Happy Holi

via 

Here's wishing you all a very HAPPY HOLI!

Happy Diwali

A very HAPPY DIWALI to all of you!

(I mentioned in my last post about this beautiful Diya silhouette here!)

See you all in a brand new week!

Picture courtesy: Taken by yours faithfully

Happy Karva Chauth

To all of you who are fasting for your spouses

 A HAPPY KARVA CHAUTH

Picture credit: Reshma Sandell, Masala Mango Mantra

Fabulous Friday Finds: Diwali Diya Prints

U still looking to give something different to friends and family this Diwali?

Look what I found!!!!

I bought this beautiful print from Dezign Whimzy

This is a gorgeous diwali diya silhouette on a vintage book page.

I have plans to give these prints away to my daughters' friends at school.

Image and photo copyrights of Dezign Whimzy

Happy Dussehra

via 

Thanksgiving Canada and Dussehra Sale at Ahkriti

Celebrate Thanksgiving and Dussehra!

This time its an added bonus because we will be celebrating Dussehra and Thanksgiving on Monday!

Do stop by THE SHOP and browse around

Coupon Code THANKYOU25 will be valid until October 14, 2013

HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND!

Tomato and Cranberrry Chutney

For Indians, the chutney is an integral part of a meal.  In keeping with the Navarathri festive mood, and of course the Fall season, I decided to make some tomato chutney. This time around I tried something different. Instead of using dates, I used cranberries. A bit more on the tangy side. I hope you will try and let me know how you liked it.

So here goes:

Tomato and Cranberry Chutney:

Ingredients:

6 Plump round tomatoes
Fresh cranberries -  1 and a 1/2 cup
Jaggery - 1/4 cup - you can add more if you like it sweeter
Salt to taste
Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
Kalonji /onion seeds - 1 tsp
Mustard seeds - 1 tsp
Dried red chillies - 2
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Oil - For tempering - I used about 1 tbsp

The How to:

Wash the cranberries and set aside. Wash and dice the tomatoes. Set aside.

In a large saucepan, add oil. Add the cumin seeds, onion seeds, mustard seeds, dried red chillies and turmeric powder. Stir. When the mustard seeds pop, add tomatoes. Let the tomatoes become pulpy. You can cover the saucepan and let it simmer. When the tomatoes look all mushed up, add the jaggery and stir. Now add the cranberries and salt. Let is simmer for sometime. When the cranberries crack, the chutney is done. Let it cool.

Serve chilled or warm with rotis or rice and dal.

Let me know if you tried this recipe.

Happy Ganesh Chaturthi

via 

Here's wishing you all a very a Happy Ganesh Chaturthi

Feeling Blue

I am feeling blue!

And its not helping that its Krishna Janmashtami either.

After having such a fabulous vacation at Quebec city, coming back to a very muggy and rainy weather is beating my mood pretty Blue!

Listening to this song by the Colonial Cousins time and again today!

Happy Baisakhi

Happy Rangali Bihu to all those celebrating 

Baisakhi in Assam, India

Image : via 

Happy Ugadi

I miss my days in Bangalore, India. I miss the Ugadi celebrations with our neighbours. My parents being from Assam, made Karnataka their home and my brother and I adapted pretty well to our birth place learning Kannada and truly making Bangalore our HOME.


Anyway, to those who have no idea what I am talking about, Ugadi is a Hindu festival celebrated by Indians. In Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh they call it Ugadi.  Yug means the new era and Adi means the beginning and hence the words conjoin to make Ugadi. It is also known as Gudi padwa in Maharashtra .

I remember having a feast eating  Moongdal Kosambri (a mix of moong lentils with cucumber) Holige (sweet rotis made with jaggery and flour) and Hulianna (lemon rice)

Image courtesy: PaakaShaale

Get the amazing and mouthwatering Holige recipe at Paaka Shaale

I am back!

Hello everyone! I am back...was away on a month's trip to SE Asia.

The family visited Manila, Singapore and Indonesia.

How have you all been?

The jet lag has finally ceded and the kids are back to the normal time. Seriously, after basking in such warm weather actually HOT weather, coming back to the brr here is a big change.

However home is home and it is sooo great to be back! Just like you see me jumping with my daughters at Sentosa Island, Singapore!

I had lost my DSLR camera in Manila, Phillipines. I was so devastated, but my husband bought me a new camera and boy my life seems so changed now. With a great shutter speed, this camera is something I am so happy and proud to have it. I will need some lessons though.

What do you think of this picture?

Taken by yours faithfully at the Singapore Aquarium. Rich colors of the ocean so beautifully captured with my new toy.

One of the many live craters in Indonesia.

We had a great time at the Taman Safari, Indonesia.
Such great inter action with the animals of the wild, my girls had a such a blast. This is how close we were to feeding elephants.

The amount of carrots these animals were being fed on  a daily basis by visitors like us...I don't think they would be low in carotene at all.

The family enjoying  a dip in the natural Hot springs, at Ciater, Indonesia.

Anyway, its Makar Sankranthi today. Makar Sankranthi in the Hindu calendar is the day of harvest.

Have a great day!

Diwali wishes

Picture: via me

Wishing you much joy this Diwali

How is the Diwali preparation going?

Here's a glimpse of the Diwali Decor in my home.

Washi tape gives instant glam to tealights. Here I have used turquoise and gold washi tapes around tea lights.

Here's a close up. I have done 2 dozen of these. I hope to wrap a dozen more teal lights.

 Barni tea light holders from Varnams. Handmade by artisans of Channapatna, these gorgeous tea light holders come in gorgeous earthy colors.

And this beautiful set of candle holders are from Crate and Barrel I love that they have the peepal leaf and mango leaf on the side. As Hindus, we all know the sacred significance of the peepal and mango leaf in our culture!

Here's wishing you all a very HAPPY AND PROSPEROUS DIWALI!

All pictures: By me

Sanjay Patel's Books on Hindu Deities

I came across Sanjay Patel's Ghee Happy the other day. Sanjay Patel is an established animator and design artist at Pixar. See his beautiful work at Ghee Happy.

Today is Ahoi Ashtami. I am fasting for my daughters and this evening I will be presenting them 2 books by Sanjay Patel. 

The Little Book of Hindu Deities

Beautiful animated pictures that come with stories.

and  The Big Poster Book of Hindu Deities

This book is in the form of large posters and hence you can take them out and reuse the pictures.

I bought them from the local Book store and I plan to use the posters later as  decor at home. 

If you are a parent who lives away from India, you will be delighted with these books. I think its a wonderful way to get them to learn about the Hindu culture and the Gods and Goddesses that we revere. 

I cannot wait to present them to my daughters and see their reaction this evening. 

Image courtesy: All images from Sanjay Patel's Ghee Happy

Diwali gifts for Children

Diwali, the Indian festival of Lights will be celebrated this year on November 13, 2012. 

As a tradition, my husband and I buy gifts for our daughters M and N. And this year we decided to give them a story book about Diwali. It also come with a Flash card set. Isn't that nice?

Get this Diwali book and flash card set at Gnaana Here

A beautiful diya note card is attached to the gift.  Complimentary from Gnaana.

Image courtesy of picture no 1 above Gnaana

picture no. 2 via me

Happy Durga Ashtami

The 8th day of the Navarathri festival is celebrated as Durga Ashtami. Its the day when the Godddess Durga is worshipped and also the Kanya Puja or Kumari Puja is performed on young girls. 

Here's a Durga Aarti that you can use

Ya Devi Sarva Bhutesu Shakrti rupena samsthita

Namastasyai Namastasyai Namastasyai Namo Namah

Happy Navarathri

Picture courtesy via Google

Celebrating Nine Nights of the Divine Goddess Durga..

The first 12 customers who spend $20 at my online shop Ahkriti gets one beautiful handmade Batwa or coin purse. These pretty coin purses are made of leather and block print fabrics. Limit one per sale. I get to pick the color and send it to you.

Akshaya Tritiya and shopping for Gold

Today, April 24, 2012 is Akshaya Tritiya- an auspicious day in the Hindu Calendar. It is said that on this day, Ved Vyas narrated the epic Mahabharata to Lord Ganesha who in turn started writing it. Hindus consider this day to be the day to start new ventures and buy gold.

And so I guess you will see a lot of shopping going on today.

And if you do have the time, do stop by online boutique Ahkriti

There are plenty of gold glam in my store. Use Coupon code DISCOUNT10 and get 10% off your purchase today! All one of a kind and totally handmade and designed by me Reshma Sandell

This is a handmade gold pendant necklace resplendant with pearls and coral.

Gold Kundan Pendant necklace with pearls and aventurine 

Crystals wire wrapped on gold hoops. Perfect for the bride's friends.

The Jaipur series

Handmade beads with gold enamel paints hanging from gold plated chains

HAPPY SHOPPING

Happy Holi

HAPPY HOLI

Enjoy the festival of colors!

via

To all my readers, a special festive discount at my ETSY STORE Ahkriti . 

Use coupon code FESTIVE10 and get a 10 percent off your purchase at checkout. 

This coupon is valid on  March 8 and 9, 2012.