JOIN USLike all crafters, Ashwini Vinayraj too harboured a passion for arts and crafts right from childhood. Like many people, she too put it on the back seat when engineering, marriage and motherhood caught up with her. But unlike most, she did not give up and persevered in her efforts, even going the extra mile to get certified from abroad in decoupage.
“I always wanted to get certified and thought that a course abroad would help me set up a home studio here some time,” says Ashwini, adding that decoupage and scrapbooking are her favourite activities when it comes to the world of craft. “I do decoupage with wood, glass, plastic and more. I create baskets, customised wooden jewellery boxes, photo albums, bottles for decorative purposes and a bunch of other items,” she says.
For the mother of two daughters, aged nine and four, time is the biggest challenge when it comes to following her passion.
“I have to devote my time to my family when they are around. So I work in the mornings from 9-12 when my daughters have gone to school. Otherwise I work from 9 pm onwards when they go to sleep.”
Colours are her biggest motivation as they trigger her imagination. “As soon as I see different colours, I get very excited. And paper; I can transform even the most ordinary paper into exciting stuff. I don’t leave even tissue rolls,” she says with a laugh.
So doesn’t her house get cluttered with all the things she makes? “No, I keep gifting these. Whenever I go for some function or occasion, I gift them handmade presents instead of buying something from outside. And people love it. They can see the amount of time and effort that has gone into it,” she says.
When asked about her favourite designs, Ashwini has a surprising answer.
“I don’t plan a design or theme for an item. I just start and mould it into something beautiful, whatever comes into my mind while making it. The gifts depend on what the person likes. I focus on their likes, what colours interest them and more.”
The crafter likes portraits but does not stick to those in her designs because variety is the spice of life, after all.
“To everyone who is interested in the field of arts and crafts, I want to say this - you need to be creative in your own way. There are so many artistes and crafters around that it is a challenge to stand out and original ideas will be your trump card. Try something new, use different colours, explore different materials. Make use of every single thing possible, even scrap.”
Her enthusiam for the offbeat is evident in the pictures of her creations on her page ‘Natassha Decoupage.’
Asked about her future plans, Ashwini strikes an ambitious note.
“I want to pursue this purely for passion. I would like to explore more places to learn more things. Every country will have some indigenous art form. I want to travel the world and learn as much of these as possible. Also, I would love to teach children. Arts and crafts will help them explore their creativity and will also act like a stress buster for them.”
(Ashwini can be contacted on ashwinivinayraj1333@gmail.com)