A Siege of Cranes

I didn't fall off the southern tip of India. Its been work which couldn't be put off and I'm glad its all been completed.

I've taken up origami. Why? In the folds of the newspaper every morning are tucked in flyers from various restaurants and businesses which most people throw away without a second glance. I decided it would be a great way to up cycle the paper and hone my origami skills.

I started with the crane. No particular reason but I did some reading and discovered they symbolise loyalty and honour and a person who folds and creates a 1,000 cranes will be granted his or her wish.
So each morning I fold a couple of cranes with the shiny advertisements and menu cards. The seige of cranes cannot be contained at home so when I step out I place a couple on a ledge or window sill and hope the person who finds it will smile and decide to pick it up and keep it for a while. It would be interesting to know what they do with it because they do disappear.

I wish folding a 1,000 origami cranes would lessen the loss, suffering and pain of all the people in Japan today who had to face the effects of a devastating 8.8 magnitude earthquake and tsunami.

A Birthday Present

It was my birthday last week and here's what arrived by courier the next day - a surprise. A stunning kantha quilt.

It measures approximately 3 feet x 4 feet. Made by layering and stitching together old cotton sarees. The woven saree borders have been used to create a frame for the quilt.
The front is all vivid colour with floral and geometric shapes and in contrast the back is one solid colour and most striking is the texture.A variety of embroidery stitches have been employed. Herringbone stitch for the diamond shaped petals, satin stitch for the leaf like forms, rows of running stitching through which another thread has been threaded to create the narrow bands of white which divide the quilt into diamond shaped spaces.
Running stitch which gives a kantha quilt its characteristic softly furrowed texture.
Detail of the back of the quilt.

Thank you Sushant for such an exquisite little quilt. I'll treasure it.

On a separate note - I've become an affilate of Amazon and Flipkart. You will see the banners on the side bar. Should you wish to shop online I would appreciate it if you could click on the Amazon or Flipkart banners/buttons and make your purchases.Amazon and Flipkart will pay me a small percentage of the value of your transaction without increasing the cost for you by even a cent. Thank you and happy shopping.