and party ensembles. I browse through various websites and blogs to observe the trends. I’m particularly interested in Ethnic Indian interiors and ‘Design Décor and Disha’ is one of those blogs to go to.

I also do some freelance party decorations and pencils portraits.

What I Aspire to be

I constantly dream and work towards turning into a designer for cards and party ensembles. I’d love to see my brand of cards deck the galleries and stores.

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So if you are planning a party or want to send love to your near and dear ones or may be just want to express your feelings in beautiful and unique way, now you know to whom you should approach. Thanks Eesha for inspiring us I wish you a great success ahead!!

Stay Tuned friends next post will be on Diwali Craft Ideas!!

P.S: All images are provided by Eesha and are subject to copyright!!

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Our New Sunroom

Happy "almost" First Day of Fall!

As I watched our home "virtually" being built, one of the things I loved about it was the sunroom right off of the kitchen.  I remember thinking that if this house were ever to become "ours," I could see myself spending lots of time in this cozy space.

Fast forward a few months, now that the home "is" ours, and, I can honestly say that I do, in fact, spend lots of time in here ... either curled up with a great magazine ... chatting with family/friends ... or, even dozing off for an unexpected snooze (oops)!

Here is what it looked like while the house was being built:

Annnnd, here it is NOW, with a few familiar pieces and all ready for Fall!

Some of you may recognize my favorite fabric from our old home.  The chairs on the other hand, are new!  Well, new to us, anyway ... thanks to Craigslist, these practically unused and comfy IKEA  Ektorp chairs now serve as a place to just "plop!"  They're covered in light sage green slipcovers with cream piping ... and, they happen to match the green in the rug perfectly!  Yay!

The sofa table perched in front of the window holds a few Fall goodies, as well as a pair of lamps that used to be on our old screened porch.

While I played around with adding candle sconces and mirrors on either side of the center window ...

I knew when I stumbled upon these prints at HomeGood, they'd work really well in here for the Fall season!  And, at only $12.99 a print, I found this seasonal purchase easy to justify!

This little coffee table once sat on the screened porch in our old home ... thankfully, because of its petite size, I was able to place it in here:

My favorite wire tray from Pottery Barn sits on top of the table, filled with more Fall goodness:

Let's take one more peek at the whole picture ... 

BEFORE:

AFTER!  I can't wait to see how this cozy space evolves throughout the seasons!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

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Fall Decor Tour

Come In and enjoy the Fall Decor Tour!











Fun Fall Pillows that I made!






Take an old photo cabinet card...add some embellishments and you have an easy and fun Halloween decor.












I cut out our initial. Then hand painted black and white checks along with tiny green vines.



Boo is done in vinyl...so easy! Done with Halloween, just spin it around and now you are ready

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Creative Connections: Maheshwari Janarthanan.

Let's talk about my next Creative Connection: Maheshwari Janarthanan

She is an illustrator, an artist.

I had seen her work featured by many of my fellow design bloggers.

Simple, playful, magical and dream-like illustrations with subjects ranging from nature's flora to people.

I was piqued by her description of herself as a dreamer, mother-earth worshipper and healer.

Lady in the water...

K+S Wedding Invitation...

I was in Chennai, India visiting family in July-August this year and remembered that Maheswari lived in Chennai. I dropped her a line to check if she would like to catch up over a cup of chai. She was happy to meet and even suggested the venue, which I blogged about here.

A petite young lady, soft-spoken with a shy smile is how I would describe Maheswari. I instantly liked her. 

Maheswari says, "I believe my work is a mix of fantasy, mysticism and magic. It's a platform where I am able to express my thoughts and ideas about myself, the world around me and the world I want to live in.

A place where I can create my own fairytale and escape into my wonderland."

Love Poems…

"I love drawing people and most of my sketchbooks are filled with them(mostly women)."

We (I also met another talented artist there) spoke about our lives as creative individuals, things all three of us were seen nodding at, things about following our unique paths, our passions and our work.

Dreamer Tote Bags…

Apart from being a talented illustrator, she is a Pranic Healer. I have immense respect and admiration for people who help others. In a world where everyone is out to further their own interest here is a person who heals, who thinks about others.

Maheswari says, "The Universe' is my greatest inspiration especially 'underwater life' and 'space' these are things that calm my mind. I don't know whether I make sense but these are somethings that makes me both dream & be in the present at the same time."

   

The Sacred Journey...
"This illustration is about our journey, our experiences through many lives, many births.
God – Birth – Life – Experiences – Death – Reincarnation – Enlightenment – Oneness – God
I believe it’s a cycle, a process. We go through different lives, different experiences. We evolve, we become enlightened. We become One. We become God.
We are God."

As I dive deeper into this divine sea of her work, I find shimmering pearls that touch my heart and let's me understand this mystical, magic gold dust scattering artist.

Tree of Life…

The awakening...

Self realization / Nirvana - 'Kundalini Awakening' also known as 'Serpent Power' & the Lotus symbolizes Wisdom/ Divine spirit.

The beautiful Maheshwari Janarthanan.

A small photo-shoot with the Love Postcards she gifted me. A tribute to this gentle-soul, talented illustrator, whose work seems simple yet so profound.

Love Yourself…

Dreamer Tea Towel…

Eat. Love.

Dive into Love...

A series of 4 brightly coloured coasters…

 I love Rumi's work and here is an illustration by a kindred spirit, Maheswari.

This very aptly describes the Creative Connection.

"We come spinning out of nothingness scattering stars like dust.
The stars form a circle and in the centre we dance."
 ~ Rumi

You can find her work in her blog little one's doodles
Follow her on Facebook here
( Images style by Arch and Illustration by Maheswari Janarthanan. They are copyrighted)

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