band of beads

Primus Public School, Bangalore. As we reached the venue, it was pouring! "Done for the day", I thought. But the skies cleared and soon we started setting up our stall. While we were still setting up, a few students came curiously asking for the deals. And we were mostly sold out before even setting up! Loved the response of the students: "Did you make this? Wow!" "This is so cool!" "Do you have a store?" The store revived a lot of childhood memories. It was like a past re-lived!  Though the exhibition lasted hardly for 2 hours (thanks to the rains), it took me one day to get out of the exhibition! My mind kept flashing the sale of each and every jewelry item I made. A dream, live, re-lived. A beautiful feeling.

The "Go Tribal" Collection was launched a couple of weeks back with the orange-white "tribal" design theme. Presenting... a few more theme options for the same collection: Pendant with a pattern (green-white theme) Triangular pendant (red-dark blue theme)

First rays of the sun are lighting up the sky.  What a sight to see colors come to life!  Did you hear the bird's song?  The sleepy world becomes alive!  Lets be in sync with nature. Time to Go Tribal ! Know more about this collection at: https://sites.google.com/site/bandofbeadsreborn/home/go-tribal Like us on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/BoBcomesagain

My web research about a local folk art museum said: "It houses a wide array of rural artifacts depicting the essence of folk literature, music, dance, festivals, sculpture and lifestyle." Hmm... interesting! When we reached this museum, it was deserted. From the entrance, I could see traditional folk paintings on the walls and two colorful sculptures in a lush green premises. Looked quite inviting! The first exhibit was all about a village lifestyle. It had sculptures demonstrating harvesting, pottery making, fishing, a cow shed, a blacksmith, to name a few. This was mainly an outdoor showcase. Then, we moved on to an indoor display of folk music and dance. My jaw dropped! It was an  amazing exhibit! Puppets (simply loved them), sculptures of folk dance characters, musical instruments... But what grabbed my attention was the jewelry. More importantly, bead jewelry. This art was practiced so many years ago! I did some web research on tribal jewelry. Tribal je

"Why not dedicate the second collection to the special friends?", I thought. The "special" friends may not always be humans... It could be animals, or birds, insects, or even imaginary! There could be a hook attached to these bead creations. It would make them portable - can be attached anywhere! So here's a creation dedicated to all the people out there who have wonderful friends. A token to express your feelings as its never too late.... Explore more at our website: https://sites.google.com/site/bandofbeadsreborn/home/childhood-friends Happy gifting!

A few months back... "Now what should I do with these?", popped the question as I created the first few bead art pieces. What next? Back in school, I used to gift the bands as a token of friendship. Well, that was an expression on the Friendship Day. It said, "thanks for being my wonderful friend"! "Why not gift my dear friends and family members again?", I thought, "It can be a token of 'thank you'". After all, I had not expressed this since long... I gifted my first two creations to my very close family members. For always being there for me. I wondered if that sounded more like a definition of a friend? Well, it certainly did... After a few months, my family members sent me a few pics. One of them was:    I was touched. Moved.

"Its the first design that needs to be launched. What would it be?", was the thought. I had created many bead designs. But which one would be THE ONE for the launch? Well, the answer was in the question! It would be a beginning. What marks a beginning? The Dawn! First, came the necklace: Then, the earring: And finally, the bracelet/anklet: Liked the design but not the colors? Customize this collection at: https://sites.google.com/site/bandofbeadsreborn/home Do leave a comment below for the design. Looking forward to hear from you!

Now that I had practiced many bands, we thought, "Why not have a logo?" Being a Graphic-cum-User Interface designer, I tried my hand in logo design.  The first logo was this: I loved this logo as it seemed to convey the band quite seamlessly. But, it did not have a symbol which could portray the "band of beads". The combination of text and beads in the logo proved to be a hindrance at times in smaller resolutions. Then, there was this new cycle of brainstorming. This time, we needed a symbol and the text. Also, we needed to convey that: > The brand is all about beads. Beads of all sizes, colors and shapes. Currently, the product for sale will be jewelry - necklaces, bracelets, anklets and ear-rings. In the future, the product range can be diversified. > The logo graphic should have a representation of the band which I used to create back in school. The band was woven with beads and had a uniform width. So finally, we zeroed in on the brand nam

A BIG "thank you" to all my friends! You inspired me to re-start my passion. Here's a facebook page dedicated specially for all the people out there with such wonderful friends. This page talks all about the bead designs which I will create. Looking forward for your likes! Band of Beads now on Facebook! I'm getting all charged up with inspirations and creativity! Will post a design soon!  

The emotions after creating the band burst in my facebook status. I expressed it in simple text. The reaction from my friends was surprising: The first like was from one of my classmates to whom I gifted the band. The first comment was from a friend (who did not know about the band), "Photo, please!" Another classmate commented that she still remembers the band and is still waiting for one! "Wow!" I said. Friends are friends! Memories still remain. And so does the desire to know you more! A new day was born! A new begining. Or rather, a re-start from the point it ended. This led to the creation of a pendant - "The Dawn"  

"Why did I leave the art? Why did I leave the expression of friendship? How in the world did I forget about these bands?" My mind was storming with all sorts of questions. Questions, which seemed to have no answers. Life seemed to show its magic. The magic of time, and what it can do to you. This band, lying in a bag, had such a beautiful story about time. The past, and the current. But what about the future? What about the unanswered questions? What about the art? I decided to make a band right away. And to my surprise, I still remembered every single step of making it!  After a while, a fresh band lay in front of me! There was a sense of joy inside me. An accomplishment. A delight. A feeling, which you get when you see a sapling coming out of a seed... The familiar "aroma" of wet mud, when it first rains. So fresh. So pleasant.  

"Happy Friendship Day! Here's my friendship band for you!" Being a teenager, friends were so very special. Every year, Friendship Day was of great importance. A day, to gift the friends a special hand-made token. "Give me your hand!" I said, as I took out a band for my best friend. Every year, I used to make thread bands. But this year, I decided to make something different - a band made of beads. "Wow! This is so cool! Did you make this?" my friend asked. This question was so innocent, yet mature. A question, which I didnt value when she asked me... "Yes I did!" I replied, feeling happy since she liked it. Next day, during the lunch break, one of my classmates came to me asking, "Can I too have a band of beads? Please!" I smiled and said, "Sure!" Slowly, more and more students came to me asking for a band. Even a few teachers requested me for one! Can a band interest people, so much? For me,it was just a strin

"Ahh! Finally, we're here! Time for some unpacking!" I said, as we shifted into our new house.  We had all sorts of luggage, like everyone does... furniture, utensils, small bags, big bags.... There were also some bags which just moved with us without being opened! I took the courage to open these and decide if these did have any relevant things! "Lets see...". And the journey began. I found a very old plastic bag with lots of small stuff in it. And it made some sort of a sound... like a rattle. "What in the world is that?" I murmured, while I opened it. This bag was no ordinary bag. It was a treasure. A treasure, of one of my favorite childhood art. The art of bead weaving. The bag made my day! It was like a time machine, which took me to the past...