ON THE ROAD

Hello everyone!
lets make this quick,I'm traveling in the south of India and have little or no access to the internet hence my absence from blogland.I have lots of travel stories,art & craft to share and will do so shortly.Do bear with me,I've missed you all.Have a wonderful week!

Wishes!

Happy new year everyone!I'm traveling ,will post as soon as I can.Enjoy the holidays.

Wishes!

Happy new year everyone!I'm traveling ,will post as soon as I can.Enjoy the holidays.

BLUE MONDAY-POTTERY FROM KURJHAR.

Hello everyone!
It's a day to see some blue.Today ,I'm showing off ceramic from Kurjhar in north India-a place famous for blue pottery.Sally from the blog http://smilingsally.blogspot.com/  is the hostess for this weekly event.As I've done a post on art from this place earlier,I'll just show you a  ceramic water jug.In olden days(a few hundred years ago) they made jugs of this shape only it was made of metal.I used it as my header pic for awhile,some of you have seen it.Today these jugs are used as decorative pieces for the home.Just love it's design!See more ceramic by clicking on the pottery pic in the side bar.To see more blue from around the world click on smiling sally.

Happy christmas to all of you my followers/readers ,may you enjoy this season with your family and remember what christmas is all about. Decorations,food,and parties have somehow concealed the significance of this day.The traditions of christmas go back centuries,the first christmas tree was lit up with candles by Martin luther in the 16TH century it is said,walking home one winter's eve he saw how lovely the moon/stars looked through the fir trees and set up a tree at home for his kids.Hope you like my tree in the title pic today.Happy blue monday all.

BASKETRY FROM NATURAL FIBRES

Basket making is an ancient craft,and the methods employed differ from place -place.It may be even older than pottery making.Baskets have been  made of grass,roots,reed, and other natural fibres since ancient times.Today  materials like plastic are used in basketry.Natural fibers being perishable ,it's not easy to say how long this craft has been around-from  excarvations around the world we get a fair idea of it's history.The oldest evidence  of this craft comes from Egypt.Today this art is still kept alive by many crafts people around the world,different methods are used in basket weaving,plaiting,coiling etc.Here in India each state has it's own art of basketry.People from the north eastern states of India are known for their natural fibre baskets.Below are a few samples of their work,this I came across in a stall at Dilli Haat (craft bazaar) in Delhi ,India.Totes and baskets !.






For thousands of years humans have used baskets of natural material,for ceremonies and every day life.It's still used here in India,at weddings  huge baskets filled with fruits & flowers are sent from the bride's home to the groom's.Anything that was pliable was used,from barks of trees to reeds.Our family's laundry basket was of reed and lasted a long time.When I was a young child I learnt from a neighbour how to weave plastic wire baskets,I made a few for the family and they were thrilled,it was much used when we went to the market.The shape was similar to the one in the middle pic.But now adays I have a great dislike for plastic and prefer to buy products made from natural materials.Back in the day we all carried baskets when we went shopping, a  few still do,Now we get PLASTIC carry bags.How about you,do you use baskets?

A PRESENT FOR YOUR BLOG.

Sometime in oct I received an award/present from Bhavesh cchatbar,he has an informative blog about Pune his hometown and other places as well,lovely photography,I urge you to check it out.With Christmas around the corner ,I thought I'd gift this to all my followers.Have a nice day.You can pass it out to who ever you like.http://infobybvc.blogspot.com/  ,check it out

100 POSTS???

According to the info on my dashboard,it's 100 posts......er....but that includes the ones in draft...I forgot to post some.No wonder nobody said CONGRATS!!!  hehe!Sorry,I'll post them this week.I sometimes don't finish a post the same day ,an unexpected errand may crop up .....& I forget to later.