Up scaled bookmarks!

Many of us love reading books. I am one of them. Keeping a track of the pages which have been read, always becomes a challenge for me.  Seems that I cannot trust my memory… That is when, bookmarks come to my rescue.

Every time I see some stiff packaging materials, which I have to discard after taking its contents, I feel bad about it's wastage. Some examples are cereal carton boxes, boxes in which we receive gifts.  

And I invariably end up saving these cardboards to make bookmarks.  I have made bookmarks from airline tags too, these come in very handy as they already have the elastic tage attached to it.

Recently one of my dear friends, from Israel, Liraz, gifted my daughter a cosmetic set, which came in a beautiful box, which I have reused to make these bookmarks.

Here is a glimpse of some of the bookmarks I made for this festive season, to be shared with loved ones! I am glad that I could upscale the beautifully designed cardboard instead of throwing it out.

I encourage all my blog readers to reduce, recycle and reuse items in the best way they can!  

Christmas facts!

Did you know # 11

The Christmas season has set in and we look forward towards celebrating this festival of joy and celebration on December 25.

Here are some enlightening facts related to Christmas:

1)     Thomas Nast was the cartoonist who created the traditional image of Santa Claus.

2)     There are nine reindeer's in the sleigh of Santa Claus.

3)     Santa Claus is associated with Saint Nicholas of Myra. The birthplace of this saint is Demra in Lycia, a part of modern Turkey.

4)     There is a placed called ‘Christmas’ in Orange county in USA.

5)     There is an island in the Indian Ocean, called Christmas Island.

6)     The poinsettia is a traditional Christmas flower. In Mexico (its original birthplace) it is known as the ‘Flower of the Holy Night’

The 'traditional' Christmas flowers

7)     In France, Christmas is called ‘Noel’

8)     The first printed reference to Christmas trees appeared in Germany in 1531

9)     In 1937, the first postage stamp to commemorate Christmas was issued in Austria

10)Hallmark introduced its first Christmas cards in 1915, five years after the company was founded.

11)The popular Christmas song ‘Jingle Bells’ was composed in 1857 by James Pierpoint and was originally called ‘One-Horse Open Sleigh.

The “Golden Fibre”

Visiting handicraft stores and admiring the craft of the talented artisans is one of my favorite hobbies. Last month, I happened to stop by a handicraft store at the Mumbai International airport. And could not resist buying a cute jute lunch bag. I was very impressed with the way it was designed – as if it was made from a newspaper!

And the good part was, it listed the advantages about of jute and its related news…

Jute is Cute!

Jute News

Here are some of the facts about Jute:

1) Jute industry engages 4 million farmers and 2, 30,000 workers.

2) When jute sacks are disposed, they are re-processed into yarn or      felt, used as compost and landfill. Thus it is very ecofriendly.

3)  Jute contributes towards USD $180 million towards our foreign      exchange earnings.

4)  Our food grains and sugar need 6, 21,000 metric tons of jute to        keep them safe.

5)  Jute grows well in lowland. It requires plenty of rainfall. It              grows mainly in India and Bangladesh.

6)  Jute is also used in making paper.

7)  India is the largest producer and consumer of jute in the world!

8)  Bangladesh is the largest exporter of jute fiber in the world!

These jute bags and other jute products are sold by Jute Cottage whose promotional phrase is : Jute is Cute.

For more information, please visit their website: http://www.jutecottage.co.in/

My love for ecofriendly bags continues….

Full forms of words in a mat!

A couple of months back, I happened to stay at Hotel Suba International, located close to the International airport in Mumbai. Whilst having breakfast at this hotel, I happened to notice the paper tablemat, which seemed to be very informative. I took a picture of it, so that I can share it with all of my blog readers. It was interesting, as this mat seemed to demystify the meanings behind some of the commonly used words in our everyday life and provide the full forms for these words.

I am not certain whether these words were derived based on these interpretations. But certainly, the full forms of these words seem logical! Food for thought, for sure….

Here are some of the examples:

Words in a mat

CHESS: Chariot, Horse, Elephant, Soldiers

NEWSPAPER: North East West South Past and Present Events Report

EAT: Energy and Taste

COLD: Chronic obstructive lung disease

AIM: Ambition in mind

JOKE: Joy of Kids entertainment

DATE: Day and time evolution

PEN: Power enriched in nib

SMILE: Sweet memories in lip expression

TEA: Taste and energy admitted

BYE: Be with you everytime