tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-73813768585289777922024-03-13T19:49:32.655+05:30Quilling Me SoftlyA blog dedicated to the wonderful art of quillingPritesh Dagurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01468523468719029075noreply@blogger.comBlogger227125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7381376858528977792.post-33164586930009070042018-04-01T14:57:00.000+05:302018-04-01T14:57:10.543+05:30Fifth Anniversary - Waterproofing of quilled jhumkas - Tutorial and Review<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Hello All,<br />
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Thank you so much for all the love you people have showered on us for past 5 years! It has been a roller coaster of a ride but what is life without some adventure thrown in!! Just like every year, we celebrate this anniversary with some love of sharing.........<br />
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All the crafters who make quilling jewellery groan (inwardly or otherwise) when their jewellery is compared with readymade, mass manufactured and impersonal alloy jewellery (most of it Made in China). We know the pain! Waterproofing of quilled jewellery has been its Achilles' Heel for a long time and most crafters struggle with answering the question: Will this jewellery get ruined when water falls on it?<br />
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We saw the problem for what it was. The customers want to make sure their money is worth it and the cost (of handmade jewellery) is justified too! So, we experimented with a host of resins and coating materials. The wall we kept hitting was: Importing the resin! Most resins available in India either had a short shelf like, or yellowed after some time! Since resin is susceptible to fire, it's transported via ships and that meant long waiting periods!<br />
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When Itsy Bitsy announced its line of resin (Lil Birdie: <span style="color: #444444; font-family: "roboto" , "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">https://goo.gl/2EacL3</span> ), we seized the opportunity to try it on our quilled jhumkas..........we were a bit apprehensive as the reviews we had received so far said that the resin had a lot of bubbles upon mixing. We have worked around that problem and this video demonstrates how to use the resin on quilled jhumkas....<br />
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Happy Quilling
Pritesh
PS: If my posts inspire you to create something on similar lines, I feel highly flattered. But please, do respect the effort I take in conceptualizing and executing, please give a direct link to my work when you are inspired by mine. Thanks for understanding........:-)<br />
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Pritesh Dagurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01468523468719029075noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7381376858528977792.post-23807211358266296062017-03-06T10:31:00.000+05:302017-03-06T10:31:58.363+05:30A castle and some sand<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Hello All,<br />
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One never really knows when a challenge will come one's way! When this frame order came, the deadline was highly inflexible - ONE WEEK (including courier) and there was no concept whatsoever. Starting from scratch becomes a little hard when you don't even know what to scratch! :D<br />
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The starting point finally became the initials of the family this frame goes out to. Their initials make the word SAND. So, sand castles, yay! Since the family is moving and will mostly likely be furnishing a new house soon, sand castle was all the more relevant :) The criterion was that the entire frame be colourful!<br />
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When time is short and order complex, beehive always comes to save the day! And since the last time we made a frame, we have acquired this additional expertise of polymer clay. Polymer clay saved the day by being both quick and 3-dimensional. The alphabets were sliced out of black clay and jazzed up with orange. While they baked, a simple castle was outlined using quillography and filled with beehiving. I was extremely lucky with the background paper as I had bought this beach themed paper almost 10 years ago and never did anything with it (talk about hoarding!!!)......<br />
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A work in progress photo (the only one that I took, unfortunately!). The alphabets aren't stuck there yet.....<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-nYKgVpYGdhk/WLzrKKtXE6I/AAAAAAABMqk/Sk9rO7fqN3kxxGfXqybu3VdmQv8BfO6-ACLcB/s1600/16938771_1453359828032271_6267739553285564907_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-nYKgVpYGdhk/WLzrKKtXE6I/AAAAAAABMqk/Sk9rO7fqN3kxxGfXqybu3VdmQv8BfO6-ACLcB/s320/16938771_1453359828032271_6267739553285564907_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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And here it is (after a burnt night!)......<br />
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The extra shaded touch is acrylic paints 'rubbed' onto the beehive pattern :)<br />
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Happy Quilling<br />
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Pritesh<br />
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PS: If my posts inspire you to create something on similar lines, I feel highly flattered. But please, do respect the effort I take in conceptualizing and executing, please give a direct link to my work when you are inspired by mine. Thanks for understanding........:-)</div>
Pritesh Dagurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01468523468719029075noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7381376858528977792.post-64317401135658589292016-12-27T13:45:00.001+05:302017-05-30T10:34:59.347+05:30Entrepreneurship in Crafts...........some pointers.........<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-size: large;">Point 1: Find Your Strength</span></div>
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<span class="_5afx" style="color: #365899; cursor: pointer; direction: ltr; font-family: inherit; text-decoration: none;"><a class="_58cn" data-ft="{"tn":"*N","type":104}" href="https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/entrepreneurialgyaan?source=feed_text&story_id=10154167327401884" style="color: #365899; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; text-decoration: none;"><span aria-label="hashtag" class="_58cl _5afz" style="color: #4267b2; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; text-decoration: none;">#</span><span class="_58cm" style="color: #365899; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; text-decoration: none;">EntrepreneurialGyaan</span></a></span><br />
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<a class="_58cn" data-ft="{"tn":"*N","type":104}" href="https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/findyourstrength?source=feed_text&story_id=10154167327401884" style="color: #365899; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; text-decoration: none;"><span class="_5afx" style="direction: ltr; font-family: inherit;"><span aria-label="hashtag" class="_58cl _5afz" style="color: #4267b2; font-family: inherit; unicode-bidi: isolate;">#</span><span class="_58cm" style="font-family: inherit;">FindYourStrength</span></span></a></div>
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Let us assume, that at this stage, you've decided to a reasonable degree that you are either tired of your current job (or lack of it) or you are feeling adventurous enough to seek new horizons.</div>
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The first stage of "deciding" is most likely to be: What do I start up in?</div>
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It's a reasonable (and the toughest) question. This reminds me of this quote by Jack Ma: The ultimate course of your life won't be decided by what you do at your job. It'll be decided by what you do outside of it (or something to that effect, I don't recall exactly)......</div>
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A question to ask yourself (and seek the answer to before you plunge head-first into any venture) is: What am I good at? Or What can I become good at? OR, What do I feel so motivated about that I want to be good at it?</div>
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I'll cite my example. I practiced various forms of Art almost all my life, alongside my 'mainstream' work at any time (School, College, Masters, PhD, Post-Doc times). Sketching, Rangoli, Painting, Quilling, Embroidery, Cooking, Baking, to name a few. And I felt an equal lack of confidence in all of them.......just knowing something isn't enough to get "good" at it. One must feel the confidence (to a reasonable degree) to convert it convincingly into a profession.</div>
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And at this stage, a very important question to ask yourself is: Will "I" buy the thing/service I've made/offered, if someone else was selling it to me (we will deal with the pricing issue later)?</div>
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And no, DO NOT think about whether you'd buy it for charity, or out of sympathy, or support. Will you REALLY REALLY buy it for its artistic value? If your answer is no, you need to get better at it, before you can convince someone else to buy it.</div>
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Please know that the world out there is a reservoir of talent. People do incredible things! With incredible consistency. If you wish to stand a chance at carving out a niche for yourself, the first step is to find out what you niche IS (or is going to be). Frankly, I still don't know mine. I'm just going with the flow......but I did know one thing. I was going to EVOLVE, always, forever........the day you stop evolving, you become dead and soon, a fossil! A relic from the bygone era.......</div>
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So, for deciding, do turn to your strongest sounding boards. People who will give you brutally honest feedback. I happened to be lucky to get one camouflaged as my husband.......but not everyone is likely to be.</div>
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So, seek out that friend/relative/confidante you trust with pointing you in the right direction, whether you like it or not. THOSE are the people who will help you figure out where your passion AND strengths are likely to be. The people who aren't mere bystanders when you grow, but the ones who will hold the ropes when you're clinging to them for life. The ACTIVE participants in your personal and professional growth. Not the who "don't mimd" that you succeed, but the ones who motivate you to do so......and celebrate it like their own.</div>
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And I'll finish it with an anecdote from my life....</div>
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This once, I made a Rangoli, which I deemed the best I ever made. It had intricate motifs, applied 'thought process' and so on. It even stood first in a competition. I showed it to my (then not) husband and he casually remarked: There is nothing great about it. It has no "feel" to it. It's just a beautiful execution of a lifeless idea.</div>
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I was affronted. I even went to the extent of thinking he was unappreciative of my efforts and thought I was seeing the wrong guy. I didn't speak with him for days! But he stood his ground. And after days of thinking, I realized that he probably was right. And THAT led to this, the best Rangoli I've made till date (it is my personal favourite)! When he handed me the image, he narrated a story. I FELT the story and I worked on this Rangoli for FIVE days straight.</div>
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Because, for the first time, I FELT my Art.......and it invoked feelings in others <span class="_47e3 _5mfr" style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 0; margin: 0px 1px; vertical-align: middle;" title="smile emoticon"><img alt="" aria-hidden="1" class="img" height="16" src="https://static.xx.fbcdn.net/images/emoji.php/v6/f4c/1/16/1f642.png" style="border: 0px; vertical-align: -3px;" width="16" /><span aria-hidden="1" class="_7oe" style="display: inline-block; font-family: inherit; font-size: 0px; width: 0px;">:)</span></span></div>
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So, is your Art invoking feelings? In you? In others?</div>
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Maybe, it's time to start groping for that one thing that moves you.......and moves others when they see it <span class="_47e3 _5mfr" style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 0; margin: 0px 1px; vertical-align: middle;" title="smile emoticon"><img alt="" aria-hidden="1" class="img" height="16" src="https://static.xx.fbcdn.net/images/emoji.php/v6/f4c/1/16/1f642.png" style="border: 0px; vertical-align: -3px;" width="16" /><span aria-hidden="1" class="_7oe" style="display: inline-block; font-family: inherit; font-size: 0px; width: 0px;">:)</span></span></div>
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Next instalment: Skill Development</div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Point 2: Skill Development</span></div>
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<span class="_5afx" style="color: #365899; cursor: pointer; direction: ltr; font-family: inherit; text-decoration: none;"><a class="_58cn" data-ft="{"tn":"*N","type":104}" href="https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/entrepreneurialgyaan?source=feed_text&story_id=10154171429051884" style="color: #365899; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; text-decoration: none;"><span aria-label="hashtag" class="_58cl _5afz" style="color: #4267b2; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; text-decoration: none;">#</span><span class="_58cm" style="color: #365899; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; text-decoration: none;">EntrepreneurialGyaan</span></a></span><br />
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<a class="_58cn" data-ft="{"tn":"*N","type":104}" href="https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/skillacquisition?source=feed_text&story_id=10154171429051884" style="color: #365899; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; text-decoration: none;"><span class="_5afx" style="direction: ltr; font-family: inherit;"><span aria-label="hashtag" class="_58cl _5afz" style="color: #4267b2; font-family: inherit; unicode-bidi: isolate;">#</span><span class="_58cm" style="font-family: inherit;">SkillAcquisition</span></span></a> <a class="_58cn" data-ft="{"tn":"*N","type":104}" href="https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/skilldevelopment?source=feed_text&story_id=10154171429051884" style="color: #365899; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; text-decoration: none;"><span class="_5afx" style="direction: ltr; font-family: inherit;"><span aria-label="hashtag" class="_58cl _5afz" style="color: #4267b2; font-family: inherit; unicode-bidi: isolate;">#</span><span class="_58cm" style="font-family: inherit;">SkillDevelopment</span></span></a></div>
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So!!! To continue the discussion on entrepreneurship.......</div>
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At this stage, I'm assuming you've figured out or decided what your calling/passion is and you're ready for taking the plunge.. ....</div>
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Here comes the stage where you need to decide how you're going to acquire the skill(s) you need or hone them, if you already have the basics. A good place to start is our dear old Google. Start with the very basic search on what the skill means, its History, development, the stalwarts of that profession, your idol and then, teachers (if you want to learn it from someone else).</div>
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There are two ways to go about skill development: Teaching yourself or Learning from a teacher. Both of them have their pros and cons. I'll take the teacher bit first because self-learning is a far more elaborate topic.</div>
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Once you decide upon the skill you need to develop, do a search on the people (nearby first) who teach it. For example, quilling. Find out who teaches quilling and till what skill level around you. One pointer to note here is motivation and inspiration. Does your prospective teacher's work motivate you to learn quilling? Does the teacher's inspire you to gain expertise in the field? If not, search till you find the one you're willing to invest time and money in. Research about the teacher, their method of teaching, what they believe in etc. Being in sync with your first teacher can be a make-or-break thing for your aspirations. Keep your questions ready and be thorough. Make full use of the opportunity and learn sincerely.</div>
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The advantage here is: Structured learning, systematic approach through levels of difficulty, ready - made answers to most of the questions.</div>
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Disadvantage: It can narrow your point of view if you go for project-wise classes (as opposed to technique-wise) and lack of access to good teachers (specially in more remote areas) can limit the level of skill you can acquire.</div>
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The second method (and my preference, because I am terrible at learning in a class type of setup) is self-help. This type is for those who are pig-headed when it comes to their dreams. And I definitely am!</div>
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This will involve a LOT more hard-work because there are no "one person/video/tutorial who know it all" out there. You're on your own to seek answers and mostly, learn things the hard way. I had an upper hand here, because I had a firm grasp of chemistry knowledge and decades of experience with a multitude of art media. But if you're new, this is an uphill task. Experenting with various media to know what works for you and how well is both time-consuming and expensive.</div>
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There are so many ways to teach Yourself and saying "I don't know" is criminal in this day and age. Thousands of helpful crafters have FILLED the Internet with tutorials. Don't underestimate the power of your fingertips combined with the power of Google/YouTube/Pinterest!!!!!</div>
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If you're not the self-driven kind, I'd recommend, go for the relatively easier option - learn from someone who is. Who has done the research, the one who's an expert, the one who has most of the answers.....</div>
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Once again, an anecdote to wrap it all up.....</div>
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I once had a prospective student who studied in the US, did her Masters and was haggling with me for "discount" on a workshop, saying my workshop was too expensive. I explained to her in many ways that it's a workshop meant to empower you with knowledge enough to become a professional jewellery maker, just like her Masters degree was, for which she never uttered the word 'discount'. If you're looking for something less intensive, I can recommend someone else whose workshop is more your budget. Her reply : I don't want to become a professional, I just want to learn it enough to pursue as a hobby and I want to learn from the best teacher (humble bow for praising me, Lady). So, reduce the cost to half (another humble bow for belittling my hard work and dedication right in the next sentence).</div>
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I humbly replied: Okay, I will reduce it to half. But I'll speak only alternate words of every sentence. That'll be enough to make you a hobby jewellery maker.</div>
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She hung up, and I got labelled as snobbish, unhelpful, too full of myself.....and a lot of other colourful names <span class="_47e3 _5mfr" style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 0; margin: 0px 1px; vertical-align: middle;" title="wink emoticon"><img alt="" aria-hidden="1" class="img" height="16" src="https://static.xx.fbcdn.net/images/emoji.php/v6/f57/1/16/1f609.png" style="border: 0px; vertical-align: -3px;" width="16" /><span aria-hidden="1" class="_7oe" style="display: inline-block; font-family: inherit; font-size: 0px; width: 0px;">;)</span></span></div>
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Hope the post helped you all....</div>
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Next topic: Finances</div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Point 3: Money</span></div>
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<a class="_58cn" data-ft="{"tn":"*N","type":104}" href="https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/entrepreneurialgyaan?source=feed_text&story_id=10154195781186884" style="color: #365899; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; text-decoration: none;"><span class="_5afx" style="direction: ltr; font-family: inherit;"><span aria-label="hashtag" class="_58cl _5afz" style="color: #4267b2; font-family: inherit; unicode-bidi: isolate;">#</span><span class="_58cm" style="font-family: inherit;">EntrepreneurialGyaan</span></span></a><br />
<a class="_58cn" data-ft="{"tn":"*N","type":104}" href="https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/instalment3?source=feed_text&story_id=10154195781186884" style="color: #365899; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; text-decoration: none;"><span class="_5afx" style="direction: ltr; font-family: inherit;"><span aria-label="hashtag" class="_58cl _5afz" style="color: #4267b2; font-family: inherit; unicode-bidi: isolate;">#</span><span class="_58cm" style="font-family: inherit;">Instalment3</span></span></a><br />
<a class="_58cn" data-ft="{"tn":"*N","type":104}" href="https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/financespart1?source=feed_text&story_id=10154195781186884" style="color: #365899; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; text-decoration: none;"><span class="_5afx" style="direction: ltr; font-family: inherit;"><span aria-label="hashtag" class="_58cl _5afz" style="color: #4267b2; font-family: inherit; unicode-bidi: isolate;">#</span><span class="_58cm" style="font-family: inherit;">FinancesPart1</span></span></a></div>
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Aha! So, you've decided what you want to do, you've found your niche...........now, come the thorny issue of money. Unpleasant though it is, money is an important thing to think about before you start-up. The difference between a "hobby" craft and "professional craft" is that in hobby, you do not have to worry too much about 'return of investment'. In profession, you have to. Because at least one out of the three are at stake: Your livelihood, Your Independence, Your relationships (of any kind!).</div>
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Yes! Relations break over money!</div>
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So, there are various sources of money one can think of while starting up. The most popular I've seen so far is self-funding or funding by husband/wife. For pride reasons, I opted for first. I kept investing a small part of my income (from my research jobs in India, Belgium and Sweden) into crafts, and built a tool collection over a course of almost 10 years.</div>
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You may need to make a big investment in the beginning to just get off the ground. You can try using up your savings, or to borrow (on a strictly returnable basis) from your spouse or some relative you trust. BEFORE you borrow, set the terms and conditions for both investment and return straight. Specially, return.</div>
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I can't emphasise on this point enough because if there is no set deadline, we tend to lull ourselves into a sense of false security. We forget about the "returns" we need to or ought to get from our hard-work. And when the money isn't returned in time (even to your own account), the range of emotions can vary from feeling like a pile of dung to guilt because of sitting on someone else's money.</div>
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NEVER ever work for free, not even for relatives and if there are people expecting you to work for free, they can't be your well-wishers. Your TIME is the most important investment, always charge at least for that (I'll come to the pricing issue later)......and if there is someone exploiting you or disrespecting your effort, they need to leave your life........pronto. SIMPLE!</div>
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The trouble with "free work" is "setting a precedent". Once you set the precedent, one freeloader will invite another and so on. It'll get THAT much harder to say no later. Set your boundaries clearly and never budge. Principles are going to be an important factor in Future.</div>
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The best way to work on return of investment is to dedicate yourself a "salary", irrespective of the investment (how much and wherever it is from). Once that rule is formulated, seriousness about the work creeps in automatically (unless you're cryogenically frozen!).......respect that. Wake up with goals, set goals, modify them if need be and STICK to them!</div>
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And yet again, an anecdote to end (there will be a second part of this post, after I've dealt with quality control issue)....</div>
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When I was in Pune, I never assigned myself a "salary".........things were just moving. But when I moved to Bangalore, the responsibility to "run the house" was assigned to me. My husband was very clear: No equal contribution, no equal rights! And that's the BEST thing to have happened to me. I started planning my finances, investments, I became disciplined and I became feverishly dedicated to my work. And well, <a class="profileLink" data-hovercard-prefer-more-content-show="1" data-hovercard="/ajax/hovercard/page.php?id=568707783164151" href="https://www.facebook.com/Artzire/" style="color: #365899; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; text-decoration: none;">Art'zire</a> is here for all to see <span class="_47e3 _5mfr" style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 0; margin: 0px 1px; vertical-align: middle;" title="smile emoticon"><img alt="" aria-hidden="1" class="img" height="16" src="https://static.xx.fbcdn.net/images/emoji.php/v6/f4c/1/16/1f642.png" style="border: 0px; vertical-align: -3px;" width="16" /><span aria-hidden="1" class="_7oe" style="display: inline-block; font-family: inherit; font-size: 0px; width: 0px;">:)</span></span> So, let someone kick your butt and set you to work! It's a GOOD thing! <span class="_47e3 _5mfr" style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 0; margin: 0px 1px; vertical-align: middle;" title="wink emoticon"><img alt="" aria-hidden="1" class="img" height="16" src="https://static.xx.fbcdn.net/images/emoji.php/v6/f57/1/16/1f609.png" style="border: 0px; vertical-align: -3px;" width="16" /><span aria-hidden="1" class="_7oe" style="display: inline-block; font-family: inherit; font-size: 0px; width: 0px;">;)</span></span></div>
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Next few topics (I may vary the order a bit):</div>
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Quality Control</div>
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Time management (specially for women with children)</div>
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Pricing</div>
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Publicity</div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Point 4: Pricing</span></div>
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<a class="_58cn" data-ft="{"tn":"*N","type":104}" href="https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/entrepreneurialgyaan?source=feed_text&story_id=10154222693856884" style="color: #365899; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; text-decoration: none;"><span class="_5afx" style="direction: ltr; font-family: inherit;"><span aria-label="hashtag" class="_58cl _5afz" style="color: #4267b2; font-family: inherit; unicode-bidi: isolate;">#</span><span class="_58cm" style="font-family: inherit;">EntrepreneurialGyaan</span></span></a><br />
<a class="_58cn" data-ft="{"tn":"*N","type":104}" href="https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/instalment4?source=feed_text&story_id=10154222693856884" style="color: #365899; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; text-decoration: none;"><span class="_5afx" style="direction: ltr; font-family: inherit;"><span aria-label="hashtag" class="_58cl _5afz" style="color: #4267b2; font-family: inherit; unicode-bidi: isolate;">#</span><span class="_58cm" style="font-family: inherit;">Instalment4</span></span></a><br />
<a class="_58cn" data-ft="{"tn":"*N","type":104}" href="https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/pricing?source=feed_text&story_id=10154222693856884" style="color: #365899; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; text-decoration: none;"><span class="_5afx" style="direction: ltr; font-family: inherit;"><span aria-label="hashtag" class="_58cl _5afz" style="color: #4267b2; font-family: inherit; unicode-bidi: isolate;">#</span><span class="_58cm" style="font-family: inherit;">Pricing</span></span></a><br />
<a class="_58cn" data-ft="{"tn":"*N","type":104}" href="https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/longpostalert?source=feed_text&story_id=10154222693856884" style="color: #365899; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; text-decoration: none;"><span class="_5afx" style="direction: ltr; font-family: inherit;"><span aria-label="hashtag" class="_58cl _5afz" style="color: #4267b2; font-family: inherit; unicode-bidi: isolate;">#</span><span class="_58cm" style="font-family: inherit;">LongPostAlert</span></span></a></div>
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Ah that thorny issue of pricing!!!!!</div>
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There are many ways to go about pricing simply because "hand-made" comes with this side effect that it's inherently hard to quantify "effort". A lot of people will think you're over-pricing. Many others will think you're under-pricing. The factor that is going to be most important here is: SELF-ASSESSMENT.</div>
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There are two semi-quantitative ways of calculating 'effort' input. One is "Top down" approach and the other, "Bottom up" (I have <a class="profileLink" data-hovercard-prefer-more-content-show="1" data-hovercard="/ajax/hovercard/user.php?id=642487655" href="https://www.facebook.com/ggananth" style="color: #365899; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; text-decoration: none;">Ananthakrishnan</a> to thank, for that piece of Mathematics) <span class="_47e3 _5mfr" style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 0; margin: 0px 1px; vertical-align: middle;" title="smile emoticon"><img alt="" aria-hidden="1" class="img" height="16" src="https://www.facebook.com/images/emoji.php/v6/f4c/1/16/1f642.png" style="border: 0px; vertical-align: -3px;" width="16" /><span aria-hidden="1" class="_7oe" style="display: inline-block; font-family: inherit; font-size: 0px; width: 0px;">:)</span></span></div>
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Coming to top down first, let us say you want to make X amount of money per month and you will be working n hours per day and y days per month. Your rough daily expected income then becomes X divided by y. Let's say that comes to N. N = X/y. Per hour income (expected) then is H = N/n. Let's say H = Rs. 100. So, now, you expect to earn Rs. 100 per hour. For you to earn Rs. 100 per hour, do you have the requisite skill? Material? Focus? Time? Factor in all these things before you arrive at a number.</div>
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The other approach is: Bottom up. Decide upon how much you want to price your effort at and arrive at a rough monthly salary of yours. Does that meet your target/requirement? If not, see where you can tweak. Should you work longer? Or do higher skill work? That's a call you need to take.</div>
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To give an estimate, I work (or target to) around 6 hours (of actual hand-work) every day. But there is a LOT of extra work that I need to do, like packing parcels, writing invoices, talking to people, designing, doing routine things like pouring resin, stringing necklaces, attaching hooks, replying to Whatsapp messages etc.</div>
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Now, ALL these don't require the same amount of effort/skill/concentration. Keep that in mind, and don't use the same yardstick for all these. Make rough brackets for how much time you spend on these activities per day and how much you price these activities at (because here, LITERALLY, time is money). All these activities add up to your eventual goal of running your own business.</div>
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Material cost, of course is a tricky issue again. Locally available material is likely to be priced higher, because of all the extra costs involved (middlemen making money, travel times to get those, courier costs etc). Larger quantities come at cheaper prices per unit but entail big investments. My suggestion would be start small and scale according to qualities. There are multiple jewellery supplies groups all over the place, use them well. Make it a habit to look for bargains, clearances, sales etc. But please, don't ASK for reduction on prices from sellers as that is a) impolite b) bad for their business. If you can't afford it, move on, find an alternative sources. Just like you, they are out to earn their living too.</div>
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Always try to also create a slight surplus, for random and sudden expenses. Like, investing in new (and upgraded) raw material, experimenting with things you haven't tried, travel, Internet, Printing, corpus etc...</div>
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So, all in all, pricing is never straight-forward. You need to develop an estimate of your hard-work, based on how good you are. Finesse is a VERY important factor, even higher than the quality of findings you use. Two people making literally making a near-same piece can fetch two completely different prices because of the over-all finishing of the piece. Leaving loose ends in your work can be lethal to your work. Odd mistakes are all right, but a shabby finish will garner you negative reputation and word travels fast. I'd rather be expensive and unaffordable than be cheap and shabby.</div>
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And the last (but, of course, never the least) is the market you're catering to. My experience has been very varied in dealing with different demographics. You need to find the audience who would be willing to pay for the effort you put. And this TAKES TIME. Don't expect overnight miracles. You need to reach out to people, to make yourself visible and to create a niche where you're pretty much the only one who can do that particular thing in that particular with that type of finesse. That's the fast lane to both recognition and to earning your due.</div>
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I'll conclude this with an example where SKILL ruled the roost. One of my all time favourite pieces: Konark. This one was my crowning glory when I made it (I felt like rubbish after I made it, because all I could see was mistakes but that is beside the point).</div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-u6wKkSD5pP4/WG84rSULMhI/AAAAAAABMdQ/z_i-4VIe9AMDe3lB7WLJ0emKN6z2T87kQCLcB/s1600/New%2Bfolder.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-u6wKkSD5pP4/WG84rSULMhI/AAAAAAABMdQ/z_i-4VIe9AMDe3lB7WLJ0emKN6z2T87kQCLcB/s320/New%2Bfolder.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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The total input in this piece: ~ 75 g of polymer clay<br />
Stringing: Swarovski pearls<br />
Dangler: Highly polished carnelian (which was a prized find at Rs. 625 per stone, I could only afford 4 of them)<br />
And then, the killer: TIME.</div>
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I spent nearly 16 hours making it, and then, around 1 hour shading it (with an extremely expensive Pearl-Ex mica pigment and charcoals in 4 different shades). It was baked for almost 40 minutes, glazed using (another very expensive) varnish (took almost 25 minutes to glaze it) and then, strung for about 45 minutes. The piece has Swarovski pearls and crystals liberally added in it. The hook was gold plated silver as well. The chaand baalis were another 1.5 hours EACH and have Swarovski pearls on the outline. The studs are one of the most expensive you can find too <span class="_47e3 _5mfr" style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 0; margin: 0px 1px; vertical-align: middle;" title="smile emoticon"><img alt="" aria-hidden="1" class="img" height="16" src="https://www.facebook.com/images/emoji.php/v6/f4c/1/16/1f642.png" style="border: 0px; vertical-align: -3px;" width="16" /><span aria-hidden="1" class="_7oe" style="display: inline-block; font-family: inherit; font-size: 0px; width: 0px;">:)</span></span></div>
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The other inputs: Makin's Clay Extruder, Shaping tools, Needle Tool, Ball tools, X-Axto knife, Pasta Machine (all of them cost an Earth and do need replacements after varying lengths of time)</div>
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In the end, someone actually messaged me to ask if I could make something "similar" in a budget of Rs. 800-1000 <span class="_47e3 _5mfr" style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 0; margin: 0px 1px; vertical-align: middle;" title="smile emoticon"><img alt="" aria-hidden="1" class="img" height="16" src="https://www.facebook.com/images/emoji.php/v6/f4c/1/16/1f642.png" style="border: 0px; vertical-align: -3px;" width="16" /><span aria-hidden="1" class="_7oe" style="display: inline-block; font-family: inherit; font-size: 0px; width: 0px;">:)</span></span> I smiled and never replied <span class="_47e3 _5mfr" style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 0; margin: 0px 1px; vertical-align: middle;" title="smile emoticon"><img alt="" aria-hidden="1" class="img" height="16" src="https://www.facebook.com/images/emoji.php/v6/f4c/1/16/1f642.png" style="border: 0px; vertical-align: -3px;" width="16" /><span aria-hidden="1" class="_7oe" style="display: inline-block; font-family: inherit; font-size: 0px; width: 0px;">:)</span></span></div>
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The next time you decide to "nudge" someone out of competition by giving "best prices", just realize that you didn't hurt them, you just reduced your own value (or the value of your effort) in your own eyes (and your client's) </div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Point 5: Social Media</span></div>
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<a class="_58cn" data-ft="{"tn":"*N","type":104}" href="https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/entrepreneurialgyaan?source=feed_text&story_id=10154354433061884" style="color: #365899; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; text-decoration-line: none;"><span class="_5afx" style="direction: ltr; font-family: inherit;"><span aria-label="hashtag" class="_58cl _5afz" style="color: #4267b2; font-family: inherit; unicode-bidi: isolate;">#</span><span class="_58cm" style="font-family: inherit;">EntrepreneurialGyaan</span></span></a><br />
<span class="_5afx" style="color: #365899; cursor: pointer; direction: ltr; font-family: inherit;"><a class="_58cn" data-ft="{"tn":"*N","type":104}" href="https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/part6?source=feed_text&story_id=10154354433061884" style="color: #365899; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; text-decoration-line: none;"><span aria-label="hashtag" class="_58cl _5afz" style="color: #4267b2; font-family: inherit; unicode-bidi: isolate;">#</span><span class="_58cm" style="font-family: inherit;">Part</span></a>5</span><br />
<a class="_58cn" data-ft="{"tn":"*N","type":104}" href="https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/visibility?source=feed_text&story_id=10154354433061884" style="color: #365899; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; text-decoration-line: none;"><span class="_5afx" style="direction: ltr; font-family: inherit;"><span aria-label="hashtag" class="_58cl _5afz" style="color: #4267b2; font-family: inherit; unicode-bidi: isolate;">#</span><span class="_58cm" style="font-family: inherit;">Visibility</span></span></a><br />
<a class="_58cn" data-ft="{"tn":"*N","type":104}" href="https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/socialmediaandcommunication?source=feed_text&story_id=10154354433061884" style="color: #365899; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; text-decoration-line: none;"><span class="_5afx" style="direction: ltr; font-family: inherit;"><span aria-label="hashtag" class="_58cl _5afz" style="color: #4267b2; font-family: inherit; unicode-bidi: isolate;">#</span><span class="_58cm" style="font-family: inherit;">SocialMediaAndCommunication</span></span></a><br />
<a class="_58cn" data-ft="{"tn":"*N","type":104}" href="https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/socialmediaetiquettes?source=feed_text&story_id=10154354433061884" style="color: #365899; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; text-decoration-line: none;"><span class="_5afx" style="direction: ltr; font-family: inherit;"><span aria-label="hashtag" class="_58cl _5afz" style="color: #4267b2; font-family: inherit; unicode-bidi: isolate;">#</span><span class="_58cm" style="font-family: inherit;">SocialMediaEtiquettes</span></span></a></div>
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To take the thread forward (after a pretty long break), today I tackle the issue of making yourself visible. When you start out, pretty much no one knows you. Convincing someone to trust you (with their money and support, and in the best case, encouragement) is, by no means, trivial.</div>
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Social media is a powerful way to make your presence felt, but the media has a short memory. The "timelines" move and extinguish the bottom layers faster than you can bat your eyelids. So, one needs to "stay" visible, and that is both a taxing and time consuming exercise.</div>
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Let me start one by one........</div>
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Facebook! The ONE medium that can connect you to people you've never even heard of (six degrees of separation yaha!), or who've never heard of you! One of the first steps would be to create a "Page". Pages are different from "Profiles" you create. A profile is for and by a person, and it maintained by one individual.</div>
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Pages, on the other hand, can be managed by multiple people, all of whom can have different or same roles. With the advancement of Pages category on FB, it's almost criminal to not own one, if you intend to build a business. This is specially valid for businesses where "images" play a crucial part (e.g. jewellery, fashion, event management etc.).</div>
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So, my first recommendation would be to open a page for your business. There are various categories in Pages, like Photos, About, Contact etc. Figure out who is going to manage the page and how. Upload photos of your products, preferably category wise (if you're a reseller specially, so that navigation is easy).</div>
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Similar image-base platforms are provided by Pinterest, Instagram, Twitter and a host of others. Create profile(s) in these pages, wherever you wish to be visible.</div>
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Now comes the part where you've to figure out HOW to use social media to your advantage............or rather, how not to be on Social Media.</div>
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*** It may be a good idea to send out messages or invitations to people in your friends list to take a look at and like your page. But I'd strongly recommend it: DO IT ONLY ONCE. It's rude to badger people with requests to come to your page and like it and you'd come across as a pesky character. It will most likely work the other way round for you!</div>
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*** Once people like your page, they will automatically receive updates on their timelines (unless they choose to "unfollow" your page, an effort most people don't make unless they're put off by your repeated efforts to entice them).</div>
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*** Tell your story! This is a very important factor, particularly in "hand-made" business! Most people have no idea what goes into a particular piece. E.g. if I write "Wuilling jhumka, hand-painted, costs Rs. 500", a standard response I'm likely to get is, It's just paper so why is it so expensive?</div>
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Now, let me give an alternative description: A quilling jhumka that took us 7 steps, 3 days and almost 2 hours of painting with thinnest brushes and best of the best paints! Not to mention, with a Swarovski pearl on top and completely water-proof. Let us tell you that we've been asked on more than one occasion if they're made of clay! May we interest you in one?</div>
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And let me tell you, we sell quilling jhumkas for Rs. 500 (and more also) routinely! Because if you don't tell people what goes into it, they will never know! People may forget the product, but they will never forget the story!</div>
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*** Join relevant "Groups", where your work is likely to be understood, appreciated, critiqued or bought (or some/all of them!). Joining Groups can open you up to like-minded individuals with more expertise in the said fields. Please make sure you ALSO help newbies like you, once you're reasonably experienced yourself.</div>
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*** Now, a BIG one: Asking questions. This is one topic I will be extensively talking about because it is such an important one. Whether you're asking a person or general members of a Group, make sure your question isn't a "demanding" one. People post a LOT of information out of goodwill. It's a privilege and NOT your right to get that information from them. Use these Fora well and please, the bottom line (of asking AND replying to questions) should be: RESPECT.</div>
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*** It's a good idea to go slow on image posting online. Too much can be too much, literally. Space out your posts. People are more likely to sppreciate your work when it's one image at a time. No one has the time or inclination (or both) to browse through 197 photos. Facebook pages gives you this useful option of "scheduling" your posts. I use it all the time to schedule posts for days in advance, sometimes. So, every time you see a post on Art'zire, it's not necessary that I'm posting it live <span class="_47e3 _5mfr" style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 0; margin: 0px 1px; vertical-align: middle;" title="wink emoticon"><img alt="" aria-hidden="1" class="img" height="16" src="https://www.facebook.com/images/emoji.php/v9/f57/1/16/1f609.png" style="border: 0px; vertical-align: -3px;" width="16" /><span aria-hidden="1" class="_7oe" style="display: inline-block; font-family: inherit; font-size: 0px; width: 0px;">;)</span></span></div>
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*** Seller etiquette is an important thing! Be polite and understand that a lot of people have very little idea about what they want. Often, specially in customization, they may have a vague idea of what their jewellery would look like. Be there to guide them, help them visualize and if necessary, draw it for them to be able to see. It helps to be patient and empathetic. Not everyone is an expert and being guided gently will make them feel confident. It works 100% of the time <span class="_47e3 _5mfr" style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 0; margin: 0px 1px; vertical-align: middle;" title="smile emoticon"><img alt="" aria-hidden="1" class="img" height="16" src="https://www.facebook.com/images/emoji.php/v9/f4c/1/16/1f642.png" style="border: 0px; vertical-align: -3px;" width="16" /><span aria-hidden="1" class="_7oe" style="display: inline-block; font-family: inherit; font-size: 0px; width: 0px;">:)</span></span></div>
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*** Talking to and shutting out rude people. The point I make above may sound like I'm advocating trivializing yourself. No, I'm not! What I mean is, give people benefit of the doubt. BUT, if someone is being rude, condescending etc, be firm. You are ALSO a human being with values, feelings and skills. There will always be mistakes and misunderstandings, but that gives no one the right to walk all over you!</div>
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*** Detaching yourselves: This is a very important factor of being on Social media. I'd always advise that stay away from spats, judgments and conflict on the media. It is very tempting to join the bandwagon but seriously, unless dragged into it, you're probably viewing only one side of the story. That's unfair, to say the least. If you have issues, sort them out with the person you have issues with. Making a media drama will only ostracize you in the short-memory community on Social Media. Keep your "opinions" to your profile and "information" on your Page.</div>
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In short, Social media is the best thing to have happened to you, if you know how to use it well. Just remember, most people are good people. Be good to everyone <span class="_47e3 _5mfr" style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 0; margin: 0px 1px; vertical-align: middle;" title="smile emoticon"><img alt="" aria-hidden="1" class="img" height="16" src="https://www.facebook.com/images/emoji.php/v9/f4c/1/16/1f642.png" style="border: 0px; vertical-align: -3px;" width="16" /><span aria-hidden="1" class="_7oe" style="display: inline-block; font-family: inherit; font-size: 0px; width: 0px;">:)</span></span></div>
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I hope I've covered most of the Social Media aspects. If there's anything I've left out.......let me know <span class="_47e3 _5mfr" style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 0; margin: 0px 1px; vertical-align: middle;" title="smile emoticon"><img alt="" aria-hidden="1" class="img" height="16" src="https://www.facebook.com/images/emoji.php/v9/f4c/1/16/1f642.png" style="border: 0px; vertical-align: -3px;" width="16" /><span aria-hidden="1" class="_7oe" style="display: inline-block; font-family: inherit; font-size: 0px; width: 0px;">:)</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Point 6: Time Management</span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-size: x-small;"><a class="_58cn" data-ft="{"tn":"*N","type":104}" href="https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/entrepreneurualgyaan?source=feed_text&story_id=10154528401751884" style="cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; text-decoration-line: none;"><span class="_5afx" style="direction: ltr; font-family: inherit;"><span aria-label="hashtag" class="_58cl _5afz" style="font-family: inherit; unicode-bidi: isolate;">#</span><span class="_58cm" style="font-family: inherit;">EntrepreneurualGyaan</span></span></a><br /><a class="_58cn" data-ft="{"tn":"*N","type":104}" href="https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/instalmentsix?source=feed_text&story_id=10154528401751884" style="cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; text-decoration-line: none;"><span class="_5afx" style="direction: ltr; font-family: inherit;"><span aria-label="hashtag" class="_58cl _5afz" style="font-family: inherit; unicode-bidi: isolate;">#</span><span class="_58cm" style="font-family: inherit;">InstalmentSix</span></span></a><br /><a class="_58cn" data-ft="{"tn":"*N","type":104}" href="https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/timemanagement?source=feed_text&story_id=10154528401751884" style="cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; text-decoration-line: none;"><span class="_5afx" style="direction: ltr; font-family: inherit;"><span aria-label="hashtag" class="_58cl _5afz" style="font-family: inherit; unicode-bidi: isolate;">#</span><span class="_58cm" style="font-family: inherit;">TimeManagement</span></span></a><br /><a class="_58cn" data-ft="{"tn":"*N","type":104}" href="https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/finalinstalment?source=feed_text&story_id=10154528401751884" style="cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; text-decoration-line: none;"><span class="_5afx" style="direction: ltr; font-family: inherit;"><span aria-label="hashtag" class="_58cl _5afz" style="font-family: inherit; unicode-bidi: isolate;">#</span><span class="_58cm" style="font-family: inherit;">FinalInstalment</span></span></a><br /><a class="_58cn" data-ft="{"tn":"*N","type":104}" href="https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/longpostalert?source=feed_text&story_id=10154528401751884" style="cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; text-decoration-line: none;"><span class="_5afx" style="direction: ltr; font-family: inherit;"><span aria-label="hashtag" class="_58cl _5afz" style="font-family: inherit; unicode-bidi: isolate;">#</span><span class="_58cm" style="font-family: inherit;">LongPostAlert</span></span></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">This will, hopefully, be my last (and most important) instalment of entrepreneurship gyaan , which I've gained over past 5.5 years of being an entrepreneur.</span></div>
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At the outset, let me clarify one thing (stop here if you don't identify with this statement, otherwise you'll waste your time reading the rest of it). Managing time will be the best (and most stringent) litmus test of the 4 Ps of your life: Patience, persistence, passion and priorities. If you lack the first three, the fourth one will be skewed and will lead to frustration and dissatisfaction.</div>
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The most important thing you'll need to find out is what's most important for you. Those go on top of your time division list (yes, I did make a time division list) and then, allocate time accordingly. This is a step where you'll need to either reinforce or let go of your OCDs.</div>
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For example, I love cooking and can't stand bad cooking at all. It is sort of an OCD with me. But I had to lax out there a bit and hire a cook. My first one didn't quite make the cut but the second one is pretty good. He is learning to meet my requirements and I'm learning to be lenient too.</div>
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You'll need to figure out what is important, what's not. Because you have Only 24 hours to do all you want to do.</div>
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One thing that will make a world of a difference to your time division (specially for women) is children. If they are small (aka, pre-school age), there is an additional layer of difficulty. At this stage, I had to toughen up and choose a Day Care facility. It felt cruel, heartless, selfish even to do so. But it turned out to be the best decision I ever made for my child and me. In this department, choose well. And brace up! Because you'll hear from more than one quarters how you're a bad Mom (in extremely rare cases, bad Dad).</div>
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Schedule some sacrosanct family/kids time. You'll be amazed at how kids love it! 5 hours of half-attention is equivalent to 30 minutes of full undivided attention, as far as kids are concerned (tried and tested)....make time tables, take children into confidence, their concerns abd suggestions and the kids part will literally take care of itself then on. Maintain clarity with them and be consistent.</div>
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Another big time taker is communication. With the advent of a multitude of communication means, it's distracting to keep track of things. Schedule communication timings, for emails, messages, uploads, downloads, invoicing etc.</div>
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Schedule household work so that it doesn't intersect with your work time. Take help and most importantly, involve family. You'll be surprised at how much time tasks like: Picking clothes for washing (which my son does), serving food (we self serve), picking plates and rinsing (everyone does this on their own), giving children baths, dressing them, etc take. Make your children and spouse independent. Delegate (age and skill appropriate) tasks to everyone and watch your day expand miraculously. A lot of us end up making the entire family dependent on us, by simply being too available (YES, there is such a thing as being too available). The entire family then just chooses the simpler path out - dependence on you.</div>
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An oft disregarded aspect of time management is understanding your personality type. It includes your general disposition (are you the lazy laid back kind, the indifferent kind, the go getter kind?) and your high efficiency timings. I'll give an example:</div>
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I can pretty much never do 'nothing'. I've to be doing something, learning something new, refining something old.......the just sitting blankly isn't my cup of tea. And I'm a morning person (though I've done more than my fair share of late and overnights). This helps me compartmentalise my distraction free hours (my phone auto-mutes between 9:30 pm and 7 am). Those are the hours I prefer for "designing", because that's the highest (mental) intensity task I need to do. The silent morning hours are my favourites.</div>
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So, you need to do a thorough self-introspection before you manage your time well. This is not to say that I manage my time well all the time. I struggle, specially to maintain my social life. Because between Art'zire, baking, Anvesh and exercise, I barely get time to meet up with people. So, I make time to send emails, I've Whatsapp Web installed to make sending messages easier, Skype calls, Whatsapp video chats etc. In short, I use technology to my advantage, to stay connected....</div>
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Time managing always comes at a cost. You'll need discipline, planning, family support, lots of self-motivation and plenty of "letting go". You can't win all battles, choose wisely, the ones that are really important to you. Be ready to deal with the negativity which will come your way, as you make these changes. And give any schedule 3 weeks. Of course, you'll fumble, stumble and fall. The key is to fall 7 times and get up 8 times.</div>
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For the rest, the shining beacon is the life which will be more fulfilling.......and more productive!</div>
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Happy Working<br />
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Pritesh<br />
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PS: If my posts inspire you to create something on similar lines, I feel highly flattered. But please, do respect the effort I take in conceptualizing and executing, please give a direct link to my work when you are inspired by mine. Thanks for understanding........:-)</div>
Pritesh Dagurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01468523468719029075noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7381376858528977792.post-42161678502418819372016-10-31T19:39:00.000+05:302016-10-31T19:39:03.216+05:30Free tutorial - Adding ghunghroos to a quilled jhumka<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Hello All,<br />
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HAPPY DIWALI!!!!!!!!!! And Happy Halloween to all those who are celebrating :)<br />
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Here comes the tutorial for addition of ghunghroos to a quilled jhumka<br />
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<iframe width="320" height="266" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/BxQhbQlJHeM/0.jpg" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/BxQhbQlJHeM?feature=player_embedded" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe></div>
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The video for the theory is here<br />
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<iframe width="320" height="266" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/BezPT9KTVv8/0.jpg" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/BezPT9KTVv8?feature=player_embedded" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe></div>
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For material related to ghunghroo addition, please contact <a href="mailto:a1craft2011@gmail.com" target="_blank">A1 Craft Supplies</a> or check out their <a href="https://www.facebook.com/A1craft/" target="_blank">Facebook Page</a><br />
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Important notes:<br />
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1. Finish all the processes (including waterproofing) before you add ghunghroos. After ghunghroos, it is virtually impossible to waterproof them later (you'll end up clumping ghunghroos). Ghunghroo addition should ideally be the last step, irrespective of the type of jewellery (quilled, layered paper or polymer clay)<br />
2. You can use any ghunghroo beads sizes you like. We've used 4.5 mm beads. The bigger the beads, the smaller the number you'll need and vice versa.<br />
3. Take a fine tip pliers, it'll help prevent loose ghunghroos.<br />
4. This technique works for layered paper jewellery (including Chaand Baalis) and polymer clay too. Feel free to experiment.......<br />
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Happy Quilling<br />
<br />
Pritesh<br />
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PS: If my posts inspire you to create something on similar lines, I feel highly flattered. But please, do respect the effort I take in conceptualizing and executing, please give a direct link to my work when you are inspired by mine. Thanks for understanding........:-)</div>
Pritesh Dagurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01468523468719029075noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7381376858528977792.post-90068308159388811752016-08-15T18:57:00.003+05:302016-08-15T18:57:25.519+05:30Adding ghunghroos to quilled jhumkas - Theory tutorial<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Hello All,<br />
<br />
At the outset, a very happy 70th Indian Independence Day! :) Wishing everyone happiness, prosperity and responsibility in the years to come :)<br />
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So, a lot of people have been curious about how to add ghunghroos to this type of jhumka (or the edge of Chaand baalis. I don't exactly know how other people do it, but I've researched the method scientifically, figured out pros and cons and hence, the first step is getting to know the theory of addition of ghunghroos.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Vku1eHm78qQ/V7GTk6e9XsI/AAAAAAABL0o/fpg0hjiFd00oqiqxkJsRRC9oEOBdYA9TgCLcB/s1600/10514165_819483594753234_906751937919808248_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="245" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Vku1eHm78qQ/V7GTk6e9XsI/AAAAAAABL0o/fpg0hjiFd00oqiqxkJsRRC9oEOBdYA9TgCLcB/s400/10514165_819483594753234_906751937919808248_o.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Here is the theory video :)</span></b></div>
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<iframe width="320" height="266" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/BezPT9KTVv8/0.jpg" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/BezPT9KTVv8?feature=player_embedded" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe></div>
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Happy Quilling<br />
<br />
Pritesh<br />
<br />
PS: If my posts inspire you to create something on similar lines, I feel highly flattered. But please, do respect the effort I take in conceptualizing and executing, please give a direct link to my work when you are inspired by mine. Thanks for understanding........:-)</div>
Pritesh Dagurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01468523468719029075noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7381376858528977792.post-10911818342030848772016-06-07T22:08:00.001+05:302016-06-07T23:09:05.448+05:30Celebrations and a tutorial...........<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Hello All,<br />
<br />
It was in late 2012 that I picked up a 1/16 inch punch (I just can't remember why!!!) and was fiddling about with it. Something clicked somewhere in my brain and a jhumka resulted from it. I was very lucky that one of my friends was travelling from USA and she brought that punch for me, but I also knew that it was a speciality tool. By extension, it was expensive! I used it, I recommended it, but I knew it in the heart of my hearts that I was dependent. Dependent on a tool and dependent on my dependence.......<br />
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For almost 3.5 years, I've made jhumkas using that technique, but I never stopped wondering how to overcome this dependence. And sometimes, lack of sleep fires my brain up. Today was one such day! Having been thinking about this since Friday or so, the idea finally struck and I set about to work on it. It is an elegant (and cheap) solution, I wonder why it took me forever to come up with it!<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-jyPZ76AN19Y/V1b1GPw9PsI/AAAAAAABLis/GChyiwuUlTkoe_1EYNDWCV3m2iud0IAmQCLcB/s1600/20160607_122241.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="393" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-jyPZ76AN19Y/V1b1GPw9PsI/AAAAAAABLis/GChyiwuUlTkoe_1EYNDWCV3m2iud0IAmQCLcB/s400/20160607_122241.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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So, over to the tutorial:<br />
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<b>List of materials:</b><br />
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<b>4 mm jump rings (kindly contact <a href="mailto:a1craft2011@gmail.com" target="_blank">A1 Craft</a> supply for the same)</b><br />
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I tried with smaller and bigger ones, but 4 mm works and looks best. 5 mm is too big to look at. And 3 mm too small to handle while working.<br />
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<b>Fevicryl Fabric Glue</b><br />
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This works well enough and is cheaply (and easily) available across the country. I also did an experiment with B6000/E6000 (kindly contact <a href="mailto:a1craft2011@gmail.com" target="_blank">A1 Craft</a> supply for the same). The side effects of the super glue? Expensive, not very healthy to handle (SPECIAL NO NO to <u>pregnant and lactating</u> women <i>and</i> children) and takes time to set. Advantage: The glue is strong and dries transparent.<br />
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<b>Prepared quilled dome</b> (I've used a 5 mm strips dome, feel free to experiment)<br />
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<b>Paint of your choice</b><br />
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<b>Ghunghroo wire </b>(A1 Craft Supply please)<br />
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<b>Beads for ghunghroos</b> (according to your colour scheme and preference)<br />
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The steps are illustrated in the series of images below:<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ECXVURr9RYA/V1b3BYTQfVI/AAAAAAABLi4/Z6CyFFnwD7cZlW8Sv5H1VA5SyE_Ypib3wCLcB/s1600/IMG_20160607_045415.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="228" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ECXVURr9RYA/V1b3BYTQfVI/AAAAAAABLi4/Z6CyFFnwD7cZlW8Sv5H1VA5SyE_Ypib3wCLcB/s320/IMG_20160607_045415.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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The glue can take anything from 4-8 hours to dry completely, please let it dry before you handle the jump rings. Otherwise, they will come off (and they did when I made an attempt).......</div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RX4y-DXKS8A/V1b3XgXA3NI/AAAAAAABLjQ/WYBZgQiYjisv_TiUwBe9S7x9ZCvcB1HhgCLcB/s1600/IMG_20160607_050158.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-RX4y-DXKS8A/V1b3XgXA3NI/AAAAAAABLjQ/WYBZgQiYjisv_TiUwBe9S7x9ZCvcB1HhgCLcB/s320/IMG_20160607_050158.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Finished look of the dome. Now, go ahead, colour, embellish, paint................unleash your creativity</div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-W8DyvDdnoaU/V1b3aUplZWI/AAAAAAABLjc/NUFIAxSYNXIezFy21gWtphbGN8uA2fMIQCLcB/s1600/IMG_20160607_053424.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="253" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-W8DyvDdnoaU/V1b3aUplZWI/AAAAAAABLjc/NUFIAxSYNXIezFy21gWtphbGN8uA2fMIQCLcB/s320/IMG_20160607_053424.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Paint the inside neatly</div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-DNwpB30IlIE/V1b3hrEdUnI/AAAAAAABLjk/wQaflkiBGvc43FL1A3yQyTNc-rKPI0KeQCLcB/s1600/IMG_20160607_075707.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="222" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-DNwpB30IlIE/V1b3hrEdUnI/AAAAAAABLjk/wQaflkiBGvc43FL1A3yQyTNc-rKPI0KeQCLcB/s320/IMG_20160607_075707.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Do the waterproofing and Voila! You're DONE! [For waterproofing aids, please ping A1 Craft Supply, they'll help you out]</div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hWbvbXNgQOo/V1b3hyPy5gI/AAAAAAABLjo/O1ZIGLFCGUMHGDaxqdXr46h57YK59uKVwCLcB/s1600/IMG_20160607_075712.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="289" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hWbvbXNgQOo/V1b3hyPy5gI/AAAAAAABLjo/O1ZIGLFCGUMHGDaxqdXr46h57YK59uKVwCLcB/s320/IMG_20160607_075712.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Add ghunghroos and you'll have a jhumka that looks almost like clay :)</div>
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A strong word of warning against people who want to walk away with the credit for a lot of things that began at Art'zire, a tweak or two in our technique is STILL derivative work. If you're a true crafter, you'd much rather think on your own. And certainly, won't come to us and blame us of copying your work (which you derived from ours, in the first place). We strongly condemn such underhanded tactics and would pray that God grants you some integrity!</div>
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On a lighter note: here is the evolution of the paper jhumka :)<br />
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<b>October 25, 2012 :)</b><br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-k30a66CG3XA/V1b--o9udbI/AAAAAAABLkM/GC9r3A9NCZMGl7o4sS5n-Lu-IkxIVePWQCLcB/s1600/Umrao%2BJaan.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="219" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-k30a66CG3XA/V1b--o9udbI/AAAAAAABLkM/GC9r3A9NCZMGl7o4sS5n-Lu-IkxIVePWQCLcB/s320/Umrao%2BJaan.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b>June 19, 2015</b></div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vthZMgNLTxs/V1b_9EU_62I/AAAAAAABLkg/74sJynRqnrQIBaLuNxYmEggSrBFWj3wuwCLcB/s1600/20150619_101243.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="191" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vthZMgNLTxs/V1b_9EU_62I/AAAAAAABLkg/74sJynRqnrQIBaLuNxYmEggSrBFWj3wuwCLcB/s320/20150619_101243.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<b>June 7, 2016</b><br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WygdCq2Nku8/V1b_TngnFXI/AAAAAAABLkU/cZEXiGL1Vys0pFF22fKCL6lY8t2wIXRBwCLcB/s1600/20160607_122310.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="270" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WygdCq2Nku8/V1b_TngnFXI/AAAAAAABLkU/cZEXiGL1Vys0pFF22fKCL6lY8t2wIXRBwCLcB/s320/20160607_122310.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Happy Quilling<br />
<br />
Pritesh<br />
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PS: If my posts inspire you to create something on similar lines, I feel highly flattered. But please, do respect the effort I take in conceptualizing and executing, please give a direct link to my work when you are inspired by mine. Thanks for understanding........:-)</div>
Pritesh Dagurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01468523468719029075noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7381376858528977792.post-28373789671970970942016-04-01T16:22:00.001+05:302016-04-01T16:22:16.406+05:30Basic Earring making tutorial<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18.2px;">Hello All,</span><br style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18.2px;" /><br style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18.2px;" /><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18.2px;">Often we know how to make the 'rest of the ' quilling jewellery but stumble at making the final metal loops :)</span><br style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18.2px;" /><br />
<div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18.2px; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ceZPQYaBlZY/Vv4k3wJV3uI/AAAAAAABLa0/V7i-6MPLpGAmbE5zvZfvUSJx4ZI-Sa3Lg/s1600/20160401_125457.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="color: #822a2f; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-decoration: none;"><img border="0" height="172" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ceZPQYaBlZY/Vv4k3wJV3uI/AAAAAAABLa0/V7i-6MPLpGAmbE5zvZfvUSJx4ZI-Sa3Lg/s320/20160401_125457.jpg" style="background: transparent; border-radius: 0px; border: 1px solid transparent; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2) 0px 0px 0px; padding: 8px; position: relative;" width="320" /></a></div>
<br style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18.2px;" /><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18.2px;">And material for basic earrings........</span><br style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18.2px;" /><br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-9UOOZ2LYF5Q/Vv4k_LQmLWI/AAAAAAABLa4/kAjDzfLZzMEIWYjsivUPeOklQJqBOAhHA/s1600/20160401_124833.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="color: #822a2f; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-decoration: none;"><img border="0" height="261" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-9UOOZ2LYF5Q/Vv4k_LQmLWI/AAAAAAABLa4/kAjDzfLZzMEIWYjsivUPeOklQJqBOAhHA/s320/20160401_124833.jpg" style="background: transparent; border-radius: 0px; border: 1px solid transparent; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2) 0px 0px 0px; padding: 8px; position: relative;" width="320" /></a></div>
<br style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18.2px;" /><br style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18.2px;" /><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18.2px;">Here is a guideline on how you can do that :)</span><br />
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<iframe width="320" height="266" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/Bd2p2n9G-GM/0.jpg" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Bd2p2n9G-GM?feature=player_embedded" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe></div>
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Happy Quilling<br />
<br />
Pritesh<br />
<br />
PS: If my posts inspire you to create something on similar lines, I feel highly flattered. But please, do respect the effort I take in conceptualizing and executing, please give a direct link to my work when you are inspired by mine. Thanks for understanding........:-)</div>
Pritesh Dagurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01468523468719029075noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7381376858528977792.post-58243052208789626862016-03-21T22:59:00.001+05:302016-03-21T23:20:00.885+05:30Become like none other.........because THAT leads to success<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0683/8833/products/Zip_Crafters_Front_1024x1024.jpg?v=1427213237" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0683/8833/products/Zip_Crafters_Front_1024x1024.jpg?v=1427213237" width="640" /></a></div>
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Hello All,<br />
<br />
This is a post like no other I've ever written. After having been through innumerable workshops, a series of co-workers (some left, some stayed) and thousands of craft pieces, I feel partially equipped to be writing this post. It may sound presumptuous, but then, what is never said is never heard. This post is largely meant for people starting out in the crafting world and is an inspiration from Elizabeth Marek's <a href="http://artisancakecompany.com/2013/03/how-to-make-it-in-the-cake-decorating-world/" target="_blank">post on baking</a>. I am afraid a lot of things will sound very similar, but that is because some things don't change. They remain the same, no matter what creative field you are in........so, let's get cracking!<br />
<br />
So, you've learnt (or, are about to learn) a new craft. The obvious question one always encounters is where to begin.............so, I'll begin from the beginning.........<br />
<br />
1. <b>Get your Basics</b>: Once you've made your mind up about which craft you want to start with, start with the very basics. In the day and age of Google and Youtube, posting a question to professional crafters like, "Where can I get quilling supplies?" is almost criminal. Because the answer invariably is, Wherever you care to look. Quilling strips, basic tools, starter kits are available a dime a dozen in departmental stores, stationery stores and just about any store nowadays. Start there.........once you think you've exhausted the potential of the routine supplies, move over to Google. Only when you want to know something very specific a specific crafter has used, post the question (and keep it specific). It is very exhausting to reply to generic queries, because the number of tools and supplies we use is very large. By the time you're ready to reach that level, chances are that you'll have the knowledge of the material as well.....<br />
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2. <b>Workshops vs. Queries vs. Free online tutorials</b>: This is the point I'd deal with in parts. It's a GREAT idea to start with free tutorials. A lot of us crafters feel great sharing tutorials (in spite of crawling Internet connections and personal and professional commitments), because we love to share. It's a joy to see people blossoming through one's tutorials. But please, do not treat us like we OWE you any more. We do what we do voluntarily, but we also have bills to pay and kids to raise. We've mastered our Arts and we wish to make a living out of those. By all means, feel free to post queries. You've a right to. But we also have a right to point you to our (or others') workshops. There is a reason (or sometimes many) we take workshops. E.g. I can't even begin to count the number of times I've been asked how to waterproof quilling jewellery. In spite of writing a list of stuff you can use (a simple Google Search will find you the link to the tutorial), I end up providing people with links. Move your fingers and help yourself. I've done my bit. If you want to know more, feel free to join workshops held by people. Yes, you spend money. But remember, you gain knowledge, And for Heaven's sake, don't ask for a "discount". Show me one instant where you've asked a discount from a College or University, I'd happily give you a discount too!<br />
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3. <b>Learn or teach</b>: The good question. Should you learn the Art from someone or teach yourself. I'm a self-taught artist, in whatever way I can claim it. So, I'd be the last person to advise you to go to someone for workshops. But learning by yourself involves a lot of self-critique. If you're ready for the grind, go ahead :)<br />
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4. <b>Carve your niche, develop your signature</b>: All of us are good at one thing or the other, find out what is your strength. And as I've always reiterated, don't treat your knowledge like islands in an ocean. Treat them like dots you need to join for the larger picture to emerge. If you're good at embroidery, tie it up with the craft you wish to learn. If you paint well, develop a style where you're able to do justice to what you are good at. Trying to be someone else will only lead you to the no-man's-land where you're neither yourself, nor the other person......<br />
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5. <b>Inspiration vs. imitation</b>: Ah, the sore thumb! The only way I can deal with this is - you'll know in the heart of your hearts that what you did was wrong! If you need someone else to point it out, your morals have gone for a walk (and not returned). Most good artists don't honestly care if you copy their designs, but most get miffed if those designs start getting 'attributed' to the copier. It has happened to me that a copier came to me to tell me that I had copied the design she had copied from mine, to begin with. It made me less angry and more pitiful. Karma is a bitch and will bite the imitators in the butt, I'll just sit and watch!<br />
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When you are new, it's normal to want to emulate the work that inspires you. My advice is - after some time, stop watching others' work. It always influences you. Work on developing your own style and skill-set instead. And that brings me to my next point......<br />
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6. <b>Be the best at what you choose to do</b>: Once you're chosen your speciality, dive into it head-long. Research about all the material you use and all the material you can potentially use. You can not innovate in the material you don't know a thing about. Read! Read! Read some more. Once you know things in an out, you can come up with newer styles, ideas etc. It's about becoming SO good at your chosen field that no one can compare with you. Give your signature style to your creations, so much so that even an ordinary onlooker will know when they see it (or an imitation!). Yes, there are plenty of artists 'competing' in the same field, but there is only ONE you. No one and nothing can change that. Be the one person people aspire to be!<br />
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7. <b>You don't know everything</b>: This is the pivotal idea you need to keep in your mind. No one knows everything and keeping an open mind really helps. Most of my best ideas have sprung from questions my students (or even random people) have asked, over time. I'm proud to say, I barely know anything, but I am willing to be the sponge to soak in whatever comes my way.<br />
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8. <b>Disagree quietly</b>: There will come times you'll have disagreements with people. If you haven't had any, you haven't lived! Don't make a public spectacle out of everything! It is okay if you want to warn someone against someone who is out to cheat (and has cheated you), but if you're the proverbial 'boy who cried wolf', people will tire of the drama. You'll be alienated and ostracized. No one needs more drama in their lives than there already is (and if they do, they aren't your well wishers, take it from me)........if you have a disagreement, speak to the person concerned directly. If repeated attempts fail, do post (but without names please) about them, but present facts along with evidence. Public shaming isn't a good idea, EVER.<br />
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9. <b>Be a good seller, be a good buyer, be professional</b>: If you're selling crafts, chances are you'll be a buyer too, at some time. Be a damn good one. Pay your bills promptly. Avoid hassling sellers, with changing your quotes multiple times, walking out on your order, delayed payments, squabbling for discounts. In short, don't do to others what you don't want done to yourself. Thumb rule: RESPECT! This one word will earn your friends in the crafting world....the ones who will stand by your side, even though they've never met you.<br />
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10. <b>Steer clear of heresay</b>: The one thing that can ruin your time in crafting community is heresay. People talk (and often, out of spite, misguided thoughts etc) bad of others sometimes. It's a small community, at the end of the day. Underhand gossiping is one of the clearest signs of malice. Don't fall for it. Check facts for yourself. Good crafters mind their own business. Terrible ones, poke their nose everywhere. And by this, I don't mean the ones good at their craft, or bad at it. I mean, the good 'people' and bad 'people'............be a good one. Everyone notices a gossiper at the end of the day!<br />
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11. <b>Innovate</b>: Craft is a crowded market, and there are plenty of people always around to replace you, if you ever slack off. So, don't! Don't slack off and sit on your laurels. Competition catches up, and pretty fast. The idea is to continuously innovate, before the rest of the community catches up. It sounds a bit aggressive but no, it is about pushing your own boundaries. No one ever got anywhere until they started walking. And to keep going to new places, bingo! Keep walking!<br />
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12. <b>Collaborate</b>: Often, we try to think of everything ourselves. Good news: You retain the ideas. Bad news: You retain only your own ideas. One stagnates if one doesn't look at different perspectives. Talk to people. Explain your ideas. OFten, people are able to spot loopholes you may have missed. Often, people are able to give you new ideas that you didn't think about. Everyone has ideas (even if they aren't crafters). Be a keen listener and be open to accepting that you can't think of everything! Collaborate with people........and watch your ideas strengthen.........<br />
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13. <b>Invest in relationships</b>: Business isn't made of new clients. It's made of old clients that keep coming back (and bring others, in the due course of time).It isn't important to be just professional, it's important to be a sensitive, accountable, responsible and compassionate one. So that one little chat someone wants to have with you, may mean the world to them. Don't always do business. Invest your time in knowing people and making friends.....some of my best friends are clients and vice versa. I even go ahead and coin the term :Alpha Clients, the ones who allow me a free hand at my new ideas. They are the ones I'd go an extra mile for and these are the ones that have brought Art'zire to where it is. The first client who trusted us, the first who allowed us to work on her jewellery without even as much as a sketch, the one who bought my stuff simply because someone walked out on their order, my world is FULL of these fantastic people...........so, don't just gain clients, invest in relationships....<br />
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14. <b>Apologize, correct, move on</b>: I club these three under one heading because these are stages one experiences when one has made a mistake.......if there has been a mistake, apologize. If possible, correct/replace the faulty piece. But sometimes, it has happened that there has been nothing that would satisfy the client. Don't let that make you bitter. Pick your lesson and move on. You've a living to earn. Don't waste that precious time on brooding (and worse, badmouthing!).....<br />
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15. <b>Garbage in, garbage out</b>: What you make, to a good extent, depends on what you make it with. Buy the best material you can afford. Don't let only price be your guiding criterion. Avoid "best price" offers, because there is always a catch somewhere. If something is too cheap, your antennae ought to fire up. As a rule of thumb, buy the best you can afford.<br />
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16. <b>Don't shortsell yourself</b>: I've more than once heard about Art'zire, you guys are too expensive. I just graciously smile and move on. Because I know what goes on in Art'zire workspace. I run a tight ship, everyone is expected to create the best they can (and improve the standard as experience accumulates). We leave nothing to chance! And all that takes effort and time. And who can value our time and skill better than we can. Just because someone is selling the same (there is no such word, we are unique if we are doing handmade) thing at half the cost, it is them who aren't valuing themselves. We work extremely hard on our pieces and I believe in dignity of work. All hard work ought to be paid for........hence, we are a happy and cheerful (and often, creative) team here. Know the worth of your work (and involved material) and charge according to that. Whoever is looking for "cheap" can head to China made goods markets.<br />
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17. <b>Educate, don't just execute</b>: Often, the clients don't know the details of pieces they want. Many a time, they want/send "reference" images. Educate them about copying, and how it is unethical. Most times (and I understand), the client need a visual input. And it is perfectly fine. Not everyone can visualize things in their heads. But politely decline (ideal situation) if an exact replica is requested. Or, acknowledge the original artist (even if you don't know them, just say the design isn't your own)..........<br />
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I think, I've written everything that came to my mind..........but feel free to add pointers. I know, it's a confusing world out there but then, self help is the best help. Be self-dependent and flourish.......<br />
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Happy Crafting<br />
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Pritesh<br />
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PS: If my posts inspire you to create something on similar lines, I feel highly flattered. But please, do respect the effort I take in conceptualizing and executing, please give a direct link to my work when you are inspired by mine. Thanks for understanding........:-)<br />
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Image link: https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0683/8833/products/Zip_Crafters_Front_1024x1024.jpg?v=1427213237</div>
Pritesh Dagurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01468523468719029075noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7381376858528977792.post-6151992472702046062015-07-26T04:44:00.004+05:302015-08-01T22:59:04.228+05:30Handling Casting Resin - A series of free tutorials<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Hello All,<br />
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Here is a series of tutorials for using resin on paper jewellery. The resin is available with <a href="https://www.facebook.com/A1craftsupply" target="_blank">A1 Craft Supplies</a>. You can <a href="mailto:a1craft2011@gmail.com" target="_blank">contact</a> them for purchasing the resin. I want to specially thank Richa Kapre of <a href="https://www.facebook.com/rockpaperandscissor" target="_blank">Rock, Paper and Scissor</a> for her generous contribution to the knowledge in resin-handling.<br />
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My humble request to all users of resin: Resin handling is an exercise in patience. Hurrying the process with cause blotchy results. Please do read the instructions on your resin packaging carefully.<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Part 1 - Preparation of surface for applying resin......</span></b><br />
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Very often, you are likely to encounter surfaces that have painted and drawn patterns on then. It is always better to cover the surface completely with a clear drying glue (like Fevicryl Fabric Glue, Camlin Crafty Glue or Faber Castell White Glue). Always allow for COMPLETE drying of the glue before you apply resin.<br />
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The base(s) can be prepared using the tutorial <a href="http://quillingmesoftlee.blogspot.in/2014/02/punch-craft-jewellery-base-tutorial.html" target="_blank">here</a>.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Part 2 - Mixing Resin</b></span><br />
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Mixing the resin is the most crucial of all steps in the handling of resin. Unfortunately, very small things can be the make-or-break factors while handling resin. This video shows how one can mix resin. The key is to be patient and work slowly.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Part 3 - </b></span><b style="font-size: x-large;">Applying resin on Enclosed Surfaces</b><br />
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Resin has most commonly been used for 'filling' up enclosed surfaces to create a "cabochon" like effect. This effect needs resin to be 'filled' in spaces. Though it may sound trivial, these very bubbles (in extreme cases, many small or large bubbles) can bring about "fogginess" to the resin coating and lead to bad finishing.</div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Part 4 - Popping the Bubbles</span></b><br />
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No amount of handling carefully can ensure zero bubbles. Mercifully, Richa has worked very hard at developing techniques to dispel these little jewellery spoilers :)</div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Part 5 - Coating a 3D surface (e.g. a jhumka)</b></span><br />
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One of the most common question I've been asked so far is, can resin be used to coat quilled jewellery. I'll answer it with a very reserved yes. I don't really know if it can be used on all types of quilling jewellery but it can be used on quilled jhumkas. How? Watch :) [Information courtesy: Richa]<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Part 6 - Cleaning a resin coated brush</b></span><br />
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Since application of resin to a 3D surface needs a brush to be used and one wouldn't want to lose the brush, cleaning of that brush is imperative. Here is the video for how you can clean the brush after using it for coating the 3D surface(s)<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Part 7 - Getting "Concave" effect on an enclosed surface</span></b></div>
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Such quilled outlines can be prepared using the <a href="http://quillingmesoftlee.blogspot.in/2012/03/after-long-hiatus-quilled-lettering.html" target="_blank">quillography tutorial.</a>..........</div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Part 8 - Getting Concave effect on an unenclosed surface</span></b><br />
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The videos are property of Pritesh (Art'zire) and Richa (Rock, Paper and Scissor). Please do not report them as your own and whenever sharing, kindly give due credits.<br />
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Happy Quilling<br />
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Pritesh<br />
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PS: If my posts inspire you to create something on similar lines, I feel highly flattered. But please, do respect the effort I take in conceptualizing and executing, please give a direct link to my work when you are inspired by mine. Thanks for understanding........:-)</div>
Pritesh Dagurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01468523468719029075noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7381376858528977792.post-19755927919625657352015-07-08T17:54:00.000+05:302015-07-12T22:49:20.053+05:30Antique finish jhumka - Free Tutorial<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Hello All,</div>
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Here is a very quick tutorial for getting the antique effect on jhumkas (or any surface, for that matter).......</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VI7QTnUI9H0/VZ0T0amDqKI/AAAAAAABKzg/mGYIsv46ujQ/s1600/Antique%2Bjhumka-008.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-VI7QTnUI9H0/VZ0T0amDqKI/AAAAAAABKzg/mGYIsv46ujQ/s320/Antique%2Bjhumka-008.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
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Step 1: Paint the dome (in any colour). It's painted yellow here, just for the sake of it. Now draw the pattern you wish with the "colour you wish to show above antique finish". For example, if you want antique golden, draw with golden outliner. For antique silver finish, draw with silver 3D outliner. We were targeting antique look with yellow as prominent colour, so yellow 3D outliner was used. In principle, any 3D outliner colour can be used, depending on your requirement. The denser the pattern, the better the antique finish looks.</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Pu0eXnRfRJE/VZ0TtJS1V_I/AAAAAAABKys/YF5KTtVBlS8/s1600/Antique%2Bjhumka-001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Pu0eXnRfRJE/VZ0TtJS1V_I/AAAAAAABKys/YF5KTtVBlS8/s320/Antique%2Bjhumka-001.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Step 2: The pattern should be allowed to dry completely, before you do the following processes. You can also use half pearls, available with <a href="mailto:a1craft2011@gmail.com" target="_blank">A1 Craft supply</a>. The key is to <b><u>allow the 3D outliner to dry completely</u></b>.</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GHKtVx7IX4c/VZ0TtKZuMdI/AAAAAAABKyw/8hOFQkqTJOI/s1600/Antique%2Bjhumka-002.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GHKtVx7IX4c/VZ0TtKZuMdI/AAAAAAABKyw/8hOFQkqTJOI/s320/Antique%2Bjhumka-002.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
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Step 3: Paint the majority colour you wish to see among the antique sub-layer. We've used antique bronze (by Camlin). Make a complete layer above the 3D outliner pattern.</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-0q-xjoQctFg/VZ0TrB0D5oI/AAAAAAABKyk/AL5BiVHL0c4/s1600/Antique%2Bjhumka-003.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-0q-xjoQctFg/VZ0TrB0D5oI/AAAAAAABKyk/AL5BiVHL0c4/s320/Antique%2Bjhumka-003.jpg" width="308" /></a></div>
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Step 4: Now, dab with pearl black to give an "old and rusted" look. Make only sporadic dabs.</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-OQhXtVUwAzk/VZ0TtuYdHvI/AAAAAAABKy0/rdgWL3TTBdg/s1600/Antique%2Bjhumka-004.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="310" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-OQhXtVUwAzk/VZ0TtuYdHvI/AAAAAAABKy0/rdgWL3TTBdg/s320/Antique%2Bjhumka-004.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Step 5: On top, make sporadic dabs with antique gold (by Camlin), if you wish, to give a partially antiquated look. </div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-m-7bTLsqbuw/VZ0Tvwo79GI/AAAAAAABKzE/eo41SY8N-xQ/s1600/Antique%2Bjhumka-005.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-m-7bTLsqbuw/VZ0Tvwo79GI/AAAAAAABKzE/eo41SY8N-xQ/s320/Antique%2Bjhumka-005.jpg" width="314" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OuwajGGx0pc/VZ0TxYyHEHI/AAAAAAABKzM/XNjPgaOzm10/s1600/Antique%2Bjhumka-006.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OuwajGGx0pc/VZ0TxYyHEHI/AAAAAAABKzM/XNjPgaOzm10/s320/Antique%2Bjhumka-006.jpg" width="314" /></a></div>
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Step 6: This is an important step. The key here is to use a piece of cloth (or tissue) that isn't too soft or coarse. For example, muslin is too soft but denim is too coarse. We've used an old cotton pant piece. Make the small patch above your index finger damp and scrape gently over the 3D outliner. Do not "wet" the tip, just make it damp enough to scrape off acrylic paint. You'll slowly see the 3D outliner colour emerge from underneath the "antique" colours.</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-f6JwErD-ErA/VZ0Txr9casI/AAAAAAABKzQ/rBQIGpvS2h0/s1600/Antique%2Bjhumka-007.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-f6JwErD-ErA/VZ0Txr9casI/AAAAAAABKzQ/rBQIGpvS2h0/s320/Antique%2Bjhumka-007.jpg" width="313" /></a></div>
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<b>(A video to help)</b></div>
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And here is an antique yellow jhumka :) Proceed with waterproofing, as described in the <a href="http://quillingmesoftlee.blogspot.in/2012/10/making-paper-quilledpunch-jewellery.html" target="_blank">tutorial</a>. You may need to alter the steps to accommodate your specific design, so get experimenting!</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-VI7QTnUI9H0/VZ0T0amDqKI/AAAAAAABKzc/ciBf-vp4mWc/s1600/Antique%2Bjhumka-008.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-VI7QTnUI9H0/VZ0T0amDqKI/AAAAAAABKzc/ciBf-vp4mWc/s320/Antique%2Bjhumka-008.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
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The obvious question is: Why so much hassle when one can simply buy an antique looking jhumka? Answer: You can "choose" your antique tone, it's made of paper (ultra-light) AND that it's handmade (there is no parallel to THAT, is there?)........</div>
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Happy jhumka decorating :)</div>
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Happy Quilling
Pritesh
PS: If my posts inspire you to create something on similar lines, I feel highly flattered. But please, do respect the effort I take in conceptualizing and executing, please give a direct link to my work when you are inspired by mine. Thanks for understanding........:-)</div>
Pritesh Dagurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01468523468719029075noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7381376858528977792.post-69837573106456075132015-04-01T15:04:00.000+05:302015-04-01T20:04:34.336+05:30Two years of Art'zire - A simple tutorial........<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Hello All,<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-gCZr55_Htrc/VRu7QzGOrFI/AAAAAAABKbY/1-j6qpp_bzw/s1600/Quilled%2Bstud.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-gCZr55_Htrc/VRu7QzGOrFI/AAAAAAABKbY/1-j6qpp_bzw/s1600/Quilled%2Bstud.jpg" height="320" width="298" /></a></div>
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Here comes a simple tutorial for quilled studs, that, according to me, look very royal once done :)<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5oX0_1Fe9Wk/VRu5dmQh79I/AAAAAAABKZQ/5x2RIPAJkCc/s1600/20150401_133704.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5oX0_1Fe9Wk/VRu5dmQh79I/AAAAAAABKZQ/5x2RIPAJkCc/s1600/20150401_133704.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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Make one strip cones, a simple video is here: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=927498243951768&set=vb.568707783164151&type=2&theater" target="_blank">Video for Cones</a></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Y2IwATLdoEc/VRu5d2dFAXI/AAAAAAABKZU/oCUSjisFPr0/s1600/20150401_133856.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Y2IwATLdoEc/VRu5d2dFAXI/AAAAAAABKZU/oCUSjisFPr0/s1600/20150401_133856.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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Use head pins (or ball head pins or even eye-pins)</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-t3yZ03MPHmU/VRu5ckk2EhI/AAAAAAABKZI/TJI7fHtPXy4/s1600/20150401_134058.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-t3yZ03MPHmU/VRu5ckk2EhI/AAAAAAABKZI/TJI7fHtPXy4/s1600/20150401_134058.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
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Put them through the wider side of the cone, towards the narrow side and pull completely</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3Rs4KwXXSSI/VRu5w-4mlpI/AAAAAAABKZg/ujtQFo4nQOk/s1600/20150401_134221.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3Rs4KwXXSSI/VRu5w-4mlpI/AAAAAAABKZg/ujtQFo4nQOk/s1600/20150401_134221.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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Your cones should look like this.....</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ncsJhV-vGjQ/VRu5xkm2QvI/AAAAAAABKZo/nBYJMjBpYTM/s1600/20150401_134304.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ncsJhV-vGjQ/VRu5xkm2QvI/AAAAAAABKZo/nBYJMjBpYTM/s1600/20150401_134304.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
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Now, very gently, start bending the cone down. Go very carefully while doing this because one misstep can lead to the cone opening up completely....</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7CU6w4gjiMU/VRu5zER4cFI/AAAAAAABKZw/U1tJYGcX3uc/s1600/20150401_134403.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7CU6w4gjiMU/VRu5zER4cFI/AAAAAAABKZw/U1tJYGcX3uc/s1600/20150401_134403.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
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This is roughly how your cone will look after bending</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1EZvmH0SLRM/VRu6EvdN-DI/AAAAAAABKZ4/WcOGQ5hQLok/s1600/20150401_134416.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1EZvmH0SLRM/VRu6EvdN-DI/AAAAAAABKZ4/WcOGQ5hQLok/s1600/20150401_134416.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
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Fill the cone completely with glue (my recommendation is Tacky glue but you can use any resin glue)</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-PLuxdh-7RP4/VRu6FD67fTI/AAAAAAABKZ8/_NUv7ba6lvc/s1600/20150401_134440.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-PLuxdh-7RP4/VRu6FD67fTI/AAAAAAABKZ8/_NUv7ba6lvc/s1600/20150401_134440.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
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Spread it completely on the inside</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vMwpGAsY25Y/VRu6HQUNNEI/AAAAAAABKaI/Thh9zOOWsPE/s1600/20150401_134850.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vMwpGAsY25Y/VRu6HQUNNEI/AAAAAAABKaI/Thh9zOOWsPE/s1600/20150401_134850.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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Let the glue dry completely</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/--GjwMogbg4w/VRu6Z075KpI/AAAAAAABKaY/qBicdN_khb0/s1600/20150401_135002.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/--GjwMogbg4w/VRu6Z075KpI/AAAAAAABKaY/qBicdN_khb0/s1600/20150401_135002.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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I've used teardrop crystals in amber colour (contact <a href="http://www.a1craft.in/" target="_blank">A 1 Craft Supplies</a> for these crystals and E6000)</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/--mhqgafbLwI/VRu6YcN_IHI/AAAAAAABKaQ/6Ix79xAVtwc/s1600/20150401_135127.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/--mhqgafbLwI/VRu6YcN_IHI/AAAAAAABKaQ/6Ix79xAVtwc/s1600/20150401_135127.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
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Apply the E6000 glue to the edge of the cone </div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AmdfU7PpWrg/VRu6aHqqLJI/AAAAAAABKac/Y0Vw20f73tg/s1600/20150401_135151.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AmdfU7PpWrg/VRu6aHqqLJI/AAAAAAABKac/Y0Vw20f73tg/s1600/20150401_135151.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
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Push in the teardrop crystal until it comes to rest comfortably in the cone</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-jjpfVDtA8n0/VRu6q_3LxVI/AAAAAAABKao/K2yhp9U5eXc/s1600/20150401_135249.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-jjpfVDtA8n0/VRu6q_3LxVI/AAAAAAABKao/K2yhp9U5eXc/s1600/20150401_135249.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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Allow E6000 also to dry completely. Paint the outer surface with your choice of colour. I've used Camlin Antique Bronze acrylic colour</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UMAgI1VsZQA/VRu6rbkb-QI/AAAAAAABKas/ppQrqRXqUTo/s1600/20150401_140532.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UMAgI1VsZQA/VRu6rbkb-QI/AAAAAAABKas/ppQrqRXqUTo/s1600/20150401_140532.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
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On the edge of the cone, glue 1.5 mm rhinestone chain (I've used amber finish) using Tacky Glue/E6000 (for amber chain, contact <a href="mailto:a1craft2011@gmail.com" target="_blank">A1 Craft Supply</a>)</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HFNXmtWHSz8/VRu6roT7p3I/AAAAAAABKaw/fYJNEzoDVwI/s1600/20150401_140921.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HFNXmtWHSz8/VRu6roT7p3I/AAAAAAABKaw/fYJNEzoDVwI/s1600/20150401_140921.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
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Allow the layer to dry completely</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-88Q1OfRYseU/VRu67h39HjI/AAAAAAABKbI/vp37HEfgAjs/s1600/20150401_141249.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-88Q1OfRYseU/VRu67h39HjI/AAAAAAABKbI/vp37HEfgAjs/s1600/20150401_141249.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
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On top of amber, I've used black rhinestone chain</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-MJ4S6kMlBcA/VRu68lc0U1I/AAAAAAABKbQ/BzgbP0ELJrk/s1600/20150401_141928.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-MJ4S6kMlBcA/VRu68lc0U1I/AAAAAAABKbQ/BzgbP0ELJrk/s1600/20150401_141928.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
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To make the design look coherent, 1 mm ball chain (available with<a href="mailto:a1craft2011@gmail.com" target="_blank"> A1 Craft Supply</a>) was used. Allow all the glue to dry properly and your studs are good to go :)</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-gCZr55_Htrc/VRu7QzGOrFI/AAAAAAABKbY/1-j6qpp_bzw/s1600/Quilled%2Bstud.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-gCZr55_Htrc/VRu7QzGOrFI/AAAAAAABKbY/1-j6qpp_bzw/s1600/Quilled%2Bstud.jpg" height="320" width="298" /></a></div>
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Happy Quilling<br />
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Pritesh<br />
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PS: If my posts inspire you to create something on similar lines, I feel highly flattered. But please, do respect the effort I take in conceptualizing and executing, please give a direct link to my work when you are inspired by mine. Thanks for understanding........:-)</div>
Pritesh Dagurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01468523468719029075noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7381376858528977792.post-43214915430054558052015-02-24T15:47:00.001+05:302015-02-24T16:06:37.306+05:30Quilled jhumka, varnish application tutorial<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Hello All,<br />
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A very quick and short tutorial for applying varnish on a quilled jhumka<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/B9SB4Po-_xU/0.jpg" frameborder="0" height="266" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/B9SB4Po-_xU?feature=player_embedded" width="320"></iframe></div>
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So, go ahead, create jhumkas that you love creating :)<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-74TbuU2PLzw/VOxUHat994I/AAAAAAABKT8/XzZ24mCF3o8/s1600/Rahul%2BPandya%2BOrder.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-74TbuU2PLzw/VOxUHat994I/AAAAAAABKT8/XzZ24mCF3o8/s1600/Rahul%2BPandya%2BOrder.jpg" height="155" width="400" /></a></div>
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Happy Quilling<br />
<br />
Pritesh<br />
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PS: If my posts inspire you to create something on similar lines, I feel highly flattered. But please, do respect the effort I take in conceptualizing and executing, please give a direct link to my work when you are inspired by mine. Thanks for understanding........:-)</div>
Pritesh Dagurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01468523468719029075noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7381376858528977792.post-10085046619778495012014-10-25T14:00:00.002+05:302014-10-25T14:00:57.246+05:30Diwali special - Tutorial for attaching studs to quilled tight coils......<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Hello All,<br />
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Wish you all a very happy (though belated) Diwali. Hope you all had a fun and safe Diwali......<br />
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Here's a little tutorial (in response to the queries) for attaching a stud base to a quilled tight coil (as seen in this creation).......<br />
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<a href="https://scontent-a-sin.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash2/v/t1.0-9/547678_570597039641892_616800304_n.jpg?oh=2f96b4ccba525ac5934e03196b86da0a&oe=54AEDF8F" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="210" src="https://scontent-a-sin.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash2/v/t1.0-9/547678_570597039641892_616800304_n.jpg?oh=2f96b4ccba525ac5934e03196b86da0a&oe=54AEDF8F" width="320" /></a></div>
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This is bare basics and the material is mentioned in the tutorial, Please use your own ingenuity to try variations, and even better, coming up with your own methods that surpass this.......<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/GTtPM4iee4Y?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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Hoping that the tutorial helped.............happy stud-attaching :)<br />
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Happy Quilling<br />
<br />
Pritesh<br />
<br />
PS: If my posts inspire you to create something on similar lines, I feel highly flattered. But please, do respect the effort I take in conceptualizing and executing, please give a direct link to my work when you are inspired by mine. Thanks for understanding........:-)</div>
Pritesh Dagurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01468523468719029075noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7381376858528977792.post-12025573820224044042014-09-19T03:05:00.000+05:302014-09-19T08:38:54.588+05:30Inserting head/eye pins in a Quilled Pendant - Tutorial<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Hello All,<br />
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I am back (only to disappear again, after a while) with a tutorial. I've taken the bold step of making a video against the tide of slow Internet! :D Let us see after how many hours of "Trying to upload" does it go online :)<br />
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<a href="https://scontent-b-sin.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xpf1/t31.0-8/p720x720/10608750_10152471210396884_1780298675635781430_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://scontent-b-sin.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xpf1/t31.0-8/p720x720/10608750_10152471210396884_1780298675635781430_o.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Many people had this question about how to insert the head/eye pin into a quilled pendant. So, here is how I do it (and it truly is very simple). This is only a guideline video and you're free to devise your own methods, based on what is available with you :)<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/fwKjNiVm9ec?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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With this tutorial, I am nearly touching a MILLION views on my blog :)<br />
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After a mere 3 years and 1 month of being in existence, I am fortunate enough to see this landmark on my blog. Thank you! Every single one of you :)<br />
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Loads of love and keep crafting............<br />
<br />
Happy Quilling<br />
<br />
Pritesh<br />
<br />
PS: If my posts inspire you to create something on similar lines, I feel highly flattered. But please, do respect the effort I take in conceptualizing and executing, please give a direct link to my work when you are inspired by mine. Thanks for understanding........:-)</div>
Pritesh Dagurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01468523468719029075noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7381376858528977792.post-83083924421270772322014-09-08T09:00:00.000+05:302014-09-08T14:47:38.050+05:30A blog hop with a difference<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hello All,</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After a long long break from writing, I am back with a very unique blog hop, where I got involved, thanks to my College classmate and an avid crafter, <a href="http://thecolourpress.blogspot.in/" target="_blank">Kripa Koushik</a>. The number of years I've known her can't be counted on the fingers on our hands! We did Graduation together and then, recently got back in touch through the world of crafts.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">She works magic with her mixed media layouts, and unlike me, cards! She has a distinct style, which often begs careful examination, for there are so many tiny details that add up to the big picture :)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I agreed to be a part of this hop because of the different format! This hop actually helps us all get to know each other better, as people and as crafters.............idiosyncrasies included! :D</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">More about me:</span></b></div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1. What am I working on?</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A lot of things, like always. Quilled jewellery is something that always adorns my table. In addition, there are a couple of frames in various stages of non-completion. I just finished this jewellery piece (which took quite a bit of time, split over 3 days, to make). This is my attempt at recreating the ancient jewellery making technique - <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thewa" target="_blank">Thewa</a></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">I don't know if there is a lot of difference between the work I do and the others do, but I try to play by my strengths, namely, free-hand drawing and an understanding of the chemistry of the materials. The combinations of materials become a lot easier to devise once you know how they work in tandem. I try to exploit that information to get better at my work.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"></span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">3. Why do I write/create what I do?</span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">The simple answer is: Because that's what I can see myself doing day after day, for years to come. My husband once asked me: Where do you see yourself five years from now, and the only vision that I could come up with was: In a giant craft workshop, doling out really good craft pieces. I craft, because I live for it :)</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"></span><span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">4. How does your writing/creating process work?</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0); font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This is a complex question to answer. Most times, the most difficult/tricky part is to come up with an idea. Often, ideas strike seeing something completely unrelated. And sometimes, something similar sparks an incremental idea. Often, it is the craft material itself that makes me think about how I can use it in a different way. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Once the idea is in place, the first thing I do is a strength test. In my mind, I run through the process of creating it (earlier, I used to draw them but with experience, I am able to visualize them now). On the way, I look for loopholes like a hawk. I've an almost manic obsession with sturdiness. If my work is not sturdy, I take it as a personal insult. So, making designs sturdy or devising processes to introduce sturdiness is what comes next. Often, I modify the design/idea to keep strength a priority. Once the process is clear in my head, I start with the actual execution. There have been rare times when I have been stumped by hurdles (largely, because of lacunae in my information database) but mostly, I've been able to foresee mistakes. If some mistakes get the better of me, I restart the whole process, subtracting the mistake.</span></span><br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Ag9ZY_XNBuo/VAw37aM5PSI/AAAAAAABJfM/07BbLlpuLXw/s1600/Neha%2BJindal%2BDAD%2Balbum.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Ag9ZY_XNBuo/VAw37aM5PSI/AAAAAAABJfM/07BbLlpuLXw/s1600/Neha%2BJindal%2BDAD%2Balbum.jpg" height="300" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);"><span style="color: #222222;">I'll give one example. There was this one time I was making a yellow jhumka and no matter what I did, the yellow colour kept "leaking". It'd separate into a pale yellow part and dusty brown part. It took me 4 trials to figure out that it was the problem with the yellow paint (which I figured out after trying three different and top-of-the-notch brands) and the 4-step process finally because 7-step process to eliminate this pigment separation. </span></span></span><br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-HWywCZw0nHI/VAw4ILjzkDI/AAAAAAABJfU/oOSVqf9ZGOY/s1600/Sukanya%2BSikdar%2BOrder1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-HWywCZw0nHI/VAw4ILjzkDI/AAAAAAABJfU/oOSVqf9ZGOY/s1600/Sukanya%2BSikdar%2BOrder1.jpg" height="336" width="400" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">To pass this baton on, I choose two of my favourite crafters: <a href="http://www.manuk.ro/" target="_blank">Manuela Koosch</a> and <a href="http://paperzen.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Cecelia Louie</a>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Although neither of them need any introduction to crafters and quillers alike, I'll go ahead and introduce them (pardon me if I sound like a star struck teenager, but both these women are my role models!)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Manuela</b></span> (or Manu, as I call her) is a crafter with superlative capability to transform the mundane to magic and if you think I am exaggerating, drop by to www.manuk.ro and see for yourself :)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">Cecelia</span></b> redefines "Design isn't when you can't add anything more, it is when you can't take anything away". She gives simplicity an elevation the way I haven't seen anyone do. Minimum talks maximum is a quote written for her.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Happy Hopping and thank you for dropping by!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Happy Quilling</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Pritesh</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">PS: If my posts inspire you to create something on similar lines, I feel highly flattered. But please, do respect the effort I take in conceptualizing and executing, please give a direct link to my work when you are inspired by mine. Thanks for understanding........:-)</span></div>
Pritesh Dagurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01468523468719029075noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7381376858528977792.post-29866691694497298812014-07-07T10:28:00.000+05:302014-07-07T10:31:43.206+05:30Vrrroooom vrrroooom...........<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Hello All,<br />
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A very quick post (while I nurse myself back to health) about a very interesting and different frame I got around to doing :)<br />
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Profile: A car lover's B'day, and he has a long name :D<br />
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So, I got to work. When I got this order, I had a very different idea in my mind. But when I aligned that idea on the frame, it just wouldn't work out properly. So, I had to abandon that and start afresh. And this is where I landed up! :)<br />
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Happy Quilling<br />
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Pritesh<br />
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PS: If my posts inspire you to create something on similar lines, I feel highly flattered. But please, do respect the effort I take in conceptualizing and executing, please give a direct link to my work when you are inspired by mine. Thanks for understanding........:-)</div>
Pritesh Dagurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01468523468719029075noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7381376858528977792.post-53133903193550947092014-06-26T16:29:00.001+05:302014-06-26T16:29:43.289+05:30A dainty butterfly - quillography style :)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Hello All,<br />
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After a long break (and tons of orders to make), I am back, thanks to Shyla Shree and her request for Guest Designer in Indian Quilling Challanges Group :)<br />
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I'd never quilled a butterfly before and when this request came my way, I knew one thing for sure. I had to do it through quillography because I am pretty bad with loose coil work :)<br />
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So, I set out to quill and because of some mess-up I did, I had to improise upon the design as I went along :D<br />
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At the end of this, this is how the butterfly looked (before and after cutting it off the background :)<br />
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Happy Quilling<br />
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Pritesh<br />
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PS: If my posts inspire you to create something on similar lines, I feel highly flattered. But please, do respect the effort I take in conceptualizing and executing, please give a direct link to my work when you are inspired by mine. Thanks for understanding........:-)</div>
Pritesh Dagurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01468523468719029075noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7381376858528977792.post-83592609448304676852014-06-01T09:17:00.000+05:302014-06-02T11:15:50.585+05:30Sleepless for Seattle - A world Record of Many Things for us :D<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Hello All,<br />
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LONG POST ALERT!<br />
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This post is for a project that took us 368 man hours to finish, so I wish to spend at least 2 hours writing it! :D<br />
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Basic facts about the painting:<br />
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Size: 5.5 feet by 3 feet<br />
Time taken to finish: 368 hours<br />
Total number of quilling strips used: ~ 27000<br />
Total beehived surface area: 4850 square centimetres<br />
Artists: Nitesh, Richa & Pritesh<br />
Other material: Gesso ~ 750 ml, paints (all volumes combined) ~ 500 ml<br />
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In a true thesis style, let me split this into "Chapters"......<br />
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<b>Chapter 1:</b> The Beginning<br />
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When I finished the <a href="http://quillingmesoftlee.blogspot.in/2013/11/rapunzel-rapunzel-let-down-your-hair.html" target="_blank">Rapunzel</a> Project and sent the preview images to my friends, I received a call from Suchitra saying her family wouldn't believe it was quilled. They were really impressed and would like me to make something for them when they returned to US. I was glad to hear such kind words and didn't give it much thought until she followed up on it, asking me for suggestions for the project she wished me to make. I suggested many things but nothing really struck us as unique enough. A Bangalore move happened and the thread was lost again, only to be resumed and "Seattle Skyline" emerging as the preferred image.<br />
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One look at it and I went, "I can't make THIS, it is too complex and not translateable to quilling". But as far as Suchitra is concerned, I have no right to say no. And then started a long process of decoding the image and planning for it. To do justice to the painting, it needed to be made on a large scale and what scale! I zeroed in on 5.5 feet by 3 feet and ordered the plywood base......<br />
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<b>Caapter 2: </b>Hurdles<br />
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Once the plywood base arrived, there arose the challenge of printing the reference image in such a large size. Being unfamiliar with Bangalore and its printing circuits made the task of locating a printer tough. Throw in a toddler and it was compounded as I couldn't leave the house for any reasonable length of time. With luck, I managed to spot a printer who was close by and off I went with my son in tow. Unfortunately, all he had was black and white printing in those sizes and in the middle of trying to keep my son from destroying his expensive equipment, the print came. The full intensity of the work ahead hit me full force yet again, and I did have cold feet. But well, a commitment is a commitment :)<br />
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I had never worked with wood as a direct base for a quilled painting. Rapunzel was on wood as well but there was a paper to buffer the wood-quilling gap. After struggling with various permutations and combinations for how to get the outlines on to the board, I gave up and just drew the "skyline outline". This is pretty much the biggest canvas I ever handled and the inexperience was a real problem. Naively enough, I painted the sky directly on wood, which led to a dull blue colour (much like someone had splashed mud on the sky). You can see the dullness very visibly here......<br />
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And just then, came a blessing in the form of <a href="http://quillandpunchworks.blogspot.in/" target="_blank">Hussena</a>'s <a href="http://quillandpunchworks.blogspot.in/2014/03/an-altered-photo-frame.html" target="_blank">post</a>. She mentioned the use of gesso (a primer) and voila! That is when light bulbs went off! I immediately went online and read about the chemical composition of gesso (a compulsive need to know the chemistry is hard to get rid of! :D) and how exactly it functions. I read reviews after reviews of which gesso primer is better and zeroed in on my favourite Art Material brand - <a href="http://www.flipkart.com/daler-rowney-artists-white-gesso-primer/p/itmdat2rjg38nc9h?pid=ARTDAT2QZYZNTGPF&otracker=from-search&srno=t_1&query=gesso&ref=a07f12c6-6aca-49c5-b7d2-2511a0c0072e" target="_blank">Daler & Rowney</a>. The cost was much steeper than the local brands but well, Daler & Rowney has never disappointed me. It turned out that ordering was the easiest bit! The product is imported from UK, so it took almost 3 weeks for it to come :( Time was slipping out of my fingers at an alarming rate! I did the gesso layers (it took 4 coats to cover the blue and wooden colours completely) and boy! The painting drank up almost 1 litre of gesso!<br />
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Then, came the painful task of painting the sky! I had not painted with acrylics in years and never on that scale! So, I had to once again go online and see what skies looked like, how I could merge colours and saw one video on Youtube as well (I have no patience for video tutorials but desperate situations call for desperate measures). After a few iterations, I kind of got the blues right. For the sky, I have used Mont Marte Cerulean Blue, Daler Rowney Ultramarine Blue, Daler Rowney Titanium White, Sullivans Titanium White Satin Finish (shade 104), Mont Marte Brilliant Red and Daler Rowney Lemon Yellow. Since I ran out of white paint somewhere in between, a bit of patching up had to be done with Fevicryl White paint. Search as I may, I couldn't find PLAIN WHITE paint anywhere in the neighbourhood for almost 5 days!!!! So, there went 5 days more!<br />
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<b>Chapter 3: </b>The Making<br />
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The painting did scare me for a while and I was stuck at this stage for quite some time! :( A flurry of orders wasn't helping either! It was around this time that I decided that if the painting had to be finished, I would have to ask for help! When I left from Pune, the thing that hurt me to MOST was to let <a href="https://www.facebook.com/richa.kapre" target="_blank">Richa</a> go! And there is no one else I had ever met who had the commitment, capability and drive to undertake something of this magnitude! I asked her if she could come and help me with the painting, and she did! She stopped her own work and came to Bangalore to help. We didn't make much progress during that stay of hers though, solely because my fear was still holding me back from working with the painting........<br />
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And then, walked in my sister! She scolded me for not having progressed and imposed on me that I should send her a daily update! God bless small sisters! In true sister style, she sat with me and got me working on the painting all the time she was here.........<br />
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Within 4 days, we had made progress that I didn't manage in 4 weeks! We had finally gotten STARTED properly! And this was May 4th! Exactly 3 weeks from the May 25 deadline.........I had told Richa I will let her know if I need her help by 10th May. By 10th May, I not only needed her help, I needed her to rescue me from an impending crisis!!!!! But Richa being Richa, came once again (without a return ticket date specified) and we got cracking.............</div>
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As of May 15th, this is how the painting looked, less than 10% complete..........</div>
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<b>Chapter 4: </b>Race against time............<br />
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It was then that Richa and I took on a full-fledged war against time...........we were racing, and racing to lose, by the looks of it. The painting had to be built in layers, to get the three-dimensionality of the real city on the canvas.<br />
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I hope I have taken layer by layer photos. This is Layer 0, the buildings that are made with just sticking strips of paper directly on the board, the ones farthest away from the viewing point.<br />
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In order to build layers, the most daunting task was to make thousands and thousands of tight coils, which were to act as 'spacers' and elevate the buildings. Richa rose to the occasion and worked at a break-neck pace!<br />
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Around 15th May, we were working 10-11 hours a day each. By 20th May, it was 12-14 hours and by 23rd May, the work would never stop. We were taking turns sleeping (in bursts of 3 hours at the most). Everything in my house came to a stand-still. Cooking was reduced to "One pot cooking" with every bit of nutrients (protein, carbohydrates and vitamins) thrown into a single vessel and cooked. For the first time since we got married, Ananth and I ordered food 3 times in a month! And I can never apologize enough to Richa for feeding her this riff-raff!<br />
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It was at this junction that I saw the Richa and I shared this common dream - the dream to see the painting finished and nothing would stop us, even tiredness. Towards the end, we even had C grade movies to keep us company, so that we wouldn't sleep! Ever watched <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wTO1chxWMPI" target="_blank">Desi Spiderman</a>? If you haven't, it's heavily recommended, for its sheer brainlessness.........<br />
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We were in a state of constant delirium by May 23rd and would talk utter non-sense but the work continued. The progress was phenomenal but our fingertips were dead (from all the beehiving) and our brains, fogged. The tight coils took a large chunk of our time as we got higher up in layers because of the increase in height. It was then that the idea struck. We should use taller tight coils instead of layers of 3 mm!<br />
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Some interesting photos from the "pre-revelation" and "post-revelation" stages :D<br />
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We were using 2 cm tall coils by this time, instead of 7 layers of 3 mm coils needed!!</div>
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Some more interesting work-in-progress images......<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The only way to stay awake was to listen to Music</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">At one time, we were BOTH working on different parts of the painting</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Laughter that springs out of sleepiness :D</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Reviewing the tight coils.......</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Richa, in her half-awake avatar</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mA9FVTRkywU/U4qPhn1Z8gI/AAAAAAABHKg/jnTKxhXyoQE/s1600/20140526_223545.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mA9FVTRkywU/U4qPhn1Z8gI/AAAAAAABHKg/jnTKxhXyoQE/s1600/20140526_223545.jpg" height="400" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Antics to get the Space Needle in place</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-TX77v9j-zZM/U4qPgc_xOdI/AAAAAAABHKY/cHIUTYUqDr4/s1600/20140526_223622.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-TX77v9j-zZM/U4qPgc_xOdI/AAAAAAABHKY/cHIUTYUqDr4/s1600/20140526_223622.jpg" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Juggling many things while trying to get the needle to stay</td></tr>
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While the painting was being made, we had News 9 reporter and cameramen coming in for running a feature on it. This was our first experience of a news piece recording but we admit, Raghu and Pavithra did an amazing job of the feature that was telecast on News 9 on May 27.<br />
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To mark the occasion, my husband got us a (a gooey dark chocolate) cake reading "Congrats Girls" :) </div>
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Almost simultaneously, the painting was covered by Deccan Chronicle and <a href="https://www.facebook.com/darshana.ramdev" target="_blank">Darshana</a> gave us a front page <a href="http://www.deccanchronicle.com/140529/nation-current-affairs/article/iisc-scientist-turned-artist-eyes-guinness-book-world-records" target="_blank">coverage</a> (so utterly unexpected and heartily appreciated)</div>
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Finally, on May 28th at 5:30 am, the painting got over! Richa had to travel back to Pune on 27th May and boy! How I missed her for the final photoshoot! But Richa, you were very much there, this painting is as much yours as it is mine :) You were the true Hero of this painting, because for me, this was an obligation. For you, it was a sheer choice you could've walked away from!<br />
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It was just a coincidence that Sarah Yakawonis asked me jokingly, "Do you plan to set a world record?". That set the cogs in my brain working and well, I decided to register this painting as the largest beehive quilling painting :) I hope we make it, don't you too Richa? :)<br />
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Some "finished painting" photos now :)<br />
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<b>Photography courtesy: Ananth</b><br />
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<b>Photography: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/abner.o.francis" target="_blank">Abner Oswin Francis</a> (<a href="http://www.grooveabphotography.com/" target="_blank">Grooveab Photography</a>)</b><br />
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And now starts my (rather long) list of thanks! :)<br />
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The first person I have to thank is Suchitra, for being a great friend, for being a great client and for putting her faith in me! :) It couldn't have happened without your faith lady :)<br />
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Next in line is Richa! Richa, there are NO words that can ever thank you enough. Thanks would be too small a word. All I can say is, you saved my life :)<br />
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I have to thank my husband and my son, for being the kind of support one can only dream of. Ananth took the kitchen over completely for almost 10 days (Richa will vouch for that!) and my son even understood I was busy. He kept my morale up with an occasional "Mumma, you're so beautiful". Baby, you mean the world to me, truly! :)<br />
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A huge and special thanks to Baba, my baby sister (not so baby anymore, I think), for persisting, for scolding me, for getting me started and for always expressing the most honest opinion one can get for one's work.<br />
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A big thanks to Pavithra Gowda and Raghu of News 9, for taking the time out and making a fantastic video of the painting. The only way to highlight the 3-dimensionality of the painting was to scan through it and Raghu, you did a SPLENDID job of that :)<br />
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A huge thanks is due to Darshana Ramdev of Deccan Chronicle, for having faith in us enough to get us a front page coverage :) We can never thank you enough for that Darshana :)<br />
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A big big thank you to <a href="http://www.manuk.ro/" target="_blank">Manuela</a> (just Manu for me), for constantly giving feedback during the making of the painting.<br />
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A very big thanks to Abner, for taking time out of his manic schedule to come over, doing the photoshoot and sending the images promptly! Our painting looks completely different through your lens Buddy :)<br />
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Thanking all my friends and relatives, who supported in various ways, starting from appreciating to baby-sitting........all of it made a difference :)<br />
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And last, but not the least, to my maid, who somehow managed to clean the room in the middle of all the chaos :D :D<br />
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Happy Quilling<br />
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Pritesh<br />
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PS: If my posts inspire you to create something on similar lines, I feel highly flattered. But please, do respect the effort I take in conceptualizing and executing, please give a direct link to my work when you are inspired by mine. Thanks for understanding........:-)</div>
Pritesh Dagurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01468523468719029075noreply@blogger.com35tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7381376858528977792.post-66746876508091071642014-05-12T12:36:00.001+05:302014-05-12T12:39:58.758+05:30Hobby Mela Tutorial Video<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Hello Everyone,<br />
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When Avani called me for a video interview, it sounded too good to be true..........and when she did turn up on my doorstep, it was wonderful! :D Making tutorial videos is hard work, there is loads of planning that goes into it. Avani has worked very hard at editing this video and boy! Am I thankful or what :)<br />
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She has done a terrific job with the speeding up parts and the clipping as well......thank you from the bottom of my heart Avani :)<br />
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<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o22KAGmQVx4" rel="nofollow nofollow" style="background-color: white; color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o22KAGmQVx4</a><br />
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Some snapshots.............<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-rqbx-9M04S8/U3Byf6nta2I/AAAAAAABHDU/a8qWT9GS2wk/s1600/Fullscreen+capture+12-05-2014+122921.bmp.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-rqbx-9M04S8/U3Byf6nta2I/AAAAAAABHDU/a8qWT9GS2wk/s1600/Fullscreen+capture+12-05-2014+122921.bmp.jpg" height="196" width="320" /></a></div>
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Happy Quilling<br />
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Pritesh<br />
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PS: If my posts inspire you to create something on similar lines, I feel highly flattered. But please, do respect the effort I take in conceptualizing and executing, please give a direct link to my work when you are inspired by mine. Thanks for understanding........:-)</div>
Pritesh Dagurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01468523468719029075noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7381376858528977792.post-66749697415279462722014-05-07T17:05:00.000+05:302015-01-14T12:11:40.005+05:30Bead Soutache Jewellery Tutorial on Hobby Mela<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Hello All,<br />
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Bead soutache is a jewellery form that has fascinated<a href="http://www.facebook.com/Artzire" target="_blank"> Art'zire</a> for a while, so I decided to develop my own version of it, thanks to the unavailability of soutache cords in India........<br />
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<a href="http://www.hobbymela.com/soutache-jewelry-artzire-2/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Q7lah0_GIM8/U2oYoeW8CdI/AAAAAAABHDE/j4pWVu36RaE/s1600/Fullscreen+capture+07-05-2014+165638.bmp.jpg" height="353" width="400" /></a></div>
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For the curious ones, the soutache type jewellery I made looks like this:<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Fo9vxULGIbM/U2oXfnFdMnI/AAAAAAABHCw/WCO9eTjWb60/s1600/20140306_231418.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Fo9vxULGIbM/U2oXfnFdMnI/AAAAAAABHCw/WCO9eTjWb60/s1600/20140306_231418.jpg" height="199" width="320" /></a></div>
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And don't let that complexity scare you! These are rather simple to make..........don't believe us? Here is the video tutorial for it :) [The tutorial for the paper "base" is <span style="font-size: x-large;"><a href="http://quillingmesoftlee.blogspot.in/2014/02/punch-craft-jewellery-base-tutorial.html" target="_blank">HERE</a></span>]</div>
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<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k_vATalndzk" style="font-size: x-large;" target="_blank">VIDEO</a></div>
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Blogger just won't embed the video, so I'm providing only the link! Apologies for that.........</div>
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I want to thanks Avani Shah and <a href="http://www.hobbymela.com/" target="_blank">Hobby Mela</a>, for giving us this opportunity.......</div>
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Happy Quilling<br />
<br />
Pritesh<br />
<br />
PS: If my posts inspire you to create something on similar lines, I feel highly flattered. But please, do respect the effort I take in conceptualizing and executing, please give a direct link to my work when you are inspired by mine. Thanks for understanding........:-)</div>
Pritesh Dagurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01468523468719029075noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7381376858528977792.post-16510533258164379282014-05-01T17:31:00.001+05:302014-05-01T17:32:15.995+05:30Interview with Artistoreel<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Hello All,<br />
<br />
When I was approached by Shweta Duseja for an interview on her website <a href="http://www.artistoreel.com/" target="_blank">Artistoreel</a>, I really thought she was pulling my leg. But the sincerity in the follow-up mails was unmistakeable and here we go, an interview with Jyoti Sharma, one I thoroughly enjoyed writing.............more or less an insight into my mind and history of my becoming a quiller :)<br />
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<a href="http://artistoreel.com/pritesh-ananth-krishnan-quilling-artist-redefining-rules-jyoti-sharma.html" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: large;">Artistoreel Interview</span></a><br />
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Happy Quilling<br />
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Pritesh<br />
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PS: If my posts inspire you to create something on similar lines, I feel highly flattered. But please, do respect the effort I take in conceptualizing and executing, please give a direct link to my work when you are inspired by mine. Thanks for understanding........:-)</div>
Pritesh Dagurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01468523468719029075noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7381376858528977792.post-17861103992952546322014-04-25T10:12:00.001+05:302014-04-25T10:12:27.662+05:30For a photography and Social Media Buff<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Hello All,<br />
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When a social media buff celebrates his birthday and the order for a gift frame comes to me, an instant kinship is felt ;)<br />
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So, here goes the 'design' I made for the frame:<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JvQ7pbAZv1w/U1nWwEt40yI/AAAAAAABG9w/XIaayCwGjuY/s1600/Layout.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JvQ7pbAZv1w/U1nWwEt40yI/AAAAAAABG9w/XIaayCwGjuY/s1600/Layout.jpg" height="287" width="400" /></a></div>
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And this is how the frame looked eventually :)</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hGXLLjkwvl8/U1nmdlA2yDI/AAAAAAABG-I/Ysmd8BFVD5M/s1600/20140425_022310.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hGXLLjkwvl8/U1nmdlA2yDI/AAAAAAABG-I/Ysmd8BFVD5M/s1600/20140425_022310.jpg" height="316" width="400" /></a></div>
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In a typical style, I've altered the colour scheme slightly to make it look less monotonous.......<br />
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Something rare is happening with this frame though, I am entering this in the Pratvam Progs <a href="http://pratvamprogs.blogspot.in/2014/04/1000-facebook-likes-celebration-contest.html" target="_blank">1000 likes</a> challenge.<br />
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Feedback is very welcome :)<br />
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Happy Quilling<br />
<br />
Pritesh<br />
<br />
PS: If my posts inspire you to create something on similar lines, I feel highly flattered. But please, do respect the effort I take in conceptualizing and executing, please give a direct link to my work when you are inspired by mine. Thanks for understanding........:-)</div>
Pritesh Dagurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01468523468719029075noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7381376858528977792.post-50523457968026381292014-04-24T20:01:00.000+05:302014-04-24T20:01:19.957+05:30Quick Video for Using a Mandrel<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Hello All,<br />
<br />
Here is a little video for using mandrels for making outlines/borders for quilling......<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/qU8HCtENYIQ?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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Happy Quilling<br />
<br />
Pritesh<br />
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PS: If my posts inspire you to create something on similar lines, I feel highly flattered. But please, do respect the effort I take in conceptualizing and executing, please give a direct link to my work when you are inspired by mine. Thanks for understanding........:-)</div>
Pritesh Dagurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01468523468719029075noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7381376858528977792.post-25710446616498782542014-04-21T16:32:00.000+05:302014-04-22T11:26:34.505+05:30Send your quillography frames safely - Tutorial<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Hello All,<br />
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I am sure all of us face it at one time or the other.............how to send our lovingly crafted quillographed frames safely? It is obviously safer to send them inside a frame but that poses the great and often confirmed danger of the glass breaking. Acrylic framing leads to opacity over time. Also, glass framing increases both the weight and the volume of the frame substantially and it can be a crippling number as far as International parcels are concerned. So, Priyanka and I once brainstormed about it and after discussions with Richa, we came up with a solution that worked beautifully for us.<br />
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Here is a tutorial on how you could possibly do it......this is merely an indicative tutorial, you might need to improvize according to what you intend to send.<br />
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When I made this frame and needed to send it to Singapore, the challenge was to pack it with minimum weight and volume gain......<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XieQcrsIqaE/U1T2b-WeWOI/AAAAAAABG8A/xSG2vXDN9PM/s1600/20140418_193627.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XieQcrsIqaE/U1T2b-WeWOI/AAAAAAABG8A/xSG2vXDN9PM/s1600/20140418_193627.jpg" height="291" width="400" /></a></div>
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What you will basically need is TWO boards of the same size. This is a precaution you'll need to take from the very beginning. On one of the boards, you make the pattern and use the other board as the guard. You should create "spacers" of a width more than that of the quillography part. I have quilled with 4 mm strips and the width of the spacers is 10 mm. </div>
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<b><span style="color: #cc0000;">The spacers are TIGHT COILS made using 10 mm quilling strips</span></b></div>
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A representative layout is here:</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-cad8zdoJALo/U1T3GSvYDBI/AAAAAAABG8I/BCe86xt1im8/s1600/Layout.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-cad8zdoJALo/U1T3GSvYDBI/AAAAAAABG8I/BCe86xt1im8/s1600/Layout.jpg" height="138" width="400" /></a></div>
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And this is how it will be in reality:</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-h4GXnmVvjo0/U1T5YkU9RNI/AAAAAAABG8c/wQ1mZioS3Zo/s1600/20140421_144434.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-h4GXnmVvjo0/U1T5YkU9RNI/AAAAAAABG8c/wQ1mZioS3Zo/s1600/20140421_144434.jpg" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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On the right hand side is the frame (wrapped in cling wrap for protecting it from dust) and left side is a blank board with the "spacers" (10 mm blacks). </div>
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After you bring the two boards together, wrap them together tightly using bubble wrap and newspaper to prevent their movement against each other. Adding spacers in the middle of the board can be a bit tricky, make sure you place them carefully before adding the second board from top.</div>
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Hope it helps you all :)</div>
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Happy Quilling<br />
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Pritesh<br />
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PS: If my posts inspire you to create something on similar lines, I feel highly flattered. But please, do respect the effort I take in conceptualizing and executing, please give a direct link to my work when you are inspired by mine. Thanks for understanding........:-)</div>
Pritesh Dagurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01468523468719029075noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7381376858528977792.post-3435434633243732942014-04-18T20:25:00.000+05:302014-04-18T20:36:36.265+05:30Quilled Name Plate - Sharon and Mårten<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Hello All,<br />
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After almost a week of now-on, now-off work on this name plate, here it is, in all it's glory :) [Size: 22" x 14"]<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-pT5FwoE6Xqo/U1E6c6nLXFI/AAAAAAABG1U/C5zNaa2hsLc/s1600/20140418_193627.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-pT5FwoE6Xqo/U1E6c6nLXFI/AAAAAAABG1U/C5zNaa2hsLc/s1600/20140418_193627.jpg" height="291" width="400" /></a></div>
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Some details and WIP photos :)</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-pBlUSUEM9PQ/U1E6593WklI/AAAAAAABG1c/2IFfE42OBHQ/s1600/Sharon+Nameplate.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-pBlUSUEM9PQ/U1E6593WklI/AAAAAAABG1c/2IFfE42OBHQ/s1600/Sharon+Nameplate.jpg" height="200" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-aYCRgd-_hYw/U1E7c7m47qI/AAAAAAABG1o/rLxwVpMN_ZQ/s1600/20140410_112334.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-aYCRgd-_hYw/U1E7c7m47qI/AAAAAAABG1o/rLxwVpMN_ZQ/s1600/20140410_112334.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pmZMUArakaQ/U1E7dcBPyUI/AAAAAAABG1s/GWN2iXeXOYo/s1600/20140412_050635.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pmZMUArakaQ/U1E7dcBPyUI/AAAAAAABG1s/GWN2iXeXOYo/s1600/20140412_050635.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-DzW9zAI83fk/U1E7duR26kI/AAAAAAABG10/EgGJ__ngYWY/s1600/20140412_055626.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-DzW9zAI83fk/U1E7duR26kI/AAAAAAABG10/EgGJ__ngYWY/s1600/20140412_055626.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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And then, an insect decided to inspect my quilling ;) </div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-A-TVz5YJGmI/U1E7qzv_srI/AAAAAAABG2A/s2EXYqIzv8Y/s1600/20140414_222520.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-A-TVz5YJGmI/U1E7qzv_srI/AAAAAAABG2A/s2EXYqIzv8Y/s1600/20140414_222520.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-1nUoiwJ57do/U1E7t7BXtjI/AAAAAAABG2I/mIz9qrFPD2I/s1600/20140414_224012.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-1nUoiwJ57do/U1E7t7BXtjI/AAAAAAABG2I/mIz9qrFPD2I/s1600/20140414_224012.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-IcpnrdAMh-w/U1E7vJaTPfI/AAAAAAABG2Q/jBDURyhM85o/s1600/20140417_110519.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-IcpnrdAMh-w/U1E7vJaTPfI/AAAAAAABG2Q/jBDURyhM85o/s1600/20140417_110519.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-fInDRPyA3bg/U1E7zS-0M6I/AAAAAAABG2Y/mbuZ6F6DRQw/s1600/20140417_233603.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-fInDRPyA3bg/U1E7zS-0M6I/AAAAAAABG2Y/mbuZ6F6DRQw/s1600/20140417_233603.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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Happy Quilling<br />
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Pritesh<br />
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PS: If my posts inspire you to create something on similar lines, I feel highly flattered. But please, do respect the effort I take in conceptualizing and executing, please give a direct link to my work when you are inspired by mine. Thanks for understanding........:-)</div>
Pritesh Dagurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01468523468719029075noreply@blogger.com4