INDIA ON WHEELS - A trip for pleasure!: Kundan

Showing posts with label Kundan. Show all posts

Monday, August 25, 2008

Shopping In India : Jewellery Styles - 18

Guys, I am exploring here some styles of Indian Jewellery which shows the ancient trend of Indian women.

Meenakari and Kundan are styles from Jaipur and Delhi influenced by the Mughals. The jewellery can be worn on both sides. The temple jewellery of Nagercoil has traditional gold ornaments studded with red and green semi-precious stones.

In Assam, soft 24 carat gold is fashioned into earrings and necklaces modelled on local flora and fauna. For instance, earrings resembling the orchid.

In Nagaland, gold is used to craft imitations of the human head and long funnel shaped beads are used in combination with shells, animal claws and teeth and precious and semi-precious stones.

The designs in solid gold jewellery of Tamil Nadu and Kerala are inspired by nature.

Silversmiths of Himachal Pradesh craft large delicate and intricate ornaments. Head-dresses called chak, long earrings and large nose-rings with peepal leaf or bird motifs are the specialties of the region. In Ladhakh, silver charm boxes and head-dresses called perk with rows of turquoise, carnelian, coral and agate stitched onto it, are a common sight.

Saturday, August 23, 2008

Shopping In India : Jewellery - 17

Different regions of India have jewellery traditions and styles unique to them. Popular styles that have passed on for centuries include fine filigree work in silver from Orissa and Andhra Pradesh, the art of enamelling of Meenakari from Jaipur, temple jewellery from Nagercoil and Kundan or the setting of semi-precious or precious stones in gold from Delhi. Every metro has a gold bazaar. A walk across Zaveri bazaar in Mumbai, for instance, will give an idea of India's contemporary and classic jewellery traditions.

Chaste silver and gold, as well as precious stones, are great value for money in India. The emphasis is on heavy detailing. There are many jewellery centres specializing in local styles. In northern India, the best work can be found in Jaipur, Kutch, Bikaner and Murshidabad.

For a more contemporary look, try a Kutchikaam bangle or anklet - the chunky embossed silver of Gujarat. You can also do the rounds of flea markets and walk away with 'duplicate' Meenakari enamelled necklaces, ornate gem studded armbands and genuine glass bangles in eye-catching colours and designs.

Sunday, August 17, 2008

Shopping In India : Indian Handicrafts - 8

How many you guys very well known to Indian Handicraft? I know all you never put attention to Indian Handicraft and even creativity of our grand parents who deliver beautiful and meaningful art to our nation and next generation.

Guys, every state of India showcases its products at fixed rates at the Cottage Industries Emporium in major cities including Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Bangalore and Chennai.

Available are artefact's in bronze, brass, ivory, marble or wood. You will find statues, lamp shades, chairs delicate filigree work on ivory and silver, marble inlaid with precious colored stones, enamel work, 'Kundan' or 'Meenakari' jewellery of Rajasthan, silver from Orissa and pearls from Hyderabad. Brasswork from Jaipur, black stylized vases and urns from Pembarthi and the polished brass mirrors of Aranmula have today evolved into design statements.

Everywhere in India one finds idols and statues in temples and on the streets. It was natural that sculpting skills be developed. The granite and bronze sculptures of south India have continued an unbroken lineage from the Chola period dating back a thousand years. The ever-popular Lord Ganesh, God of prosperity, assumes various forms humble clay, stone to metal.

Marble sculptures are found mostly in the north and one can pick up a cornucopia of typical inlaid hand-moulded jars, plates, and latticed panels. Boxes plaques, bowls in sandstone and soapstone can be picked up as you stroll along the colorful bazaars of south India's towns. Blue-black phyllite is used by carvers in Santhal-Parganas in Bengal.

Arts is ageless. From the primitive cave paintings of Bhimbetka, to the cubist influenced M.F. Hussain, all hues of India show up in galleries and shops. An interesting buy are folk paintings from Madhubani, in which women paint symbolic fertility pictures with natural pigments.

Guys, one can have at least one hand made article to your house to keep Indian Handicraft alive.

Monday, August 25, 2008

Shopping In India : Jewellery Styles - 18

Saturday, August 23, 2008

Shopping In India : Jewellery - 17

Sunday, August 17, 2008

Shopping In India : Indian Handicrafts - 8

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