Diwali DIY : Bangles Tea Light Holder

It's just a day to go for Deepavali, Indian festival of lights and I haven't done any decoration so far. I am down with heavy cold and severe lower back pain. In between I am busy in cleaning the house for the festival. Searching my crafts stuff I realized, I could do a quick craft for a tea light holder.

It's a tradition in Hindu religion, to gift bangles to the married women along with vermilion. This is something we women cannot refuse. Over years bangles have piled up in my home, some pretty some very dull. Often I donate them to my helper.  For our DIY today, gather some of your old unused bangles, strong adhesive(fevicol), some small golden/pearl decorative buttons/artificial stones.

Roughly arrange the bangles of same size, and start gluing each one on top of other.

In between make sure that your tower of bangles is straight and not slanted or in other shape. You can take break in between to make sure that glue has dried properly.

I managed to decorate with the items that I had in my home at the instant. On the top bangles I decorated with the golden buttons, gluing them.

I used approximately around 15 bangles for one tea light holder.

Finally place your bangle tower on the card stock, measure from outside and cut it.
Stick it to the base of the tower. This is optional step.

Wasn't this simple? Place the tea light inside and watch the glittering light. Have a happy and safe Diwali.

Update :
Adding this to Craft Schooling Sunday @ Creative Jewish Mom

Diwali Decor : Crepe Paper Marigolds

Festivals in India are incomplete without Marigolds. These saffron and yellow colored flowers has been one of my all time favorite for their beauty and pungent scent. Today I am sharing with you a tutorial on making the marigold flowers.  Off course they do not match the fresh and real flowers completely but they can be incorporated in your décor. You can use them at the tables, or simple string them to make Toran.
Please note that since these are paper flowers, do not place them near the candles or your wicker lamps.

Gather the items that are required to make the flowers. Please note here that I have taken a thick and strong thread not the regular embroidery floss. I felt that while tying the ends together the regular thread easily slips and you will not be able to form a tight loop.

Using craft scissor with zig-zag shaped blade, cut the crepe paper about 2 and 1/5 inch width.

Taking a thread and a needle, start stringing these strips. Use a running stich along the center of the strip.

When you feel they are of enough volume, tie the two ends of the threads tightly.

For the center part of the flower, create a 1/2 inch wide and three inch length strip. Make fringes. Twist a small piece of crepe paper for a stalk. Glue the fringe to this stalk. Note that the stalk is very small here about two inches but thick enough to get inside the flower.

Insert this into the center of the flower, gluing to the flower.

For the base part, twist the base part of the flower as much as possible, to make it pointed at the bottom. Glue them with a floral tape.

 

 

 

Diwali Kandeel

With Deepavali fever still on, all the Indian home décor websites are brimming with Diwali celebration pictures and ideas, I am sharing with you something I did for Deepavali. 
It's a must in our home to hang the Akasha Deepa or Goodu Deepa(Kannada) or Kandeel on the first day of Deepavali. Its generally lighted from dusk to dawn and believed that whosoever have died in the family visit us during this time, it's a good gesture to invite them to bless us.

In old times lanterns were done at home with color papers, home made glue, bamboo etc,, these days you get them easily in the market.
Preparing Kandeel at home was always on my mind and Priti from Kwikdeko has shared about doing Kandeel with handmade paper. The process details are given out well and as she says it requires a lots of patience..

It didn't turn out as Priti's but never the still our Diwali Kandeel was ready and hung.

Could not do the same designs  but what I did was that  folded the paper and cut designs using the scissors. For the plain side, the Warli figures were drawn..
I made a mistake of sticking a bamboo blind along the length instead of the said cardboard piece. Hence all the four pieces turned out to be stiff, the end result was slightly out of shape...