Cesta de periódico con tapa. Newspaper basket with top.

publication in Woman's Era magazine

my article got published in WE

Fabric yarn basket numero uno

Lots of beaten up weary clothing, bed-sheets, pillow covers, saris ,lying around....to throw or not to throw? A real crafter...housewife... never throws away anything. Every bit can be used! That’s creativity!

Salwar-Suit basket:In previous life, this fabric was my salwar suit with matching chunni/dupatta, 100% cotton. I’ve transformed it by crocheting into a basket..tearing the textile into strips created a plethora of raw edges and texture, and gives this finely crochet work a coarse look. I made a lid with a button cinch to handle it .Dimensions are 8-1/4 ×4-3/8 inch

I decided to post dedicated to show off her skills. But i don’t know if you can crochet with a fabric? But i myself going to try i’m thinking my solid colour, bed sheet to crochet a big basket.

 

Radha is a refugee from Pakistan. Several Hindus and Sikhs moved to India from Pakistan immediately after Partition. It was the biggest migration ever of the world to which these people bear a raw witness.

Harman her husband says, he left his place in Sialkot (now in Pakistan) for India.”I came along with my mother. We took to whatever work we could lay our hands on(we were earth digger ST’s there), but did not compromise with honesty and integrity,”asserts Harman.showing a sense of content the proud man says that they have shouldered all the responsibilities of a family and now content with their lives in India and completely forgotten Pakistan.

Radha learned to crochet and weaved while in a refugee camp in Hisar. like so many refugees sojoring through life, Radha lived in the camp for 6 long years. As she recalls, she was about 20 years old when someone taught her how to crochet, and I imagine she crocheted through many a tough year of waiting and wondering, loss and heartache.

We find her four years back, during my research work, gracing us with her warm smile and talented hands, which i have come to appreciate more and more as her story unfolds. She is a woman whose life has been seared much loss and pain, yet today at our NGO she was dressed in an array of brilliant maroon from head to toe, a silent yet loud pronouncement of her living in the present...just as she chose to do many years ago in Hisar refugee camp when she took up that crochet needle and made a choice to learn and earn. Also she, taught s slum women to adopt earning skills,to make their living at their home.

Radha asserts ....”now crochet is my life, I crochet clothing of all sorts. This is my passion, my livelihood and I love to make wonderful accessories for babies, kids, and the occasional adult.”

 

Her  ressession experiments

Economic challenges led her to evolve some cheaper ways of yarn. Not able to afford yarn to work with, “I cut fabric into strips making fabric yarn from my fabric stash in the house and borrowed from the relatives. Lightweight cotton like salwar-suits, sheets worked best for my crochet work. The same concept and thicker  fabric  can be used to construct baskets. Previously her work was in hibernation, slowly it got into public and became popular as well.

Those old unused clothes, strips of fabric, unwanted apparel and such stuff can be made useful instead of being thrown away. Equipped with little skill of single crochet only, one can easily crochet, from the cloths that aren't good enough to wear any way, and would have been totally discarded.

Radha has so many great items worthy to display, but I chose to feature this Crocheted Basket for several reasons. First, this crocheted piece is unique. Second, I think it's fabulous that this fabric basket is made from up-cycled salwar=suit. Up-cycling is a great way to help save items that may not be usable for their intended purposes any more, or to give an older item a sort of makeover in to something beautiful and useful again. Third, this Crocheted Basket is gorgeous! The colors are beautiful and would create such a cheerful tone to any room you add this to.

 

Here's the how to of making a crocheted fabric basket.

1. Pick your fabric. This basket takes a lot of fabric to make so be sure to use a very large piece like an old sheet. This particular basket took about 2 or 3 yards of fabric.

2. Cut the fabric into strips 3/4" to 1" wide.

3. Tie the strips together to form a ball of fabric yarn.

4. Crochet a circle  for the base of the basket. Here, 5 mm crochet hook was used.  Stitch using the single crochet. 

5. Crochet the sides as per your fabric or your choice.

6.Crochet a circular like base of the basket for the lid.

7. Crochet a small button with thinner strips and attach in the center of the lid for knob.

8. Show off and impress your friends!

Do you have discarded cloth articles.may  be a salwar-suit a soiled table cloth, or hubby’s t-shirts, bed sheets, outdated curtains, the possibilities are endless! Start cutting them into ½ to 2 inches wide strips to make your stash of rag yarn, and crochet a basket to stack your tit-bits-now!! Yes its cool!!!.

 

my inspiration today 

Happy Berry Crochet:

Malala's Day out - The Hindu, Malala Award

Malala_Day

 

Razia sultan

  Razia Sultana, a teenager from a village in Uttar Pradesh's Meerut, was awarded the United Nations' Special Envoy for Global Education's Youth Courage Award for Education on Friday. The award is in recognition of her efforts to help liberate 48 children from child labour bondage and motivate them to go to school. On Friday, the world learnt about Razia's struggle and courage as she recounted her tale to youth delegates from across the world in New York.

The day, too, has a special significance — it is observed by the UN as Malala Day to highlight and emulate Pakistani child activist Malala Yousafzai's fight for education. Malala turned 16 on Friday.

Razia, named after India's first woman ruler, too, has been fighting an uphill battle at her Nanglakhumba village in Meerut. School education for this class XII student would have remained a distant dream since she had begun working to help her family when she was only

Malala's Day out - The Hindu

 

 

 

 

my daughter's poem

 आज Fahmida_Riaz जी ने अपनी वाल पर मेरी बेटी की कविता "तुम्हारा चेहरा मदर लगाई..मेरे लिए फख्र की बात है...

Fahmida_Riaz

 

Vipin Choudhary

 

तुम्हारा चेहरा मदर – विपिन चौधरी
एक अदृश्य आकृति के मस्तक पर अपनी कामनाओं, सपनों और अरमानों का सेहरा बाँधा
बदले में उसने हमें एक मूर्ति नवाजी
जिसका चेहरा जीवन, उम्मीद, ममता,स्नेह, करूणा से लबरेज़ था
दूरी को बींधने वाली उसकी दो आँखे, सीने पर बंधे कोमल-स्नेहिल दो हाथ
और नीली किनारी वाली सफेद साड़ी पहिने इस मूर्ति को देख हम अभिभूत हो गये
फिर एक प्रदर्शनी मे जब रघु राय की श्वेत-श्याम तस्वीर में वही अक्स दुबारा देखा तो
काले-सफेद रंग के खूबसूरत तिलिस्म पर हमें पक्का यकीन हो गया
वह चेहरा उस 'मदर टेरेसा' का था
जिसके बारे में सुनते आये थे कि
बेजान चीजें उनके करीब आकर धड़कना सीख जाती हैं
बाद में मदर की यह करामात हमने अपनी खुली आँखों से देखी
एक, दो बार नहीं
हज़ारों- हज़ार बार
अपने घर-परिवार को ताउम्र ना देख पाने
का दुख मदर को
कैसे साल सकता था
जबकि उन्हे हर चेहरे पर सिमटी दुखयारी लकीरों को खारिज कर देने का हुनर बखूबी आता था
वे कोसावो में जन्मी थी
पर उनके पांवों ने समूची धरती पर धमक दी
उनके होने की आवाज़ हरेक कानों ने सुनी
उनकी बाँहें सारी धरती को समेटने के लिये आगे बढीं
और समूचा संसार बिना ना-नुकर उनकी झोली में सिमट गया
यह केवल तुम्हारे ही बस का मामला रहा माँ..... टेरेसा
कि
दुनिया-भर के किनारे पर धकेले हुये प्राणी
तुम्हारे निकट अपनी
शरण-स्थली बनाते रहे
रात-दिन, रिश्ते-नातों, दूरी-नज़दीकियों के इसी दुनियावी वर्णमाला के बीच ही तो था
वह सब
जिसे खोजने हम लोग दर-बदर भटकते रहे
और 'उसी सब' को अपनी ऊष्मा के बूते तुमने अपनी हथेलियों में कैद कर लिया
धरा की सखी-सहेली बन
जीवन के उच्च आदर्शों को सींच-सींच कर तुमने लोगों के मन को तृप्त किया
और धीरे से कहा 'शांति'
तब सारी रुग्ण व्यवस्थायें पल भर में शांत हो गईं
पाणिग्रही समय ने हमें अपने बारे में कुछ नहीं बताया
पर तुम तो सच-सच बताना मदर
मानवीयता के सबसे ऊँचें पायदान पर खड़े होकर
जब कभी तुमने सहसा निचे झाँका तो
क्या हम
अपने-अपने स्वार्थों की धूरी पर घूमते बजरबट्टू से ज्यादा कुछ नज़र आये?
सीने में जमी हुई हमारी दुआएं
भाप की तरह उठती और बिना छाप छोड़े वायु में विलीन हो जाती रही
तुम्हारी दुआओं ने अपने विशाल पँख खोले
और हर टहनी पर कई घोंसले बनाये
मूर्तियों के नज़दीक अपनी नाक रगड़ने वाले हम
किसी इंसान को आसानी से नहीं पूजते
पर इस बार हमने, तुंम्हें जी भर कर पूजा
और इसी कारण हमारे फफूँदी लगे विचार सफ़ेद रूई मे तब्दील होते चले गये
महज अठारह साल की उम्र में तुम
मानवीयता के प्रेम में गिरफ्तार हो गईं
हम दुनियादारों को प्रेम की परिभाषा खोजने में जुगत लगानी पड़ी
उसी धुंधलके में एक बार फिर याद आया
केवल तुम्हारा ही चेहरा मदर.

 

Happy writting!

आज जब मिसेज जुनेजा अपने बेटे की शादी का

आज जब मिसेज जुनेजा अपने बेटे की शादी का ......

HERE

1830's purse

my my next to do purse

आज की सुबह

सूर्य नमस्कार की बारह स्थितियाँ

अज सुबह जब उठी तब सर में बड़ा दर्द हो रहा था यथ कर मैंने सर में तेल लगाया और फिर बहुत देर तक हाथ पैरों  में  एक्यूप्रेशर किया और साथ ही हरि ॐ का उच्चारण करती रही और फिर हल्का गर्म पानी पी कर बाल कृष्ण जी महाराज (पतंजली विद्यापीठ के) द्वारा आस्था आस्था चै नल  पर बताई गई बताई १० excersize  की ताकि पेट साफ़ हो जाय एक बार आस्था चै नल पर मैंने यह excersize  देखी थी तब से ही इन्हें करती हूँ बहुत कारगर हैं फिर थोड़ा  त्राटक  किया और फिर टीवी चलाया तब रामदेवजी महाराज  सूर्यनमस्कार  बता रहे थे मुझे  सूर्यनमस्कार करना बहुत मुश्किल लगता है. बेटी को बड़ी अच्छी तरह करना आता है...फिर मैं सैर करने निकल गई 

 सूर्य नमस्कार के बारह मंत्र

 the doily on this page is on my todo list

 







 xoxo