Dear Paint, love the way you do that rainbow!

'tis the story of five mud pots that lived in a corner of home, and needed some Color!

Out came my acrylic paints ...

Did a deep blue on two of 'em

With a white twig on one.

Merged blues, white and green on another ...

Popped out one dirty fellow with a yellow...

Gave the fifth a worn out look, as if the blue-green-pink pattern inside was washed away with many years of the dark brown.

Up they perched on my ledge, 

Along with a painting of mine.

Go, Show off yourselves to all, 

The shapes and colours of thine!

What is your critique, and pick-of-the-lot?
Am linking this to The Weekly Story @ Colours Dekor.

Travel Blogging!

(Update Dec 2014: All posts from the travel blog moved to this blog. However you can definitely proceed to read the post below :-)

The most unassuming of all foot wear, the flip-flops or the desi Hawaii chappals instantly strike a chord with most Indians. The slap of these blue-whites against heels is an all too familiar sound, isn't it?

Most of us keep them for home. Random cyclists wear them for the road, the Mamta Banerjees wear them to work, "cool" college goers wear 'em to classes, avid trekkers wear them while at their passion ...


Cushions your feet while walking, takes you from place to place, simple, elemental.

I also believe a place should be explored on feet to really appreciate the small wonders it has to offer. So go as you may - train, air, road ... but at the destination, tread joyfully on the roads less taken, breathe in local flavours, chat up with the locals, taste their authentic food.. What do you think??


With that I welcome you to the small wonders in travelling, and to my new travel blog - The Hawaii-Chappal Trail :-) As cool or uncool as that sounds, it is what I love about travelling ... basic, refreshing experiences through walking the planet! 

Do peep in, and let me know in a comment if you have a travel blog too, would love to read it!

Here's to a sunny week ahead.

The Nilgiris Mountain Rail

The Nilgiris Mountain Rail from Coonoor to Mettupalayam is a charming old one.

It uses the rack and pinion system to chug up the steep gradients of the mountains. Here's a glimpse of the rack in between the rail track... seen in the premises of the Runnymede Guest House, Coonoor which boasts of sprawling tea estates and a portion of this heritage railway track running through its property.

Old wooden sleepers on which the steam locomotives chug along rattling at it's own slow pace, leaving behind clouds of black smoke...

In all its glory, reminding one of bygone days of the British rule in India.

Linking this to  

To get that rustic look on furniture!

Have you ever worked with chalk paint... (not chalkboard paint)
I've been wanting to try it on a piece of furniture!

Miss Mustard Seed uses it brilliantly, I simply love her work... authentic! Have a look at some of her creations.

A few rounds of sanding after painting gives this beautiful effect. That awesome chalky finish.

And here's the work of Shaunna @The Perfectly Imperfect blog..

And from another...

Are chalk paints available in India, does any manufacturer sell them here? Have come across Annie Sloan's, but they aren't sold around here.

The alternative is to try dry brush painting to create the faux weathered texture, as in...

Anything for this rustic charm!! What say?

[Click on the pictures to visit their sources and for how-to's.]

Cane Bridge

While reading up on tips on what to do in Sikkim we came across cane bridges as a must-do in many write-ups. So we were thrilled to spot one in the Lingee Payong village towards the end of our trip.

They are made of long sections of bamboo held together by strong metal cords, and the river gushes below it.

We tread cautiously over it, making each step deliberately, muttering a prayer, because it was shaking with each step.

And then some local folks, the villagers, walked by ... easily as on a daily routine!

The Aesthetics in a Pottery Barn

I think clay pots make very interesting subjects for a camera, and a visit to a pottery barn is sheer delight to anyone looking to workout their cameras, and capture the play of light and shadow!

This pottery place we went to last weekend was tucked up cosy below the Nandi Hills, off Bangalore -a small shed framed by hills on all sides. Mounds of clay/mud welcomed us as we entered the dimly lit barn with old wooden doors and windows, light streaming in through them and cracks in the tiles on the roof, and walls speaking of several years of hard work.

Unclean... yet beautiful

The potter invited us to try the pottery wheel ourselves. I guess making a pot yourself is a nice heady combination of several feelings - the squishy feeling of clay between your fingers shaping something, the fact that a simple movement of a few fingers could change its shape, and the hope of things to come.. like your own creation to take back home.

The potter giving his finishing touches to the pot our friend made

The fresh piece

There were finished pots of all shapes and sizes lined up to dry.

And it never is an easy day for this potter. The clay doesn't come smooth, it has to be stood over, stamped, rolled over, stamped over and over again until the required consistency is reached before he gets to work on it. He enthusiastically showed it all - proud of how he earns his livelihood (and of course the prospect of earning a few bucks from these visitors).

The kiln outside the barn, decorated with yellow and red flowers, see them?

Artistic, is the symmetry and earthy colors of a pottery barn, isn't it? The tour gave me a sense of how potters give expression to the abstract, and nudged awake all my aesthetic senses in the process!

Linking this story to Barn Charm.

Art Journal - Sketch a Plant

I found this an interesting exercise @The Rainforest Garden, you sketch one plant every week ... you get back your sketching habits, and learn to appreciate the curves on your green friends!

I believe it is never possible to re-create the colors or perfection of nature. And this attempt only reinforced that belief. Color pencils usually create pictures which are farthest from an original, and here's an attempt with them.

This is one of my favorite plants from our balcony garden. Happily nods its head when watered, healthy, and most importantly, is not high-maintenance!

Do you know its name? Scientific name, local name, pet name ;-) anything? For now, its Heart-Shaped Burst-o-Green!

So why don't you brush up your drawing skills, join in this weekly rhythm! Try riding your finger through a leaf, feel its shape, try to re-create it, fail (or perhaps you might not), and scrapbook it for memories sake!