Treasures out of trash

Unique hobbies

Bharti Goel has always nursed a fondness for arts and crafts but had to put it aside when she was in the family way. But this sabbatical never dampened her love for creating something new out of waste. Even now, she sees beauty in the most mundane of objects.

This habit of turning waste into utilitarian items not only helped her find her passion but also replenished her experience of motherhood. Exhausted from running behind her two sons everyday, she used art as a soothing balm that energised her. “I got married in 2009 and moved to Bengaluru that year. I had my sons a year later. For the next 2 years, I spent all my time taking care of them but soon, I realised that I had to do something for myself,” she says.

When her children were 2 years old, she decided to make a photo album for them; it held all her fondest memories of them. “When my family and friends saw it, they were surprised at how good it was. They encouraged me to take it more seriously.”

But Bharti realised how much effort would be needed if she were to take it up as her profession, so instead she turned to Facebook and began posting pictures of her works there. Since she had oodles of talent to accompany each picture, it didn’t take long for her works to get attention. This appreciation, she says, is what encourages and motivates her to experiment further.  Initially she worked with paintings of different kinds — Tanjore, mural, fabric — because she loved the colour display but switched to upcycling because she noticed the various ways in which one could work with dry waste. These days she spends a large part of her day crafting and painting. “I put my kids to sleep and spend at least 2 hours on painting and crafting in the night,” she says. 

Bharti makes photo albums, scrapbooks, organisers, nameplates, photo frames and more. “Wood — medium-density fibreboard (MDF) and plywood — is my favourite material to work with. While MDF is best for organisers and photo frames because of its light weight, plywood works well for items like customised nameplates.”

Making customised gift options are her speciality and she even has a carpenter who she works with to cut the wood. “I make gifts for celebrations, be it birthdays, anniversaries or house warming rituals, and giving a gift that can be found in any store is very impersonal, which is why I like to make something unique.”

The gifts she makes understand her recipient well and have a personal touch to them, which makes them harder to push to the side.

She can’t help but talk about colour. “I have a huge affair with colour!” With different shades and textures, she uses all her creative abilities to merge distinct colours. That’s how she makes her products — after upcycling items, she gives them a gorgeous makeover and treats them with care. “I collect tissue rolls, join them together and make organisers out of them. This is then painted with the brightest of colours and decorated.” Even plastic bottles and other wastes are given a new lease of life.