Here are some of the colourful & vibrant images sure to cheer you up…it definitely did work for me.

A very colourful entrance to the Surajkand mela with a rustic setting of a village home. I love the vibrant rajasthani puppets, the rangoli designs (hand-drawn designs on the walls) & the Charpaiyes (the outdoor handwoven wooden beds).

Stalls of candy floss, pure coconut water & weird?? but intriguing contraptions like the one on the right, makes for very interesting pictures.

Could not resist clicking a picture of this amazingly attired “Banjaran” woman.  “Banjaran” people are a nomadic tribe that primarily belong to the northwest of India, but have slowly spread down south as well. The womens clothes are always bright & adorned with mirrors & coins & they wear thick bangles on their arms & ornaments of silver. GORGEOUS!!!

The colourful puppet stall.

Appliqued Bags, Lanterns & colourful mirrorwork umbrellas.

Gorgeous brocades in earthy & vibrant shades.

Cane stools, also called "Modas" in India, arrayed in bright colours. Ooh! how I wanted to buy these but my hands could only carry so much....the next time I think I need a trailer when I visit such fairs.

Now, one could not go to India & not see Tigers?? Well, the tigers I saw were of a different type..... beautifully painted leather tiger puppets, suspended from a string makes for a striking picture.

Talking about leather puppets.... check out these exquisitely painted elephant leather puppets. I have a mind to bring these back for my nephews room on my next trip. He would love them!!

Intricately patterned leather handpainted lampshades & such pretty Meenakari dancing dolls.

A mix of Moroccan and Indian..... these pendants would look gorgeous in any home, in a hallway or outdoors.

Last but not the least, this above picture is one of my favourites.....brightly coloured dried & handcrafted artificial flowers.

I feel so good revisiting this amazing experience in India & sharing it with you all. So, my friends, has this "Colourful Craft Mela" succeeded in cheering you up & your weekend??

Signing off for now, your truly,

Shakiraaz 

The taxi dropped us off little away from the river & as we walked down to the unseen boat we passed some very interesting & obviously ancient temples & structures. This entire area is a protected site – in fact an UNESCO World Heritage site. Going around a bend we saw a group of people waiting for the boat – along with 3-4 motorbikes, some bicycles, bags & I could swear there were a couple of goats too! The boat arrived & it was much smaller than I expected. My expression must have said it all – “are you serious that all these people, things & animals on this bank are going to pile into that little contraption & cross over to the other side?!!”  Well, the answer was yes....we squeezed in & that’s an understatement! The boat slowly settled really well into the water – & by that I mean just a foot or so of the boat was above water & we chugged away to the other side.

Then it was short walk down some really green country roads to the village – with our incongruous looking red suitcase being dragged along by one of the staff from the organisation that we had coordinated with.  After a shower & some welcome breakfast we headed off down to the cottage industry & the artisans – capturing some great pictures of simple village life as we walked by!  Here is a feel of village life.

Time flew by as we spent time with the artisans, sat & brainstormed at their workshop, looked at samples, looked at new ideas & designs to develop. One of the most inspiring things was watching these girls & women (young & old) chat & talk as they worked on weaving magic out of the banana & natural fibres that they work with. We also learnt how this small set up helps the women in the village support their families & contribute to the earnings in their households. It definitely gave us a perspective we did not have before – we are currently working with them to develop products for our coming summer collection for later in the year – so look out for those.

That evening after a very tiring but fulfilling day we headed back to catch the train to Bangalore.

There was a lot of travel after this during my trip to India but this was my favourite experience by far. Next time I hope to spend a lot more time actually exploring the various historical sites. I hope you enjoy this post ! 

For now with Christmas just a few days away I wanted to put together a collage of some really festive pictures taken from various home décor magazines that I regularly subscribe to & love. As you know I live in Melbourne, Australia & Christmas for us down-under means summer time, barbeques & beaches – a far cry from the white Christmas that I do want to experience sometime soon!! 

What else does Christmas mean to me?.... It means a big slice of plum cake soaked rich in brandy, hand & homemade stockings filled with goodies, a beautiful pine tree with tinsels and sparkly decorations, brightly packaged gifts under the tree, candles everywhere, Christmas cards hung around one’s house, yummy treats, gardens in full bloom & of course families gathered together on this very festive…..not to forget the barbeques.

Images taken from Home Beautiful, Real Living, Better Homes & Gardens & Family Circle magazines.

Images from Real Living & Home Beautiful magazine

To me the pictures above are warm, rustic, festive & inviting. I love the way the stylists of the Real Living magazines have used old cans to bunch Aussie natives (Warratahs), or used simple glass bottles as candle holders. Also love how Home Beautiful has shown beautifully wrapped brown paper gifts with scarlet red ribbons. Simple but adds such warmth. So tell me what does Christmas mean to you? Would love to hear from you.

Merry Christmas & peace to all!