Walk in to gape at the massive antique wooden table right in the centre with all paper products on display – as if it were an island on its own; stacks of paper lined on the sides and graded by colour – as if gazing at a rainbow so near; colonial architecture holding various exhibits of paper and paper products – as if to belong together; further in (by this time I have already decided my favourite spot) to the back and then to the corner is a dedicated section flaunting images of the craftsmen at the mill, their work in progress and a showcase of the different processes in the making of the paper – as if inside a museum making a connection felt through the story they are trying to tell —- Bombay Paperie – where paper is made without cutting trees and sold planting just love.
Tag: stationery
An Artists Heaven | The Source |
I have always been a person who could spend hours in an art shop - the colours, the papers, the many mediums, everything - more than captivate, hypnotises me! And I am quite sure if you are a painter or in any way inclined towards art you already know about these two art marvel stores located at the two ends of Bombay (Mumbai) - stocked to the brim with all possible art supplies - Himalaya and Art Station an artists heaven!
The nostalgia of an old customer who has been going there for years….. Himalaya is one of the first and finest stationery shops I have been to that caters purely and “soul-y” to fine art supplies and/or to inspire the fine artist inside you 😉
Located near Victoria Terminus Station and opposite the J.J school of arts, Himalaya has been first of its kind in India, an old establishment that is now running short on space with their products stocked and stacked all the way up to the ceiling, which by the way has been spray-painted and in a way adds to the charm of the shop. They have the most extensive range of art materials and brands you can think of, here you will find Winsor and Newton oil paint, Liquitex and Golden acrylic paint, Gouache colours; all kinds of mediums and varnishes, drafting tools, easels, calligraphy pens etc etc as well as a decent selection of instructional books on art. One can never leave without having to buy at-least one new thing!
BLOCK AND PRINT – not just a clothing dye. |Inspiration|
I have always thought the beauty of block printing lies in its tedious process - the detailed designing of the patterns, carving of the blocks, layering of colors and of course the history of its artisans!
Even though block printing is a widely known art of printing on fabrics and textiles not many are aware of its extensive use on wallpapers and leather products. In-fact block printing was the standard method of producing wallpaper until the early 20th century and is still used by a few traditionalist firms.
I happened to stumble upon an enlightening video on the Victoria and Albert Museum website that inspired me to write this post and share my two bits.
The V&A video shows the woodblock printing process William Morris went through to create some of his timeless wallpaper designs; for this pattern he used 30 different blocks, 15 colors and took about 4 weeks to complete the entire printing process!!!
(Sharing a few screenshots for a quick scroll but I encourage you all to watch the full video – linked above.)
The Second Life_ Waste for change
“To expect a third party to save the environment is passé, when everyone of us can help the cause by reusing things of daily requirements”
Well…. we are glad someone is thinking and thinking right and thats why we absolutely love the ideology and products of “The Second Life” by StudioABCD.
The Second Life is an honest attempt at making products and stationery, reusing and recycling the most basic items like the newspaper- that keeps piling up to be given to the scrap dealer after it’s everyday read; and film posters – that are printed way more than really required. The whole idea is to find and create an alternative & sustain it by adding value to it – – almost like giving it another lifeline!!!
“Every time we dispose a product and call it ‘waste’ we also dispose the energy spent on making it… it must be our conscious responsibility to step out of the system of ‘disposable culture’ and enter a cycle of living with absorbing systems.”
They block print on newspaper and film poster backs and have a range of stationery that includes wrapping papers, envelopes and notebooks. We totally encourage the idea!
P.S. Love the Up-cycled Film Poster Envelope!