Potpourri with used festival flowers DIY

Festive season brings with it the colour splash that we look forward to, in shops, around street corners, homes, and every place that can possibly be decked up. What is sad what we end up with after the festival is over. Waste of all kinds. Of toxic idols that end up eventually in our drinking water, of decorations that end up in trash, of food that upsets our tummies, and pricey flowers that have nowhere to go but the dust bin.

I was lucky to find jasmine and roses in the recent weeks for my festival decor and worship. For a change, I preserved them for reuse. My Ganesha for this festival was tiny and homely as usual. More about that in another post.

While roses have their unique therapeutic properties, jasmine is a fragrance unmatched. I was surprised to find dried jasmine flowers, chamomile and other flowers sold online. It's true the price of flowers has gone up a great deal. And so it makes perfect sense to prolong their use.

Potpourri is meant to permeate fragrances by mixing essential oils with herbs, leaves, flowers and sometimes spices. It works well as aroma therapy. If you are prone to allergies though, best to check with a doctor before you start.

What I had among flowers and other items:

-- roses of three colours

-- some oranges whose peels I dried

-- jasmine flowers

What I used further:

-- essential oil ( I used sandal oil, you choose your favourite)

-- mixing bowl with a lid

-- jar with lid

-- Brown paper bag or cover

I also used;

-- coriander or cilantro seeds

-- cumin seeds ( jeera)

-- cloves

-- cinnamon powder (you can use sticks too)

Cinnamon sticks or powder, cumin seeds, coriander seeds and cloves are among ingredients that help lock the fragrance in. They are known fixatives that make the fragrances last, although another popular ingredient that potpourri enthusiasts head to shops for is the Orris root powder. You do not have to lose precious money over it when you have treasures in your own kitchen.

After my festival worship was done, I sun dried my flowers on a large plate till they felt brittle. I also dried peels of oranges that we used. Citrus peels are great for the mix. If you have nutmeg and other herbs, nothing like it. But use what you have and it works.

I took two handfuls of the rose and citrus mixture, threw in some dried jasmine, added a spoon of the coriander and cumin seeds and some cloves in the mixing bowl. To this lot, I added six drops of the sandal oil. You can add about six to eight drops of other essential oils too. This was my first time at a potpourri. I wanted to keep it simple. You may not get to be precise with the drops. Use an ink filler if you need to. Worry not about precision.

Use a lid to cover the bowl, hold the covered bowl between your palms and shake for about half a minute or whole. Alternatively, you can mix it all in a brown paper cover or bag.

Take this mixture and pour into an air-tight jar or container. Store it for at least a month, or about six weeks before you open the jar. It takes that long for the aromas to set.

Experiment with different essential oils and take a deep breath of the homemade fragrance.

You can display the jar at a centre table or at your office desk. Choose a cool dry place for it. Make sure the flowers have dried thoroughly before you start the mixing. You can also gift this to family and friends. Once it is ready, pour some into the tiny organza or nylon or jute sachets with draw-string, tighten and place them on shelves, near clothes, books, shoes...anywhere.

Nothing to match extended festival blessings in the form of fragrance, especially if it saved flowers from the landfills.

Pictures by: Radhika M B

For permission to reuse, write to: radicreative@gmail.com

DIY Ganesha to go green this festival

Every year brings heartwarming efforts on the part of devotees to worship their favourite elephant god by respecting the earth that nurtures us. Every year brings heartbreaks too, when visuals of post-festival idols turn garbage of toxic proportions on our beaches.

The silver-lining - over the years, I see more interest in the effort to stick to unpainted clay Ganeshas, or to innovate with other materials.

Here is a quick round up of this year's efforts, as Navratri grandeur approaches soon.

My friend Hema Sampath, who misses her trips to Lalbaug Raja every year at Mumbai, continued her personal tradition of Ganesha worship this year. She dunked the painted Ganesha idols, for a homemade one.

``I had the clay in my fridge. I had kept it for my craft work. It came in handy for my Ganesha instead,'' says Hema, who loves lord Ganesha.

Creative in a lot of things herself, Hema is a super-busy mom to a beautiful one year old, who still manages to find time for craft ideas.

The deep blue box you see below her altar shelf, is not actually a box. It is a rangoli coaster that she uses to decorate the altar.

Worship has to come from the heart more than outside it, which is why one needs to set aside the conventional love for big size. In Mumbai, it can be a challenge, with the entire city and its outer cities turning the streets into Ganpati party zones, and large idols making the atmosphere euphoric during the nine days.

Still, a friend Sridevi Appari managed to do just that. All she needed was about half a kilogram of turmeric and water.

The result is divine, earthy and attractive at the same time.

Notice how a couple of vases with flowers add to the profusion of colour even more. And how the oleander strings sit comfortably on Ganesha and the kalash.

Sridevi's mom had such a Ganesha too, in a larger size. And needless to say, their steadfastness to stay green inspired TV coverage by a Mumbai TV channel. Here is how her Ganesha looked before the pooja.

Turmeric was what I used too, in my own personal tradition, of not buying the festival idol. I did not indulge in creativity to make the idol - just stuck to making the turmeric cone that is used in other festivals for a token Ganesha pooja, with some besan (chickpea flour).

Notice the little turmeric hill on the beetle leaf in this plate. A packet of flowers and some grass from the garden outside. And I was comfortable to go.

Those yellow circles with kumkum to decorate them, are symbolic of the lord's clothes. The bead-like cotton encircling is to symbolise his sacred thread.

I did manage to make a super quickie umbrella.

This one, is made with the end of a plastic garlic net bag, a bamboo skewer, some dried bamboo plant leaves, and rice in a brass crush bowl. Another flower to top it. The umbrella is integral to many households where people make it using cardboard. As the story goes, after all the war, Ganesha went for a stroll on his mouse, belly full and an umbrella on hand. And the moon laughed at him.

The rice went into our bellies later, while the leaves went back to soil. As for the net, it hangs around home for another use, perhaps in some other craft project.

I do not have a better picture of this, but it looked a lot better during the worship.

A chunk of my extended family still sticks to picking up paint-less Ganeshas a day or two before the festival. My own experience in Mumbai when I lived there, was their complete absence in the sea of painted idols.

An option when you get an idol that is not painted, is to add some decor element to it yourself.

My schoolmate Sujatha Ratnala and her family did just that. They got their idol through an NGO that makes, sells and teaches to make eco-friendly idols - To Make A Difference.

``They charge less than 50 per cent of the market rate. And they deliver it at the doorstep, just to save lakes,'' says Sujatha, who has been picking up these idols from them for the last four years. This year, nine of her neighbours got them too.

As for giving the deity a personal touch, she got her son to paint it a little.

The family used muggu rai - or the chalk used in millions of Indian homes for home rangolis. They dissolved it in water and the boy used a paint brush to decorate the idol.

Other embellishments around home came in handy.

``The crown, we had from earlier festivals. And the cloth too. For the forehead, we used a beaded rakhi,'' says Sujatha. As such, such crowns can be found in many religious shops.

A small piece of white cloth that makes for the dhoti, is a piece of Kerala dhoti tied using a string. She cut the cloth to the size of handkerchief, and tucked the pieces in pleats to the string neatly.

The highest form of worship is when you offer yourself to God, selflessly and in spirit. I remember a beautiful Hindi poem at school, that talked of offering to God, the flowers on trees, as they were, without plucking them, and water from the oceans and rivers, without taking from them.

Being aware of the environmental hazards of toxic paints going into the water bodies, and defying societal frenzy by staying true to your heart are essential to one of our most important festivals.

It is heartening, going by the rising number of hits that the DIY Ganesha posts on this blog get each year, that as a population we have been taking interest in going green for worship. Wish we did that for every festival, every day worship, and every activity.

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Pictures courtesy: respective owners or devotees -- Hema Sampath for the homemade clay Ganesha, Sridevi Appari for the turmeric Ganesha, Radhika M B for the tiny turmeric cone Ganesha, and Sujatha Ratnala for the NGO sell eco-friendly Ganesha.

Pictures have been used with permission from respective owners.

Any further use of the pictures requires permission from Imprints Handmade, and needs to attribute the use of these pictures, to Imprints Handmade. Copyrights for the pictures rest with the owners.

Ganesha on my coffee mug

Wanna do something on a rainy day? Ran out of ideas?

Grab a permanent marker and try out something on a coffee mug. You'll be surprised how much you can come up with.

I must confess that I have never tried that. But my dear friend Ashwini of Indulge Ashscorner blog did. And am yearning to do that sometime soon. In thepicture above, Ashwini has made her favourite abstract design of Lord Ganesha, and needless to say, these mugs were an instant hit with her friends.

Out here in USA, Sharpie is a popular brand of permanent markers. Guess in India, Staedtler and Camlin would do the needful. Am looking forward to feedback from anyone who has tried them on ceramics.

All you need for this craft, is

1. Plain coloured ceramic mugs

2. Permanent markers (Sharpie, or equivalents)

3. An oven to bake them after making the design

Ashwini has some tips for this project though. 

She suggests, that you use an oil based marker as the regular marker may fad away, or scrubbing to wash may erase the design.

She says:

- a thicker design works better - for better look and holding

- bake it hot in a normal oven, at 400 deg F for 30 minutes

but as she puts it, each oven has its differences.

- hand wash the mugs, skip the dishwasher.

Since Ashwini tried these experiments with a kitchen oven here in US, she does not know how much time an OTG oven in India may take to bake it for instance.

But those who are into terracotta jewellery making could try it out in their ovens and provide feedback.

A couple of other tips I found through googling, throw up the following bits:

- a blogger notes that letting the designed mugs dry for 24 hours before baking helps

- a couple of other blogs have revealed that microwave may not be a good option

so you shall be lucky if you have a normal oven in India.

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Pictures courtesy: Ashwini Deshpande

For permission to use the content: radicreative@gmail.com

DIY Ganesha efforts this festival

As during every year, I looked forward to this year's festival season too. And particularly towards Ganesha Chathurthi, that gives all of us a chance to get our hands dirty! It is so heartening when friends return to their creative side, pick up that lump or clay, and roll it to Ganesha shape, year after year. And, its time for a Ganesha post!

The number of those indulging in DIY among my friends has only increased. Never mind the quality of your effort. Making your own little Ganesha keeps the essence of this festival grounded. From earth, to earth, with minimal or no damage to the earth, for those blessings from heaven. And with your own hands.

Am sharing here, some efforts by friends. Am also penning this post, praying for my dear friend in Dipti Nair, who is gracing through grief, but whose creativity inspires me a great deal.

Sankgetha Sripathy of Smudgy Trove Facebook page was super generous in sharing step-by-step pictures of the cute little smudgy Ganeshas she made.

Sankgetha is a pro at terracotta jewellery, which is why she always has some wet clay around home. No wonder the Dubai resident did not struggle with the basic Ganesha material.

If you notice, she used other materials such as toothpicks, carving stick, and some beads.

The next lot of pictures are self explanatory.

Notice how simple it gets to make the turban for the deity. Roll the clay into a long thread and coil it on the trunk's top.

Notice how the cute little cone of clay comfortable sits on top of the turban to give it a natural feel! Now for the body of the lord.

This is how her Ganesha looked after finishing. Pasting below, picture of her two Ganeshas. She used some beads to embellish. And a thread to symbolise the divine serpent that ties his belly.

Here is how they looked on the altar.

The next effort is a more colourful one, by Pavani Prasad who now lives in Netherlands. She used cake fondant for her Ganesha. And the result is remarkable.

Here is a picture of the materials she used. Fondant sheeds of different colours, sprinkles and cake beads. Last year, she used food colours to make her piece.

I like the detailing here. Green base to symbolise a large leaf, and a crimson base beneath to match the turban, and sprinkles to add sparkle.
 
Those tiny bananas on a betel leaf and the mouse only add to the feel. Below is a picture of the deity, worshipped with grass and flowers.

Isn't that lovely? As for the immersion, Pavani says she will leave it in her garden so that rains take care of the `back-to-earth' part.

On similar lines, my friend Deepa Balakrishnan's three-year old son Kabir got all  excited with play-doh or kids' modelling clay, and created his own version of Ganesha, two days before the festival. In her Facebook post, she wrote of his sudden zeal to do it early morning on a rainy weekend. Mommies have the toughest jobs on earth!

 

This is why I love kids' craft! How much more colourful and cute can a God's impression get? We adults are so conscious about colours to use, texture and sundry other tidbits. But put clay in the hands of a toddler and creativity peaks.

This Ganesha has a red tummy, green trunk and ears, and to top it, mouse seated at his legs too! I so wish those cute little food balls on that yellow plate were edible! They look so real!

Veteran journalist Janaki Murali from Bangalore took the trouble to attend a workshop, to make an eco-friendly Ganesha for her home. The idol, she made with clay.

I love the grand ears that she painted with poster colours at home, besides using the real cloth turban and his clothes. She used toothpicks for the lord's tusks.

Most of all, it is the size of the idol that floors me. Not big.

Size does matter when you celebrate a festival. It's better to stick to smaller sizes of idols for home worship, rather than overdo the attempt for grand celebration. Sometimes, the gigantic sizes of community Ganesha idols scares me.

Having a small idol is easy on immersion too. You need not head out to the lakes in your vicinity. A bucket of water does it. And all you need to do is pour the water out into planters or the garden.

Here is how Janaki's family did it.

Thanks a tonne Janaki, for sharing the pictures.

As I look at these amazing pieces of creativity for a religious purpose, I am reminded of earlier efforts by other friends too.

Theatre personality Kirtana Kumar posted the Ganesha Chaturthi celebration by her family a few years back. Here is the link to her post in her blog.

Infinite Souls Farm and Artists' Retreat

Scroll down the post for pictures of their open air celebration of the festival. Gowri and Ganesha idols made by children are a treat. And so is the ambience of the no-fuss celebration.

Another friend Aishwarya Kumaresh from my school had made a lovely clay  idol last year, which I could not post about. But the sheer memory of beauty in her effort prompted me to post some pictures here this time.

The idol is not as big as it looks in these pictures...

...and that is why, I love it all the more.

As for me, I stuck to a super simple worship, given that an elder in my family is still recovering from an accident, and am in the middle of doctor appointments. Like during other festivals when a tiny turmeric cone on a betel leaf becomes the lord's symbol for worship, I mixed some water with turmeric and made this. A toothpick came in handy for the image.

Flowers used here may look minimal. The truth is, my husband brought home a planter full of flowers instead of plucked ones. That's because these potted flower plants cost just as much as plucked flowers do. I had not the heart to pluck all those from the lovely plant.  Instead, I plucked some, and placed it at the altar and offered it, as it stood. It's not seen in the picture here.

My thanks to all friends who let me use the pictures.

For the rest of us, we may or may not have managed an eco-friendly effort at home this time. This post is so that we make sure God's gift called nature is not messed with at least at a personal level, during worship. Do try the DIY option next year. You could get more ideas from my post last year: Ganesha on my plate.

Pictures courtesy: Sankgetha Sripathy of Smudgy Trove, Pavani Prasad, Deepa Balakrishnan, Janaki Murali, Aishwarya Kumaresh, Kirtana Kumar and Radhika MB

Please note: Pictures and content should not be used without prior permission. Copyrights of these pictures rest with the photographers who shared them with Imprints Handmade.

For use of pictures and content, write to: radicreative@gmail.com

If you have DIY and eco-friendly Ganesha pictures, please share them.