Peep Into My Other World

 

Leaves of yellow

turquoise and olive

An intake of breath

(oh the wondrous joy!)

As they fall, dancing 

to the song of the wind

A pause in the flurry

of a moments breath

When glitter settles

as the dragonfly rests

the lovely nirmala, humoring my obsessive desire for the absolute perfect shade of teal.

A glimpse into the Olie world 

vintage love

photo credits : my lovely friend, heena pari 

So much is said so easily through a few pictures and words. This is why I sometimes feel that talk is always just that, long winding talk. And the reason why I love this space and blogging so much. Words are understood so much better when written and time is taken to look and absorb and stories learned. 

Every collection has a mood, an inspiration. A slow translation from sketch to product. A short verse accompanies each and I want you to interpret it as you will. Feel that sudden joy, the upside down feeling in the stomach, goosebumps as you relive an experience and then bring it home and tell your stories again,

through a cushion cover perhaps, or a glowing lamp - complete with shadows and colours. 

More soon, I can't believe how wonderfully people have been reacting to Olie. Thank you for your love - it keeps the silly smiles pasted on and spirits high !

Our facebook page is up and I would love for you to stop by and say hello ! www.facebook.com/olieindia

Have a great week !

Dreaming a Dream

If I could capture the moon

And paint a sky full of blue

Fight scattered storms

To light the night

If I could skip along clouds

And hear the wind sing out loud

Rewrite the rhyme

And slow down time

I see a world

Where every boy and girl

Has all they need

To live free

Where everyone

Could share the sun

Life is only a dream

Dream with me.

-Jackie Evancho

A storm has been brewing, and I have been killing myself keeping it from you ! But the time has finally come when I can tell you all about what I've been up to the past year .

You know all about my love for Pondicherry. So many of my first posts were written while I lived there and drew inspiration from people and places in that little town.

But before I left Pondi, another thought was born. The simple lifestyle there, the magic in cycling down a cobbled street, the time we all had to appreciate every little thing, the love the people in the town have for the sea and its wild unpredictability - these were what made it beautiful - the little pleasures.
I remember sitting by the sea, with my sketchbook and pencil -scribbling away, wondering how I could turn my illustrations into an experience. Bring this magic and whimsy into peoples lives, maybe their homes.

And so a year later I get to tell you about Olie. Olie meaning light in tamil launches in Bangalore in a few weeks with its first collections of carecrafted accessories and lighting. My inspiration translated into reality. Now a mood, an ethereal beauty for you to experience in your homes and spaces. And I am so excited about it ! The illustration above is a mindmap of sorts, mapping the journey and thought process that led to Olie. But the real journey has been in the learning, and the people I've met and the good and bad experiences I've had the past couple of months. It already is such a long, rich story to tell - and I'm going to tell you all about it, between scribbles and pictures.

More soon !
much love to you !

Fierce Black

Today I finally pulled out this piece of charcoal I had bought a few weeks ago and picked up a piece of coloured paper and did a still life drawing. As always, when a piece of charcoal is in my hands, all hell breaks loose and I am covered in giant black smudges. But, it was fun and I enjoy the satisfaction of seeing these dark black , fierce lines coming to life under my hands. Im an angry soul these days, I dont think Chennai suits me very well.

The pine cones in the sketch are picked up from walks in Ooty, gorgeous ooty with its beautiful trees and pathways with ponies and flowers. Now thats a better place to live in.

Songs that make you sing

I rarely get to take a stroll in the big cities that I now live in and sit with my sketchbook and draw.
Last week, we went back to auroville to wind down for the weekend and a friend and I sat down to sketch our surroundings together - it is a distracted sketch, I have to admit . We were busy catching up and I was simply and happily dragging my brush across the paper. Such good times :)

It is sweltering here, but I have found this great mix of music http://8tracks.com/penkemeg/good-music-warm-weather-summer-fun . Its making my weekend so much sweeter ! Much love.

Leave you with this lovely quote, I dont think they are talking about the song really but more about life in general. deeper stuff :)

First Birthday!

front

back

This post is designed to make you go aww ! 

I got the chance to design for baby annika again, this time it was for her very first birthday and her awesome mom threw a big butterfly themed party ! She asked me to design a card for her and of course I did :) 

She sent me this adorable picture of annika with the card. Im all smiles now !

Happy weekend everybody!

Hope

There is no despair so absolute as that which comes of the first moments of our first great sorrow 

when we have not known what it is to have suffered and healed.

to have despaired and recovered hope. George Eliot

Losing someone you love is the most painful, gut wrenching emotion you can ever feel and it changes you for the rest of your life. When I read this quote by George Eliot, I blinked at the absolute truth behind it.

When In Bloom

When I started working on this wedding invite, I was back in Bangalore and its springtime! The city was at its most beautiful with flowers of every colour creating beautiful canopies everywhere. Made my heart sing with joy. Obviously, this has translated into the card :) Lovely Rangeeta pretty much gave me a free reign with her wedding card. The envelope is made of brown paper and the whole thing is going to be tied with lovely blue ribbon. Im waiting to get the actual thing in my hands and Ill take some pictures for you to see :)

In bloom!

Dose of Normal

what better way to express all the crazy you feel in a week than through a sketch with a pen.

The perfect doodle device. Its been a mad few weeks, ecstatic one day - and down in the dumps the next. think i need a dose of normal :) 

How are things going with you?