Pillars of Christmas come alive with art!

Project featured in Times-Republican

Christmas is in the air! Our hearts are poured with so much joy and excitement.

Bright stars, color red, fir trees, glowing candles, bows, jingle bells, candy canes and the wreath remind us all to be grateful for the gift of purity and eternal love.

As we started getting the Christmas greetings ready for friends and family this year, we drew various designs. None satisfied my older one. She kept looking for more in meaning, significance and message. Finally, we came up with this design; we called it the pillars of Christmas.  

What you will need

· Star

· Markers

· Crayons

· Glue

· Sequence

· Glitters

· Other Christmas craft supplies available

Stick star using glue. Write Joy, Love, Peace, Magic, Believe, Sacrifice, Faith, Hope and Christmas for the tree. Use a crayon or marker to draw an impression of trunk.  For a sparkly effect stick sequence, glitter and other craft supplies available.

You can add more words. For a large group make it even more fun by getting everyone involved in this project. Let everyone pick and decorate a word that defines Christmas for them. Now arrange all of them in a shape of Christmas tree. Be creative and let your imagination shine through your work.

Wish you all a holiday season that shines as bright as the star of Bethlehem!  

Thanks for visiting and have a colorful day:)

Wish you all a joyful and colorful season with love and happiness around!

Project using scraps!

Celebrations are fun and always will be but a few hours of glee should add smiles and memories to our lives and not a heaping pile to the landfills. Applying the 3 R's- recycle, reduce and reuse to a celebrations is a good example to teach our kids to think outside the box, be more creative and less materialistic. Educating them about the green living is a step forward in raising the child who cares, appreciates and is thankful.

Be Creative! Reduce, Reuse, Reconsider, Recycle:) 

Joyful napkin holders - A simple, fun and creative Thanksgiving project!

Project featured in Times-Republican!

All you need is

·         Paper towel tube

·         Handmade or construction or scrapbook paper

·         Glue

·         Scissors

·         Photos

Cut paper towel tube 1-1/2 inches wide.  Stick colorful construction paper on it using glue. You can also stick pumpkin seeds around. Print photos and trim them into 1- ½ inch squares. Cut handmade paper in 2 inches squares for an impression of border. Now, stick photos on handmade paper. Stick them on paper towel tube using glue. Insert napkin.

Thanks for visiting and have a colorful day!!

Simply Inspiring!

Be more - Set thyself free!

Do not fear failure. Do not let negative experiences- and there are always plenty- get in your way. In your life, many things-especially the biggest heartbreaks-will only make sense as you look back, not as you are experiencing them. Many of what seem at the time to be your biggest setbacks will end up leading to your biggest opportunities, and in ways you can’t predict. So don’t let that voice of doubt-the obnoxious roommate in your head- have the last word. As Montaigne said “There are many terrible things in my life, but most of them never happened.”

Arianna Huffington

Editor-in-chief of the Huffington Post Media Group.

For the love of fall!

Create your own wall of fame from memorable moments - A colorful art project!

Project featured in Times-Republican!

Life seems to be running on an auto mode, from morning to night our routines are so programmed. Still a question often arises in our minds, are we doing enough? Striving for perfection at work, in relations, in life makes it even more stressful. Look around and there are like billions of ways people can explain what they think perfection is because each person has a different way to look at situations. What makes sense for us might be totally irrelevant for others but that does not make us or them any wrong or better.

Festivities are about to start, shelves are loaded with stuff and hearts with feelings. Getting together with everyone brings joy but also comes with a baggage. Nothing comes without some side effects!

Let’s make a way into this festive season being us and taking a pride in the decisions we have made and priorities we have chosen. Life will be way easier and fun if we all can play our roles being ourselves. We all are trying to climb this high ladder in life. Take a short break and look at how far we have come, get a stock of what we have gained and lost.

For the journey ahead pack a fresh bag with learning’s and beautiful memories, forget regrets and mistakes. After all who wants to carry dirty laundry to a new journey?

This month’s project is create your own wall of fame.

Take a stock of memorable and beautiful moments out of your life. Collect what you have left of it and create a beautiful collage. It brings so much joy to heart and motivation to see our achievements in life at a glance. Give yourself the credit you deserve before you set out to achieve more and get too busy to acknowledge yourself!

What you will need

• Canvas
• Pallet knife
• Pencil
• Acrylic paints and glue
• Markers

• Glitters

• Sequence

  

Draw basic design using pencil. Using pallet knife cover the canvas with base paint, add a touch of various colors. Mix acrylic paints with glue and glitter and fill the design using paint brush. Be playful with colors, add sequence and glitters. When dry, touch up using markers. The base design is ready. You can now write quotes with markers and add pictures.

Thanks for visiting and have a colorful day!

Pumpkins - super fun and creative fall art project using finger paints!

What you will need

• Card stock
• Finger paints
• Crayons
• Paint brush
• Paper plate 

1. Pour paint in a paper plate. 
2. Generously dip index finger in paints and make impressions on card stock for pumpkins. 
3. For stems, dip paint brush in green paint and dab. You can also use markers or crayons.
4. Touch up using crayons.

Thanks for visiting and have a colorful day!

Be yourself!

Be you and then some!

For everybody else is already taken:)

Edible

Dream catcher!

My shirt is red tomato soup.

My pockets are green peas.

My blue jeans are grape popsicles.

My socks are cottage cheese.

I have vanilla ice cream shoes

with limp spaghetti bows.

I wish I could eat everything,

but then I'd have no clothes!

-Jecqueline Sweeney

For art work go to http://colormehappyworkshop.blogspot.com/2012/02/dream-catcher-my-daughters-colorful.html

Thanks for visiting and have a colorful day!

The symbolism of Ganesha!

Beautifully told by Sri Sri Ravi Shankar

"Ganesha is the formless Divinity - encapsulated in a magnificent form, for the benefit of the devotee.

Gan means group. The universe is a group of atoms and different energies. This universe would be in chaos if there was no supreme law governing these diverse groups of entities.

The Lord of all these groups of atoms and energies is Ganesha. He is the supreme consciousness that pervades all and brings order in this universe.

The essence of Ganesha is brought out beautifully by Adi Shankara.

Though Ganesha is worshiped as the elephant-headed God, the form (swaroop) is just to bring out the formless (parabrahma roopa). He is, ‘Ajam Nirvikalpam Niraakaaramekam.' This means Ganesha is Ajam (unborn), he is Nirvikalpa (attributeless), he is Niraakaar (formless) and he symbolizes the consciousness which is omnipresent.

Ganesha is the same energy which is the reason for this universe. It is the energy from which everything manifests and into which everything will dissolve.

We are all familiar with the story of how Ganesha became the elephant-headed God.

Parvati became dirty when she was celebrating with Shiva. When she realized this, she removed the dirt from her body and created a boy out of it. She then asked him to keep guard while she bathed.

When Shiva returned, the boy did not recognize him and obstructed his passage. So Shiva chopped off the boy’s head and entered.

Parvati was shocked when she saw this. She explained to Shiva that the boy was their son and pleaded with Shiva to save him at all costs.

Shiva then instructed his helpers to go and get the head of someone who was sleeping with their head pointing to the north. The helpers then got the head of an elephant, which Shiva affixed to the boy’s torso and Ganesha was born!

Does this story sound strange?

Why should Parvati have dirt on her body?

Didn’t the all-knowing Shiva recognize His own son?

Was Shiva, the epitome of peace, so short-tempered that he cut off the head of his own son? And why an elephant head on Ganesha?

There is a deeper meaning to all this.

Parvati is symbolic of festive energy. Her becoming dirty signifies that celebration can easily become Rajasik, or feverish and can take you away from your center.

Dirt is symbolic of ignorance, and Shiva is symbolic of the Supreme Innocence, Peace and Knowledge.

So when Ganesha obstructs the path of Shiva, this means that ignorance, which is an attribute of the head, does not recognize knowledge. Then knowledge has to overcome ignorance. This is the symbolism behind Shiva chopping off the boy’s head.

And why the elephant head?

Elephant represents both gyan shakti and karma shakti.

The principle qualities of the elephant are wisdom and effortlessness. The enormous head of the elephant signifies Wisdom and Knowledge.

Elephants don't walk around obstacles, neither are they stopped by them. They just remove them and walk ahead – signifying effortlessness.

So, when we worship Lord Ganesha these elephant qualities within us are kindled and we take on these qualities.
Ganesha's big belly represents generosity and total acceptance. Ganesha's upraised hand, depicting protection, means, 'Fear not, I am with you', and his lowered hand, palm facing outwards means endless giving as well as an invitation to bow down, this is symbolic of the fact that we will all dissolve into earth one day.

Ganesha also has a single tusk which signifies one-pointedness. Even the implements Ganesha wields are symbolic. He carries in his hands, the ‘Ankusa’ (signifying awakening) and the ‘Paasa’ (signifying control). With awakening, a lot of energy is released, which without proper control, can go haywire.

And why does Ganesha, the elephant-headed God travel on something as small as a mouse? Isn’t that so incongruous? Again there is symbolism that runs deep.

The mouse snips and nibbles away at ropes that bind. The mouse is like the mantra which can cut through sheaths and sheaths of ignorance, leading to the ultimate knowledge represented by Ganesha!

Our ancient Rishis were so deeply intelligent that they chose to express Divinity in terms of symbols rather than words, since words change over time, but symbols remain unchanged.

Let us keep the deep symbolism in mind as we experience the omnipresent in the form of the elephant God, yet be fully aware that Ganesha is very much within us. This is the wisdom we should carry as we celebrate Ganesh Chaturti."  http://www.artofliving.org/symbolism-ganesha

Wish you all a very Happy and Prosperous Ganesh Chaturthi!

For art project go to http://www.colormehappyworkshop.blogspot.com/2010/09/project-impressions.html
Thanks for visiting and have a joyful day!

Hard and easy!

Things are hard to start with...

learning makes them easy!!

Feeling apprehensive...

We feel insecure when we make our way into something new and unknown. New feels different only till we get used to it and then our mind finds  order even in chaos.

Next time, find yourself stuck and apprehensive..just remember how long it lasted when it happened before.

Eventually, everything does fall in place!!

Thanks for visiting and have a colorful day:)

In the moment of truth

We all tend to apply too little of what we know!

Little little little by little....

We all are evolving, with each little step forward in this journey of life....

Make book reading more fun with these follow up questions!

• What is the title of the book?
• Who is the author? ...Words by
• Who is the illustrator? ...Pictures by
• What was the book about? ...Message
• What is the main event in the book?
• Was there any conflict in the story? If yes, what was it, and how was it solved? How you would have solved it?
• Who was your favorite character?
• What was your favorite part of the book?
• How would you have changed the story? Why?

Books are fun! Asking follow up questions can also help us understand and appreciate feelings and thought process of our little ones. Staying involved is the best way to stay informed:)

Thanks for visiting and have a colorful day!

Onam Greetings!

Happy Onam everyone!

Have a colorful day:)

Keep faith!!

"Life is no straight and easy corridor along

which we travel free and unhampered,

but a maze of passages,

through which we must seek our way,

lost and confused, now and again

checked in a blind alley.

But always, if we have faith,

a door will open for us,

not perhaps one that we ourselves

would ever have thought of,

but one that will ultimately

prove good for us."

A.J.Cronin

Colorful fall - fun art and craft ideas!

Featured in Times-Republican

Colorful leaves, shiny apples, bright pumpkins, twigs, berries, acorns, bark, pine cones and nuts. Not to mention I am talking about the arrival of fall. Watching the trees turn color in all shades of yellow, orange, red and gold is a spectacular experience. The colors, texture and beauty of fall is so inspiring that it provides us with a wonderful opportunity to get indulged in inner self and appreciate the impermanence of everything.

Fall with its colorful beauty also compels us to be more creative and playful with what nature has to offer.

Here is a super fun and colorful art project to make fall trees using finger paints.

All you need is

• Finger paints

• Construction paper

• Card stock

• Glue

• Pipe cleaner

• Scissors

• Art paint brush

Using scissors cut tree trunk from construction paper. Stick it on card stock. Dip index finger in paints and press on to paper for leaves impression. Touch up construction paper using paints.

For flowers - Dip pipe cleaner in paints, press it on paper for stem. Make petals using art paint brush as shown. (Dip art paint brush in paints and press it on paper).

I am also listing few fun and easy ideas that are creative and educational.

• Collect before and after fall foliage leaves. It’s a great activity to get kids to observe, stay involved and excited.
•  Use leaves, apples and potatoes as stamps.
•  Glue pumpkin seeds for bookmarks and fall greetings.
•  Paint and roll corn cobs for fun impressions.
•  Paint acorn nuts and make faces on it using markers.
•  Paint a love you forever pumpkin and write a sweet message all over it using darker paints or markers for friends and family.
•  Tear construction paper in small pieces and make mosaic art. 
•  Colorful hand, fingers, thumb and feet impressions in fall colors.
•  Collect twigs, stick them on in shape of letters on a cardboard and make a name plate. Punch 2 holes and use jute twine to hang it. Stick leaves, acorns and barks around.
•  Collect pine cones, Peirce a hole in the stem and hang them using jute twine.

Thanks for visiting:)  Have a colorful day!