Posts Tagged ‘joy’

Celebrate Normal Day

Tuesday, May 25th, 2010

Many of us go through life defining happiness as the response to specific events – when I get a great job , when I make 10 million $, when I have a home , car…The list could be as long as the planet’s population count . In linking happiness to specific events , material objects we blind ourselves to the miracles that surround us. Partly , the malaise of our times . We expect life to look like the choreographed , edited films and ads we see everywhere we look. ‘Normal’ in the context of a day is often used to mean uneventful / boring.

The tragic crash of the flight at Mangalore underscores the uncertainty of life . In an instant , the course of hundreds of lives – the victims and their loved ones changed forever. What they would treasure is a ‘normal’ day in which their loved ones are alive and safe. To someone ailing in a hospital a ‘normal’ day is a gift to be cherished . If you are healthy , global warming hasn’t yet radically altered your part of the planet , you have family / friends….then ‘normal’ is special.

Love this quote by Mary Jean Iron….”Normal day, let me be aware of the treasure you are. Let me learn from you, love you, bless you before you depart. Let me not pass you by in quest of some rare and perfect tomorrow. Let me hold you while I may, for it may not always be so. One day I shall dig my nails into the earth, or bury my face in the pillow, or stretch myself taut, or raise my hands to the sky and want, more than all the world, your return.”

Celebrate Normal Day.

Eco decor

Monday, May 24th, 2010

This afternoon we dressed up an indoor plant in the office with a piece of fabric . Cool way to enliven home and office decor. Besides being eco friendly this is incredibly versatile . The look of a space can be wonderfully altered just by the choice of fabric .

Try out your combinations and mail us pics.

Save 1095 litres of water

Sunday, May 9th, 2010

These days many cities and neighborhoods face water shortage . Even those that are lucky to get 24 hour water supply must be prudent with water consumption.

Water used to wash vegetables , rice , dal etc can be stored in a bucket / watering can. This water can be used to tend to home gardens. This change on an average will reduce the otherwise fresh water needed to water plants by 3-4 liters daily . Multiply this over millions of households. That’s millions of liters of water that would otherwise be poured down the drain.

A single household with a home garden that consistently uses kitchen water for the home garden will save a minimum of 1095 liters per year.

If you don’t have a home garden pl make a start . It’s possible to nurture plants in a small balcony / window sill . Use wall space . The joy of seeing plants grow and blossom is indescribable.  In a world where most things are marketed as ‘instant’ – from noodles to weight loss – gardening connects us with the rhythm of life that can’t be hurried. We may think we nurture the plants. The plants nurture us with their presence.

Clean Planet on Stylesight

Friday, April 30th, 2010

Global fashion portal Style Sight has featured Clean Planet in ‘Sites that Inspire’. Cool !

Manufacturing content

Friday, April 30th, 2010

Content..NOT as in content for a website or a blog . Content in the sense of feeling contented with what one has.

Just as the desires have been manufactured carefully and with much effort, we must manufacture content. In ourselves, and in society..

..Contentedness comes naturally, in the absence of manufactured desire. But getting back to that natural state might take some work.

Re-glaze..

Tuesday, April 27th, 2010

Reduce, Recycle, Reuse, Reconnect, Revalue, Restore, Reforest, Revive, Reawaken, React, Reassert, Re…pair, Rethink, Review, Renew, Regenerate, Reinvent, Replenish, Relearn, Reform, Reverse, Respect…words that inspired Neha . She added her own to this list Re-glaze.

In a discussion with a trained potter who has been working with Neha for some time – the potter often mentioned about the left over glazes at his studio . Having no idea how to use them he would throw it away. Every time Neha met him she wondered how they could “reuse “the left over glazes.

Inspiration struck while working on a range for the ‘Earth Mela’ .Having studied pottery Neha had a hunch that the glazes could be reused. They collected all the left over glazes, designed mini vases , dipped the glazes and kept fingers crossed to see the results.

Ceramic high fired stoneware clay mini vases glazed with material that would have otherwise been discarded .The result is in the image…beautiful shades of earthy browns, blues, green tones .The colors are reminiscent of the glazes used by Japanese studio potters.

These vases are all hand thrown in different shapes and they can never get the same colour. That is part of the beauty of reusing.

Wait a bit before your throw something away. In experimenting with it you never know what miracles lie in store.

Pic and concept : Matsya

Furoshiki

Saturday, April 24th, 2010

The ultimate eco bag !

It may not be possible for all to expertly and quickly fashion stable bags from cloth . We can however use cloth creatively wrap gifts.

Ditch wrapping paper . Instead use cloth – old saris , stoles , scarves, dupattas . Being in the clothing biz we get fabric swatches of varying dimensions on a regular basis . Some of them are used to wrap objects , gifts . The end result is always delightful – for us and the recipient.

p.s – we’ve been thinking about the number of items one can make from a sari. In a few weeks we should be able to share the fun creations from a sari

The Clean Planet Manifesto

Wednesday, April 21st, 2010

The inspiration for Clean Planet is the vision of a sustainable world . While designing the range we wanted to put together a collection of thoughts that resonate with the multi-faceted vision of Clean Planet and share it with the world.

The Clean Planet Manifesto is now one of the thought inspiring motifs of the Wise Tote .

Words enable worlds..

Game of laundry

Tuesday, April 20th, 2010

Brilliant idea by DesignAffairs Studio .

Carry your ideas..

Friday, April 16th, 2010

Most products come with a recommended wash care. Here’s a recommended list of contents to carry in your Clean Planet bag

In your Clean Planet bag do carry with you a note book , a bottle of water , a handkerchief and possibly a book to read…

In our harried urban lives most of us are unlikely to experience the luxury of vast tracts of time on a daily basis to nurture our ideas and dreams . What we do get is precious moments which if honored can foster creativity , originality , joy , satisfaction and meaningful action.

Clean Planet would not be what it is today if it were not for a notebook (now – notebooks) in which ideas were written for months. Ideas are like gentle birds that perch on a branch for a moment before they fly away. Write them down and follow your inspiration with action. There’s no limit to what you can create.