Masala Mango Mantra: Happy Holidays and Coupon Code

Masala Mango Mantra: Happy Holidays and Coupon Code: Hello everybody! I guess you are all having a great time! I am looking forward to being with family and friends over the weekend. Its r...

Masala Mango Mantra: Free shipping Canada:Ahkriti Indian inspired ethni...

Masala Mango Mantra: Free shipping Canada:Ahkriti Indian inspired ethni...: Its officially FREE SHIPPING DAY in Canada today -December 12, 2011 So if you are still looking for some thing and like jewelry, Ahkriti is...

Masala Mango Mantra: My wish list from: Indian Hanger

Masala Mango Mantra: My wish list from: Indian Hanger: December is going to be knocking really loud in a few hours...Man! Where did November go? Anyway, I don't know how your shopping is going ...

Masala Mango Mantra: Beautiful Raaga:Ja Ja Re by Nirali Kartik

Masala Mango Mantra: Beautiful Raaga:Ja Ja Re by Nirali Kartik: Waking up to some beautiful Raaga today! (Me thinks this is going to be drumming on my ipod all the way to the US) Will see ya'll on...

Masala Mango Mantra: Etsy Treasury : Paisley Power

Masala Mango Mantra: Etsy Treasury : Paisley Power: I love paisley prints and I was so delighted to see my creation on this Treasury created by Marcus Galle of dizzyrhinowares . Marcus create...

Masala Mango Mantra: Rava laddoo recipe (Semolina sweet balls)

Masala Mango Mantra: Rava laddoo recipe (Semolina sweet balls): Happy Diwali to everyone! Diwali or the festival of lights is incomplete without sweets or "mithai". Both my daughters love their sweet...

Masala Mango Mantra: Happy Diwali 2011

Masala Mango Mantra: Happy Diwali 2011: Here's a short movie I found on You Tube by National Geographic on Diwali! Happy Diwali everyone!

Masala Mango Mantra: DIY: Paper lanterns

Masala Mango Mantra: DIY: Paper lanterns: This year Diwali falls on October 26, 2011 and my daughter wanted to give something special to her friends at school. So over the weekend, w...

Masala Mango Mantra: Dressing up for Diwali 2011

Masala Mango Mantra: Dressing up for Diwali 2011: This year instead of wearing a saree, I have decided to wear a salwar kameez. On my last visit to India, I bought this salwar kameez from P...

Diwali Checklist :: 10 Things for Your To Do List

Found this on the Gnaana Blog. Sharing it with you all! A good reminder!

Diwali Checklist :: 10 Things for Your To Do List

Masala Mango Mantra: Diwali 2011 preparation

Masala Mango Mantra: Diwali 2011 preparation: This month has been quite a riot of festivities isn't it? And boy I cannot wait for Diwali this year! With both my girls at that age where...

Masala Mango Mantra: Happy Dussehra

Masala Mango Mantra: Happy Dussehra: Image via  here

Masala Mango Mantra: Raaga series for diwali 2011

Masala Mango Mantra: Raaga series for diwali 2011: I have been busy, really busy and this is why! Creating the Raaga series of necklace sets for Diwali 2011! Handmade polymer beads using cr...

Friday Feature: ARCHSEHGAL

Masala Mango Mantra: Friday Feature: ARCHSEHGAL: "Hello everyone and it is with great delight I welcome Archana Sehgal of Archsehgal - beautiful studio for greeting cards and wall art. A..."

Team member feature: archsehgal

Etsy shop: http://archsehgal.etsy.com
Blog: http://archanadraws.blogspot.com

I love drawing and making things out of my drawings.  I typically do a lot of post-processing in Photoshop to take my creation a step further.  I find it fascinating how technology can transform and enhance art.  While most everything I create turns into a stationery item in my Etsy shop, some pieces are standalone prints.

Today I'll walk through the process I went through to create these butterfly blank/note cards:

 

I'd been wanting to do something involving butterflies for a while but found the task of drawing a butterfly daunting, because I was afraid it wouldn't turn out the way I'd want it to.   I started off with this pencil drawing:

 

I decided not to bother drawing the other halves because I knew I'd never get them exactly right.  I scanned in this image and opened it up in Photoshop.  I duplicated the wings and flipped them to match up, darkened the blacks, and took out the middle whites.

 

At this point I had several decisions to make: what colours would I use?  How would I fill in the spaces?  I came up with a couple of versions:

and

Once I'd come up with these 2 versions, I decided on the multi-coloured version and took it one step further: overlaid wings to create flying effect, and more colour variations.

 

The final step was to come up with a layout for a card:

 

These are available for sale at my Etsy shop, and can be customized with a message, or can be recreated in an entirely new layout for a different type of card.  Thanks for stopping by!

Indian Wedding Treasury

Creative with clay: Pottery by Charan Sachar: Quit my Day Job

I had featured Creative with Clay as the Featured Artist on my blog. Charan Sachar of Creative with Clay was featured on Etsy Blog as well.

Cheers to his beautiful work and creations!

Creative with clay: Pottery by Charan Sachar: Quit my Day Job: "I am glad to annouce that I finally quit my day job and I am now a full time potter. It is going to be interesting to see what unfolds. Et..."

Yoga and children

Masala Mango Mantra: Yoga and children: "My tryst with Yoga goes back to my school days. I studied at Sophia High School l, Bangalore , India and I vividly remember the Grade 6 days..."

Yantra or Kolam for Mars (Kuja)

Navagraha kolams are yantras (tantric drawings) drawn to propitiate the planets and to invoke their blessings. These yantras for the the planets are said to originate from Soundarya Lahiri, a poem composed in praise of Devi by Sankara. Though yantra is typically etched on a copper plate, kolam is drawn in front of the home shrine using rice flour or can be drawn on paper also.

The image above is the kolam for Mars. The line drawing is the kolam; I have added color and embellishments. Here are some significant astrological details regarding Mars:

Name in Sanskrit: Kuja or Angaaraka

Signs: Mesha (Aries) and Vrischika (Scorpio)

Day of the week: Mangalavara (Tuesday)

Direction: South

Season: Grishma (summer)

Nature: malefic, tamasic

Kaalapurusha rulership: Essence

Gender: Masculine

Son of: Earth (bhumikumara)

Karaka (significator): 3rd and 6th houses

Exalted: Capricorn 28 deg; moola trikona (root trine): Aries 0 deg-12 deg

Directional strength: 10th house

Natural friends: Jupiter, Moon and the Sun

Represents: siblings (younger), place of fire, land

Represents (physical): marrow, bones

Lordship of nakshatras (lunar mansions): Mrigasira, Chitra, Dhanishta

Dasa length: 7 years

Favorable in houses: 3,6,10, 11

Aspects: 4th, 7th and 8th house from itself

Yogas: Chandramangala (Mo-Mars conjunction), Ruchaka (formed when Mars, exalted or in its own house, is located in a kendra from the ascendant

Navagraha Kirtana: Angaarakamashryamyaham

Temples: Pullirukku Velur or Vaideeswaran Koyil near Mayiladuturai is an ancient Shiva temple bearing a shrine to Angaarakan and is referred to as the Angaarakastalam.

Mantra to chant: Om Angaarakaayai Namah

Yantra (kolam) for Moon

Navagraha kolams are yantras (tantric drawings) drawn to propitiate the planets and to invoke their blessings. These yantras for the the planets are said to originate from Soundarya Lahiri, a poem composed in praise of Devi by Sankara. Though yantra is typically etched on a copper plate, kolam is drawn in front of the home shrine using rice flour or can be drawn on paper also.

The image above is the kolam for the Moon. The line drawing is the kolam; I have added color and embellishments. Here are some significant astrological details regarding the Moon, one of the the most important of nine grahas (planets):

Name in Sanskrit: Chandra

Sign: Kataka (Cancer)
Day of the week: Somavar (Monday)

Direction: north-west

Season: Varsha (Rain)

Nature: Benefic, Satvic

Kaalapurusha rulership: Mind

Gender: Feminine

Father of: Budha (Mercury)

Karaka (significator): 4th house

Exalted: Taurus 3 deg; moola trikona (root trine): Taurus 4 deg -20 deg

Directional strength: 4th house

Natural friends: Jupiter, Mars and the Sun

Represents: Mother, queen, watery places, marine creatures, muhurta, pilgrimage

Represents (physical): mind, blood, left eye 

Lordship of nakshatras (lunar mansions): Rohini, Hasta, Shravana

Dasa length: 10 years

Favorable in houses: 1, 4, 7, 10, 5, 9

Aspects: the 7th house from itself

Yogas: Gajakesari (Mo-Ju conjunction), Chandramangala (Mo-Mars conjunction)

Navagraha Kirtana: Chandram bhaja manasa

Temples: Kailasanathar temple, Tingaloor, Tamilnadu
Mantra to recite: Om chandraya namah

Posted by Indira of Dharmakarmaarts whose blog can be found here.

Masala Mango Mantra: Win an Indian Inspired ethnic jewelry by AhKriti

Masala Mango Mantra: Win an Indian Inspired ethnic jewelry by AhKriti: "Hello everyone! Want to win a pair of beautiful teal blue earrings by AhKriti? Then head on over to Katenkaboodle your one stop money sav..."

Creative with clay: Pottery by Charan Sachar: Mother's Day Sale

Creative with clay: Pottery by Charan Sachar: Mother's Day Sale: "The one thing that my mom loves is a good deal! And I am sure there are many like her. So if you haven't shopped for your mom yet, this is ..."

Navagraha Kolam (Yantras for the Planets): The Sun

Yantras (kolam) for the Sun

Kolam (Mandala) the Sun

Navagraha kolams are yantras  drawn to propitiate the planets and to invoke their blessings. These yantras for the the planets are said to originate from Soundarya Lahiri, a poem composed in praise of Devi by Sankara. Though yantras are typically etched on a copper plate, kolam is drawn in front of the home shrine using rice flour or can be drawn on paper also.

The image above is the kolam for the Sun. The line drawing is the kolam; I have added color and embellishments. Here are some significant astrological details regarding the Sun, the most important of nine grahas (planets):

Name in Sanskrit: Surya

Sign: Simha (Leo)
Day of the week: Ravivar (Sunday)

Direction: East

Season: Grishma (summer)

Nature: mildly malefic

Kaalapurusha rulership: Soul

Gender: Masculine

Father of: Yama (god of death) and Saturn (planet)

Karaka (significator): 1st and the 10th house

Exalted: Aries 10 deg; Moolatrikona sign: Leo 0-20 deg

Directional strength: 10th house

Natural friends: Jupiter, Mars and the Moon

Represents: Father, government, authority, temple

Represents (physical): Bones, heart, eyesight, head

Lordship of nakshatras (lunar mansions): Krittika, Uttara Phalguni, Uttara Ashada

Dasa length: 6 years

Favorable in houses: 3, 6, 10 and 11

Aspects: the 7th house from itself

Yogas: budhaaditya , veshi, voshi and ubhayachari 

Represents: devotion to lord Shiva

Navagraha Kirtana: Surya murthe namostuthe by Muthuswami Dikshithar

Temples: The Sun Temple at Konarak, Orissa, India

Suriyanar Koil at Thirumangalakkudi, Tamilnadu, India

Mantra to chant: Om suryaya namah

Note: You may copy the kolam for your personal use.

Posted by Indira

Bollywood hoop earrings by AhKriti

Indian Inspired ethnic jewelry by AhKriti presents Bollywood Hoop earrings.

Hoop earrings are very easy to make and they happen to be my favorite designs.

In today's post I will show you how I make them. They involve just 4 steps and you can wear them tonight. Of course, if you are a beginner, I suggest you do take up a beginners tutorial on how to make earrings.


Supplies for the Bollywood hoop earrings

• 6 4mm emerald czech swarovksi crystals
• 6 4mm fuchsia czech swarovski crystal
• 10 decorative head pins
• pair of hoop earrings with 3 hoops
• pair of jump rings
• a pair of fish hook ear wires
• a pair of round nose pliers
• a wire cutter

Step 1    Using the head pins  make a plain  wire loop. 

Step 2     Attach the bead wire loops to the hoop earring finding.

Step 3    Attach the jump ring to the top portion of the earring finding

Step 4    Attach the fish hook wire to the jump ring now.

    

Voila! Your bollywood hoop earrings are finished!

For more of these bollywood hoop earrings and more ethnic jewelry visit my studio Indian Inspired Ethnic Jewelry by AhKriti HERE

A scarf and jhumkas for every occasion!

Suit your style or your many moods - we have it here at IndianArtistsCorner.

Little India

Gorgeous Indian Beauties!!!

Team member feature: KavitaKriti

KavitaKriti - http://kavitakriti.etsy.com

I love Indian ethnic designs and wanted to incorporate them into the scarves I paint. India is a melting pot and each state offers something exquisite and unique from the types of clothes worn by the people of the region, to their language, and their arts and crafts. Even if I wanted to I would not be able to represent all Indian art forms because they are infinite in number but I want to try and the scarves I paint are my way of doing that. Each scarf comes with a hang tag describing my inspiration source so you can learn a little bit more about the art, tradition or trend I am inspired by. Not only do I want to offer women a new choice in their most treasured accessory but I also want to promote the gorgeous work done by the artisans of India, most of which may not have gained exposure outside the Indian subcontinent.

Currently I am focusing on painting indian motifs like peacocks, paisleys, elephants, mandalas and henna designs as well as painting indian textile, indian embroidery and sari border designs.

Take a peek at KavitaKriti's artistic process

This week I was in the mood to play with silk and I captured the process in a storyboard below. I tried several techniques and basically just let the silk do all the work :)

Dribbling paint, watermarks, salting, gutta work, watercolor effect, brush strokes, paint spots... basically all around good fun!

My idea was to paint alternating squares of blue and black blockprint designs with a border all around the scarf. I was going for a blockprint-batik effect and so started with two blockprint designs and traced them on the silk using clear gutta. Once the gutta dried it was on to the painting.

My color palette consisted of a sky blue, sort of lime green and black. 

I started with the blue blockprint squares and then filled-in the border. The green seemed too green (if that is at all possible :)), so I dulled it down with a little watered-down blue overpainted on the green and then finally gave the entire border a rinse of black resulting in this lovely dull henna color.

Next I filled in the black blockprint squares. All of the silk dyes were painted on dry silk and I let the colors flow in every which direction. The gutta lines were not solid so the colors mixed and mingled in every way possible.

The dry silk probably stopped the dye from flowing around too much ofcourse. Finally I did a little bit of salting for texture in some of the squares and watermarks in others. I did not wipe away any of the paint spots purposely leaving them in for an uneven look. The final pictures of the scarf are displayed below and I'm quite happy with the final result. The colors work well together and the blockprint design is interesting.

Indian Artists Corner Treasury--inspired by the colors and culture of India!

Indian Decor - A Treasury

'Indian Decor' by Ahkriti

Experience decor from Indian Artists

Naani's Lullaby... Deezden $20.00	Yoga Art Elephant P... DharmaKarmaArt... $51.11	Vintage Cherry Pri... hammerandhandi... $27.50	Black Cats wedding... krishnasadhu $100.00
Unique Pillow Shape... Creativewithcl... $75.00	Decorative Pillow C... SaagarikaCreat... $48.00	The gate - Illustra... nidhi $25.00	Pair of Textile Tre... indriya $35.00
Abstract Ganesha on... EveningCreeper $80.00	Henna Candle RedwoodHenna $12.00	Splash of colour (S... UrmilaSantosh $10.00	For Someone Special... waverleykitche... $10.99
Handpainted Paisley... withanindianto... $30.00	Custom Watercolor ... aamikrishna $250.00	Owls perched in a t... archsehgal $12.00	Table Runner Bold F... indriya $38.00

Treasury tool by Red Row Studio.