Go for the quill

There are a few things that set  Dhwani Jain apart from  other 13-year-olds. One is the seriousness with which the youngster speaks about her hobby. The other is the dedication  she has towards  arts and crafts, something best seen as a frivolous pastime by many others of her age.  

"I started  taking an interest  in this field mainly to  pass the time at my native place during vacations.  I first got interested in quilling and  joined a class for the same. Later  I started seeing what all the  others were doing online and loved those too," says Dhwani.    

"Also, my mother Nimisha does a lot of crafting  and I used to keep watching her. Slowly I started  helping her and then started doing it myself," she adds.    

Dhwani now dabbles in a range of activities like  quilling,  sponge craft, decoupage, doodling, zentangling and more. Though everything she does remains special for her, zentangles hold a distinctive place in her heart as she feels it requires a lot of patience and leads to a really good final product.  

Her artefacts are quirky and colourful with the quilled figurines being a highlight. "I tried making quilled jewellery but I didn't really like it  as it felt kind of common. I realised that making 3D figures  was fun yet challenging  and decided to give it a try," she says.    

Now most of her spare time is spent in creating something or the other and when she can't think of ideas, which is rare, Dhwani turns to Pinterest for inspiration.  

Asked if she asks her mother for help, she quickly says, "Not really, only if it is something important. She gives me feedback and tells me how I could have done something better. But usually I don't tell her what I am working on and only show the finished product."

She adds, "I also show it to family and friends. Most people praise my work while my close friends tell me how I could have done better in it. I always incorporate their suggestions. I have also  gifted my creations to many people and they have all loved them. I adore watching the happiness on people's faces when I tell them that the gift is handmade."  

The  class eight student of  Ekya School also admits that most of her teachers are not aware of her artistic inclination as she really hasn't had a chance to showcase it. "We do have an art class but it takes place only about twice a year. But whenever we have projects, I try to  make them as creative as possible."

Asked about her future plans, Dhwani says, "There are many things I want to learn in the future  like hand lettering, proper pencil shading, advanced decoupage. I want to concentrate on what I do, learn more and more, and excel in it. There are no other plans as such."  

(Dhwani can be contacted on 9901593056)