In India a bandhanvaar/toran is considered auspicious at the entrance of our home. It is a way to welcome our guests and adorn the house. A mango-leaf toran, essentially a door-hanging, is mostly made on auspicious occasions. However they do not last long. Decorative hangings, on the other hand, last longer maybe even a few years.
Peacock design and hues are my new favourites. On this Diwali, the bandhanvaar, rangoli at home, even my saree is going to be inspired by this beautiful bird. I will try and upload the rangoli pictures depending on the internet connection I get, since I am travelling home :)
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| Bandhanvaar/toran/door hanging |
I am sharing a bandhanvaar diy for the same today. You can use this design or alter it and make your own toran this Diwali.
Design planning and final look
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SEGMENT-I
Peacock pattern cut-out & decoration
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| What you will need for the Peacock pattern |
As you can see in the picture above, I have cut out the peacock design on a sheet of thick paper (use those old sturdy catalogues or cards), which is pasted on a buckram (a stiff cloth) and together this creates a firm base. On either side of this base, I have used two shades of felt cloth (colour can work just as well). Plan your design and use embellishments for the inlay work. I have used an assortment of golden beads, coloured stones, mirror and yarn pieces. For the planned design, we would need two of these cut-outs.
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| Inlay work on the peacock design |
A peacock, as we all know is incomplete without it's crown and tail feathers.
For the crown, I used a wire to string the red and blue beads together. The wire helps make the structure strong and flexible. See the pictures below for detail.
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| Peacock's crown |
For the tail feathers, I have used different shades of blue and green pom-poms along with yellow and blue clay beads and kaudi (form of conch-see picture below)
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| Peacock's tail feathers |
For the complete look, an eye is a must. I have painted one and stuck it to the cut-out. Black beads would work too.
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| Eye cut-out |
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| Final look of the Peacock cut-outs |
SEGMENT-II
Weaving beads for a chain
For the planned design, a chain structure will be required, from which the bead and pom-pom strands (segment-III) can be hanged. I have weaved a basic bead chain. It is very simple, just follow the video below to weave similar chains.
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| What you will need for weaving(left image) final look of the right-angled weaving(right image) |
SEGMENT-III
Preparing the hanging strands ('W' & 'semi-circle' patterns)
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| What you will need for the hanging segment (various shades of beads and pom-poms, mirrors, wooden bird pieces, kaudi and bells) |
First plan the pattern of the hanging. Like, for this toran, I have 4 sections of the 'W' structure and 3 of the semi-circle.
Begin sewing the pom-poms and beads on a sturdy string. I have tied kaudi and bells in the ends of 'W' and semi-circle patterns. To attach mirrors paste two of them together with the string in between.
Follow the pictures below for details.
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| for 'Semi-circle' pattern |
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| for 'W' pattern |
Once all the segments are ready, we need to assemble them together. For that, tie the strings prepared above to the woven bead-chain to get the 'W' and semi-circle pattern. Start from the middle and keep the segments equidistant for a symmetrical look. Peacock cut-outs have to be stitched to the chain ends.
The last bit is attaching rings or loops on the other end of the peacock cut-out. Stitch (not stick) the rings to provide strength to the entire structure (just a tip-attach multiple rings, this will help you adjust the length of the toran between the nails)
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| Assembling various segments together |
Hope you enjoy working on this project. Share your own projects. Sharing and learning is what this blog is all about.
Happy Diwali guys. Have a safe one.
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