DIY-HARD with craftiness
Call it upcycle or improvisation, the city is seeing a surge of workshops and groups that give the used and worn-out a new lease of life.
Bangalore Craft-Lovers, Do It Yourself-DIY Bangalore and innumerable other workshops are proof enough that Bengaluru indeed loves improvising. Be it upcycling discarded items or giving a personal touch to other knick-knacks, venues like Atta Galatta and others, are promoting both art and craftsy artists that the city is abundant in.
Most often with the excuse of being unable to let go of things, and sometimes purely because old belongings need mending, most have done it themselves. Something similar happened with city-based Mana Santhanam too. The web designer slash vocalist reminisces trying to repair an old pair of shoes when the idea dawned upon her. “It wasn’t until much later in college that customising occurred to me. I started applying my own touch into shoes and notebooks and suddenly people started taking notice and wanted me to work on theirs too. The sentiment of making something exclusively for another person is what gives me the kicks!” enthuses the artist.
Arpitha Badrinath is an improv-guru whose passion for DIY arose with buying junk jewellery and giving it her creative touch. “It was irresistible! I couldn’t rest until I have given it my personal touch, which would mostly be inspired from magazines and pop-culture. When people started noticing it, I was struck with the idea to create a few designs of my own and display them at a carnival,” the 27-year-old designer reminisces. Inspired by street style, her wild assortment of peppy earrings, clutches and shoes are crafted within an aura of fusion.
Sushma Madappa has been experimenting with all kinds of paper crafts ever since childhood. Currently, she is a sorceress with mosaic art, decoupage, and block printing. “I would say my style is largely vintage, and I am constantly thinking of ways to upcycle old things.” she spills, stressing on how she doesn’t want to label her art as strictly craftsy. Similarly, Nirupama Kaushik Iyer has been a DIY enthusiast for the longest time. Not keen on constricting her style to a particular label, she explains her creations as, “Simple and functional, yet full of emotions.” Joanna Deepika on the other hand enjoys doing it herself and teaching other kids her art too. “There’s just something about old bottles that draws me to upcycle them!” the young craftswoman admits. “But the best part is teaching little kids the simplest ways to turn something basic into something gorgeous. The delight on their face when they accomplish the task is priceless.”
From customised paper cups that can work as lamps to jazzy earrings painted with upbeat comics – the DIY culture in India is steadily growing. What started as a foreign craze via Instagram videos imploding the web is now a legitimate business trend amongst the city based youth.