Wishing you Layers of Flavours in 2015

My first attempt at found poetry - newspaper blackout.

Layers of Flavours

Essential in our lives.

The very foundations of life itself.

Pleasure, enjoyment, experience, flavour, taste......

Really living.

Richness of experience that makes you feel alive;

allows your senses to be stimulated.

The biggest enemy is blandness.

The last thing you really want.

Avoid anything bland, one-dimensional, dull and boring.

What you really want is complexity.

What makes it good?

Layers of Flavours.

A tapestry woven together, specifically designed to take you on a journey,

give you an experience and the key is balance.

The skill of the creator.

The reason we celebrate artists.

It takes a real master to create unique, signature expressions.

I wish all the readers of this blog layers of flavours in 2015. I hope your experiences are multi dimensional and take you on a journey which allow your senses to be stimulated.

I hope you achieve balance and mastery over your chosen craft which will enable you to create unique signature expressions.

2015 promises 365 opportunities I hope you recognise them and are richer from the experience.Wishing each of you good health and happiness in the coming days.  

Putting up my feet

I finally get to put up my feet, sip tea and review the year which is coming to an end. 

 An exciting development was the inclusion of my work in the publication TextileArt. I'm going to find time in the next two weeks to leaf through the pages of TextileArt and discover the unique and exciting work of 160 artists from around the world whose work has been featured in this tome.Special thanks to Marta for letting me know about this project.
The YouTube video made by Ellen's son gives you a sneak peek of the book and the book is available to order here.


I've done a fair bit of travelling this year and had to juggle teaching assignments with the travel.

I'm glad I decided to participate in A Letter A Week 2014 because it's come to an end.I made an accordion style book with the Alphabets+Place. The second book which deals with Tamil slang and English words  has to be put together as a flag book.
This year I made books with paper and not fabric.I'm trying to decide whether to make a small fabric tome of Home Remedies or find a fabric book page swap to participate in , in 2015. Please point  me to any projects brewing in the ethernet involving fibre art, making fiber art/artists book in the coming year. I find that any collaboration however limited or involved has always enriched my work and broadened my horizons.

Second year running I participated in Roy G Biv conducted by Jennifer and Julie. I'm going to participate in 2015 as well but my findings will be on display each month on my other blog Take Diversion.   maybe you'll join in.

It's been a very full year and I'm grateful for all the interactions with family and friends which have enriched me whether in person, via social media and various WhatsApp groups.
Social media and the web which made it possible for my work to be accepted and published from the Netherlands. Who knew it was possible.
Travel which has broadened my cultural horizons.
Teaching has always given me an insight into what's in with Gen Y. This year I discovered Gen Y has ceased to write and notebooks aren't part of the paraphernalia they carry around. All I taught was typed and saved as memos on their smart phones, anything written on the board was photographed, submission dates and assignments were shared on WhatsApp.
All in all its been a good year.

Wishing all who stop here a season of good cheer,good health and happiness.

Blogger's Choice - Gold - Roy G Biv 2014

For the final installment of Roy G Biv 2014 it's blogger's choice and I've chosen Gold.
Indians can't seem to get enough of gold.

The latest trend is painting temple vimanas or towers in gold paint.

Interesting imagery here. Let me tell you about the figures in this picture. Left to right we have Goddess Lakshmi, the Goddess of Wealth, then there's a man holding a jackfruit on his head. In the center is the elephant headed God Ganesha and at his feet the little creature is the mouse. The mouse is Ganesha's vahan or vehicle. Next is a man carrying a huge bunch of bananas and on the extreme right is Goddess Saraswati or the Goddess of Knowledge.

 We Indians love gold, the precious metal and buying gold jewellery is a national obsession. Huge hoardings advertising gold jewellery are placed strategically on the highways.

From the day a girl child is born her parents will start collecting gold jewellery for her wedding and yes a traditional Indian bride will wear as much gold jewellery  as the model in the hoarding at times more.There's a piece of jewellery  to adorn every part of the human body.

Gold is wealth and gold is considered a good investment. Gold threads or zari is woven into sarees  and traditional cotton and silk clothing for men and women is almost always embellished with gold either woven or embroidered because along with a love for gold is the love for adornment and decoration. 

Crystal chandelier with gold shades at an antique shop. 

Gold lettering.

It's been an exciting year looking for colour, have to thank Julie and Jennifer for running this challenge. This month you get to see pictures of a particular colour each participant has chosen. Go over to Julie's or Jennifer's blogs to view the choices.  

Have a wonderful weekend. Everybody must be busy with the holiday season. Wishing everybody a season of good cheer, peace and happiness.

Winter Sampler.... stitched and ready to frame

There... the Winter Sampler is all stitched and ready for framing. Needs to be ironed.

My World - a throw

The seasons have changed once more and it's winter once more in the Indian subcontinent. It's a delicious time when there's a nip in the early mornings and late evenings and the sun is warm without burning you. 

It's also the time I like to pull out a throw to snuggle under when I watch television in the night or take a nap in the afternoon.

There's this lightweight soft twill throw which I brought home a couple of years back and I've begun embellishing it.  

Inspired by Jude's Coma Cloth. My World is a work in progress. I've taken to appliqueing bits and pieces onto the throw while I snuggle under it. So it's going to take a while because I need a throw only for the next three months, by the end of March layers will be discarded and My World will go back into storage until the weather turns cool again.

On one side of the throw I've appliqued a border taken from a sarong which was converted into a top. The sarong has a simulated batik print. Another batik simulated sarong had blue flowers which found a place on the throw as well.  
My tailor has interesting scraps of printed fabric. There are two bits of floral prints waiting to be appliqued onto My World.I'm on the lookout for prints of elephants, autos, trucks or a line or quote in an Indian language.

I've put a wreath on the apartment door to mark the start of Advent. The Christmas tree  will be put up and decorated next weekend. What are you doing to get into the festive spirit.?
The Winter Sampler has been completed, will have a picture to show in an upcoming post.
Have a good week.