Looking Through The Stained Glass! For October 2016

Colour Stories

Stained glass is a unique art form as it is the only art that depends entirely on natural daylight for effect. Read on to know more about its origin...

Stained glass was a vital part of the architecture of the Renaissance and the Middle Ages. It inspired a sense of wonder and was immensely rich in symbolism. Stained glass windows, as we know them, appeared to arise when substantial church building began. It comes as no surprise that stained glass was one of the notable techniques of painting practiced in Europe. By the 10th century, depictions of Christ and biblical scenes were seen in French and German churches and decorative designs found in England.

During the Reformation in 1534, Henry VIII banded and destroyed all the stained glass art, causing the congregation to lose faith. For the next 400 years, the use of this art form continued to decline. In the 19th century, stained glass was re-introduced back into the churches. It is unique owing to the shift in colour and tones in accordance with weather, time of the day and season.

It was believed that Phoenician sailors discovered glass accidently after building a fire on a beach. These shipwrecked sailors set their cooking pots on blocks of natron from their cargo. They then built a fire under it on the beach. In the morning, the fire's heat had melted the soda mixture and sand. The resultant mass had cooled and hardened into glass.

The beginnings of stained glass production are a bit of a mystery. A German monk known as Theophilus, who was also an artist and metalworker, decided to reveal how to make stained glass windows in the 1100s. He documented the process in his text, "On Diverse Arts" where he described the stained glass window construction technique in detail.

Glass is coloured by adding metallic salts during its manufacture. Painted details and yellow stain are used skillfully to enhance its design. Over the years, glass workers and painters have developed a wide range of techniques to embellish the glass and make elaborately detailed and colourful images.

Stained glass windows have been described as 'illuminated wall decorations' as to prevent those within a building to see the world outside. The light that shines through stained glass is not just meant to represent God's light, but the good actions that man does for each other.

Colour Trivia

Colour Facts For October 2016

1. There is a reason the interiors of airplanes are never painted yellow or have just bare minimum shades of it. #DidYouKnow that the colour yellow induces nausea? Yellow, due to its excessive brightness, irritates the eye by overstimulation. And in airplanes, where people already try to combat motion sickness or a fear of flying, the colour yellow seems to be just inviting trouble. It is for this reason that soothing colours such as powder blue, peach, cream or green are chosen instead.
2. While you may believe that your sense of sight and your sense of taste are two completely different sense organs, they do have the ability to influence a person's choice of food or drink altogether. Basically, our perception of the food we are eating may be affected by the colour of the food. If we are handed a plate of red gravy, we'd immediately believe it is spicier than a plate of green gravy beside it, even when this isn't the case!
3. We all know that blue is one of the most loved and favourite colours of the world for men and women alike. The colour represents loyalty, intelligence, authority, etc. But were you aware that it isn't just human beings who like the colour blue? Mosquitoes are attracted to the colour blue twice as much as they are to any other colour! This means that the next time you're bitten red by a mosquito, it might not have been able to help itself!

Colour Quotes For October 2016

• Boldly be a pop of colour in a black & white world.

  - Anonymous

• If you're feeling blue, try painting yourself a different color.

  - Hannah Cheatem

• Paint from the inside out.

  - George De Groat

Colour Tips For October 2016

1. If you want to add metallic pieces of decor, be it in the form of furniture or accessories, to your home, your colour palette must either be stark neutrals like black or white, or other rich, deep colours. Light shades such as lilac, powder blue, etc. fail to make the metal pop and give the room a washed out look in general.
2. The colour of the year according to Sherwin Williams is taupe. Now while that is a beautiful colour, it needs to be paired with a shade that complements it. Go for cool colours of the skies and seas - a variety of greens and blues are a great choice. If you want to break outside the mould, a lot of people also select coral pinks and reds to pair with taupe and use white accents to set off the whole look.
3. For libraries, studios and other rooms where you would want to relax, it is best to choose a colour you feel most comfortable around. If that happens to be a shade as bold as red, don't fear - simply arrange the rest of your colour palette in a way that it complements or absorbs some of that vitality instead of adding to it. Cool browns and warm neutrals with most shades of red are the way to go!

World Of Colours

Colours & Emotion For October 2016

1. While many infographics claim colour psychology as grounds for our day-to-day choices, newer research claims that we might not be exposed to colour psychology in its purest form thereby making any such association weak. Personal preferences, conditioning, experiences from childhood and associations that we continue making as we grow up all have an effect on how we perceive colours later on. Thus, while specific colours are used to evoke certain kinds of emotion, the guarantee that the colour Yellow will always make you happy, is not there.
2. Throughout time, artists have varied in their usage of hues and shades according to basic factors like its availability or economic constraints and also according to their belief in how colour or the extent of its usage affected the end result. The Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood were part of the literary and artistic movement which believed in the most intense use of words, colours and details to evoke as realistic a picture as possible in the minds of the viewer. They created art particularly famous for its colourful brilliance unlike what was taught at the Royal Academy of Art which emphasized shadows over colour.

Colours & Fashion For October 2016

Even as far back as the Renaissance, people did not just wear outfits of any colour. Red was limited to high ranking nobles, the Church - as a symbol of authority, and judges. Orange was preferred by middle class merchants and peasants who attempted to imitate the nobility with cheaper orange dyes. The Renaissance believed that green represented young love, joy and chastity. A young woman of marriageable age was expected to wear light blue but turquoise was a sure sign of jealousy. Lastly, greys were the shade of poverty and black was exclusively worn to depict solemnity and mourning!

1. Colours & Gems For October 2016

2. Contrary to popular belief, not all pink or red stones are rubies. There exists an extremely precious mineral called Poudrettite. This gemstone was first discovered in Mont. St. Hilaire, Quebec, Canada. It is names after the Poudrette family in whose quarry the gem was found first. It wasn't documented as a gem till 1986 and the first actual gem quality Poudrettite was found in Burma. It is a beautiful, transparent gem and is a very pale, pink colour.
3. The colour amber is usually associated with honey or the description of a sunset. But amber is also a precious gemstone and is one of a kind since it is one of the few gemstones of organic origin! It is found in the Baltic region, where it was first discovered 50 million years ago. The gemstone is the fossilized form of a soft, sticky, tree resin. It is extremely light-weight, and can float in salt water. Common colours for this gemstone are from a deep yellow-brown to a pale white. Black and brown amber are found too!

Colours & Nature For October 2016

1. Human beings are 100% part of nature and in fact our bodies do get decomposed after death. But did you know that our ground up remains can serve a purpose too? The colour "Mummy Brown" is an actual hue made from the dug up and ground remains of mummies in Ancient Egypt and was used right up to the mid-19th Century where-in we were fresh out of mummy remains. What now remains is just the memory of the lengths we can go to get the colour of our choice.
2. You may admire birds all you want, but a lot of times, their colours aren't natural but the effect of what they eat! The Red Cardinal is red because carotenoids from the berries it consumes go and settle in its feathers. Flamingos owe their brilliant pink colour to a diet of shrimps. These shrimps' carotenoids are further processed in the flamingos to produce the shades of pink and orange that we are familiar with!

Decor

Deck Up Your Home This Festive Season!

The festive season is around the corner! Now that you’ve prepped your dress and jewellery, let’s make your home extra beautiful for those extra special times.

Festivals are a time when friends and families get together and have a good time. But the experience will not be the same if everyone is crowded around a cluttered centre table in a messy living room, isn't it? Decking up your home is as important as prettying up yourself in great clothes and jewellery. So let's achieve that picture perfect look for a festive and happy home!

1. Spring Cleaning
This term is a misnomer at present but we'll go with it anyway. Before any kind of festival, one of the most important steps is cleaning your entire house from top to bottom. Get rid of any clutter making your home unnecessarily messy, that carpet may look clean enough but accumulated dust and dirt can make your home smellier. Wipe dust and dirt from surfaces, especially those which do not receive regular dusting, like the tops of cupboards, fans, etc. Do away with any boxes you may have forgotten to throw and lift all the possible books/toys/artefacts strewn around. This will make it easier to redecorate too, should you decide to do so.

2. Decor and Design
While it may seem like a great idea to paint your home a bright colour to usher in the festivals, do you really want your home to be a vivid, red shade all throughout the year? Instead of opting for much more permanent and expensive paints, opt for decals. You can buy gorgeous wall decals at reasonable rates that reflect traditional motifs and can even be festival specific! Not only this, but decals can come off easily too the minute you are tired of them. Another smart tip is to just change the basic upholstery. Swap simple cushion covers, tablecloths, etc. for fancier ones and it will make the house instantly prettier.

3. Thoughtful Additions
Lastly, festivals are a great time to evaluate if your home is truly guest-ready. Buy an adequate stock of disposable utensils and foldable tables for your convenience. Try and see if the space under your bed can be used as a storage space and get cabinets built on top of cupboards if there is space between them and the ceiling. You could also purchase inflatable mattresses or foldable bedding because you never know when fate gifts you some surprise houseguests!

Have a happy festival season!

Colours & Ancient Sciences

Feng Shui For October 2016

Feng Shui has been practiced for centuries and is known to invite love, harmony, abundance, peace and well-being into your home. Read on to know how hanging a dreamcatcher can help you…

Happy Dreamin' with Feng Shui!

Legend of the Dreamcatcher

Feng Shui first began in the west during the Han Dynasty around the third century BC. It is the art of placing objects so that they are in harmony with their surroundings. Feng Shui believes that every object has its own life and energy, and its harmony is dependent on its placement and its surroundings.

Feathers have a great deal to do with Feng Shui. The dreamcatcher is a Native American disk made of feathers and leather. It is said that dreams, both good and bad, float through the air all day and night searching for their destinations. Sleeping under a dreamcatcher is believed to make you feel secure. Bad dreams are believed to be caught in the web and perish with the first light of a new day, evaporating like the morning dew, while the good dreams float down the feathers and onto the dreamers head.

The dreamcatcher originated from the Native American Indians. You can hang them by the window in your bedroom or at the head of your bed.

Different Traditions

There are plenty of different Native American Indian tribes whose natural environments range from the Arctic wastes of Alaska, northern Canada and Greenland to the forests of Canada and the Great Lakes. They are found on both the east and west coasts of America, on the plains and badlands, in the Rocky Mountains and in the arid deserts of Mexico, Arizona and New Mexico.

With these vast differences in experience, environment and upbringing, it is not at all surprising that their traditions vary greatly. The Pueblo Indians of the South West and the Navajo believe that you should hang your dreamcatcher directly above your bed. The good dreams get caught in the web so that you can hold onto them and remember them in the morning. The bad dreams pass straight through the web, leaving you completely unaffected by them. This is the complete opposite of the beliefs of the Plains Indians. Even though the legends and designs of dreamcatchers differ among different cultures, the underlying meaning and symbolism is universal.

Reiki For October 2016

Reiki is known to benefit those people who are recovering from an addiction and make addiction withdrawal symptoms feel less severe. Read on to know how…

Reiki for Addictions!

There are several people facing one or more addictions, which over a period of time can affect their health, leading to serious illness and even death. Addictions can take a toll and play out in lives, affecting careers, relationships, finances and family life. Reiki is a welcome addition to treat it as it provides vital support to recovery efforts. Though it is unlikely to help a person overcome an addiction on its own, it is benefial once the person is sober or in the process of getting sober.

Recovery can be an emotional rollercoaster for an individual. The person could be under tremendous stress while trying to adapt to the new life away from alcohol, drugs or any other addiction. It is very crucial to deal with stress as the person could get easily overwhelmed and be tempted to relapse.

The person could also experience plenty of anger and resentment, which Reiki can help eliminate effectively. Reiki offers ways for the person to deal better with stresses in the first few months of recovery. Daily Reiki sessions may make things more tolerable for the person. The more Reiki is received, the more centred the person will become.

Individuals who have been involved in substance abuse for a long time usually do a great deal of physical and mental damage. Reiki can help repair the damage caused and get the individual back on track towards healthy living. This type of healing can help individuals become more comfortable in their own skin.

This can be particularly helpful for those individuals dealing with issues of self-esteem. Just the gentle healing hands of Reiki can make pains and headaches disappear in minutes by bringing an energy balance in the body. When used in conjunction with all other medical or therapeutic techniques, it can be an effective tool in one's plan of recovery. If you are looking for a treatment for yourself or for a loved one, Reiki therapy is definitely worth checking out!

Vaastu For October 2016

Vaastu takes advantage of the inherent energy present in nature by following certain dos and don'ts in a way some followers and believers say are almost scientific…

Vaastu Architecture to Benefit Studying!

Vaastu Shastra is the ancient art of architecture. It enables one's buildings and living spaces to retain the most conducive and congenial atmosphere by taking note of the elements surrounding it. Let's find out how it can benefit students and aid with their studies.

It is widely accepted that students are amongst the most stressed out of every other age group. They are burdened not only with academic work, but other extra and co-curricular activities, their own hobbies and interests, an active social life, making time for family, getting the adequate rest required for growing children and basically being on top of everything.

It is no wonder that the stress levels of students just keeps rising every year with more and more students opting out of the system. Here are some Vaastu Shastra tips that are extremely useful in helping the study room be a place that enhances the concentration and focus of the students while they sit there.

1. The study should be built in the Eastern or North eastern part of the house and the child must face either of the two directions while studying. This is because according to Vaastu, the East not only represents the all-powerful sun, but also Lord Indra, the king of Hindu gods. It is the direction of success and prosperity. The North is said to be the direction of riches, since it belongs to Kuber, the treasurer of the gods.
2. The direction of the room is not the only thing that matters. According to Vaastu, the shape of the study table should be rectangular or square and it needs to be medium sized. The table must not be pressed right up against the wall but a gap must be there between it and the wall representing a blank mind and the space for new ideas.
3. The student must never sit directly beneath a beam.
4. The study must not be a dim, poorly lit room. For a proper flow of positivity and good vibes throughout the room, it needs to be well-lit whenever the student is in there. For best results, it is ideal to keep a powerful study lamp on the study table.

We hope these tips help the students in your life better their concentration, focus and studying abilities.