Kill the chill in jumbo style

Winter is dreary and you welcome everything that’s bright and sunny in winter days. It’s also the time to wrap yourself in warm woolies and ward away the chill. Winter come and go each year ushering in new trends in winter wear. Body hugging sweaters and jumbo style sweaters are in perennial vogue. Body fitting sweaters go well with trousers and dresses, formal as well as informal. Huge sweaters knitted from thick yarn look good with jeans.

This winter, the fashion icons worldwide are going for jumbo style sweaters knitted from thick yarn. In style are those sweaters, which could easily house two bodies instead of one. Cardigans with huge collars, knee-length cardigans with frayed ends and seamless sweaters are hot favourite among the wearers.

Woolen wear shops in Thamel are selling exactly those types of winter wear that are popular worldwide this season. They have the all time favourite designs as well as those that are in vogue now. But the sad thing is the shops wear a deserted look at this time of the year when people make purchase of warm attires.

Woolen-wear should be selling like hot cakes in the midst of winter but Manamaya Shrestha of Tibetan woolen goods at Thamel says, "This is the off season for winter wear and our sales in minimum this time around the year." "These local knit-wears aren’t popular among the local buyers. Few Nepali youngsters buy them but Nepalese prefer foreign goods to local ones. I’ve been selling sweaters for years but even I don’t own a single bhote wool sweater myself," she adds. "October and November are our peak sales season. In December and January we have fewer tourists and sales is low. Foreigners appreciate and buy designs, which they find unique. We had good sales this year compared to the previous years," she adds further.

Wool used in bhote wool items come from New Zealand and they are dyed here. They are either dyed in vegetable dyes or chemical dyes. Vegetable dyes are not permanent and they are expensive compared to chemical dyes. Women in Kathmandu as well as surrounding villages do the knitting according to the designs given to them by the shop owners in Thamel. The women take maximum of three days to finish one sweater and they get Rs 100 to 150 for remuneration depending upon the design of the item.

Shrestha points out that the bhote wool items though very attractive have some drawbacks. "We cannot guarantee that the woolen wears’ colours are permanent. They are a bit coarse and irritate our skin upon direct contact. Their weight is also a big put off to people who prefer light woolen garments," says Shrestha. "We are trying to make the woolies comfortable to wear by lining them with fleece and cotton materials," she adds.

Whatever their drawbacks, the bhote wool items look irresistible in their well coordinated colour patterns and multicoloured designs. And a huge range of warm items are available in bhote wool. There are caps, mufflers, mittens, handbags, gloves, jackets and ponchos you can mix and match with your other clothes. These woolies in vibrant hues will certainly add colour to your wardrobe and chilly winter days.

Sukrabar an event with a difference

Music has different forms. It ranges from rock n’ roll, blues, jazz to the evergreen classical. With the advent of electronic instruments, classical music, once so popular, seems to have been superseded by other kinds of music, especially in Nepal. With a view to rectify this, a program named ‘Shukrabar’ was held on 13th December, 2002 in a cultural setting of the Patan museum courtyard. It was something the classical music lovers had been waiting for and the audience gathered in numbers for the event relished the occasion.

The musicians played different classical numbers which the audience appreciated with loud applause. The amazing blend of ethnic and classical eastern music with a touch of western music was truly outstanding. The enthralling combination of tabala, sarangi, flute and semi-acoustic guitar filled the theatre leaving the audience spellbound for full 90 minutes. On the show were some noted artistes of Nepal like Babu Raja Maharjan (tabala), Raman Maharjan (flute), Gopal Rasaili (guitar) and Shyam Sharan Nepali (Sarangi). This program greatly pleased classical music fans who are compelled to listen to roaring electronic sounds in the absence of such programs.

The main theme of this event was ‘giving avid listeners a chance to feel the strength of classical music’ by bringing together the powerful contribution and remarkable act of fusion. The gripping energy of the music, the originality of the event and the energetic maestros in this field all combined, succeeded in making Shukrabar an exceptional musical event.

The event organised by Streamline incorporated in a joint venture with Little media pvt. and promoted by East meets west music box was a huge success and proved to be an epitomized effort to bring genuine touch of classical music to the forefront. The organizers say the musical ‘phenomenon’ has started and would continue in the same form as long as it glows in the heart of true classical music lovers. According to the organizers, more of such event swill be held in the future. And more good news for music lovers as Sursudha, a band almost synonymous to classical music in Nepal, will be on stage at the same venue on 17th of January, 2003. The phenomenon for good music, it seems, has started.

Sound of wind chimes

" Wind chimes make lovely sounds. When you come home tired and hot in summer days, it welcomes you with gentle notes making you forget your tiredness and worries of the day. For me wind chimes is synonymous to home and cool respite in hot summer days."

Pragya Rajauriya

Hanumandhoka durbar square is a busy place but have you noticed that Taleju Bhawani temple complex bears the air of calmness even in the busiest of days? A kind of heavenly quietude envelopes the temple in all hours of the day especially in the evenings. Maybe it’s because the temple is close to the public except during Mahastami and Nawami in Dashain. When evening breeze gently swings the hundreds of wind-bells hung from the eaves of the temple, one feels transported to some mystic land where time stands still.

Such wind-bells would surely enhance the atmosphere of our home if we are to hang them from the eaves of our roof but we do not do so in Nepal because such bells are meant for holy places alone. The wind-bells could have made their way to our country from China via Tibet. In countries like China, Indonesia and Japan they existed from prehistoric times. The wind-bells also known as wind chimes, are decorated or carved with exotic designs and hung from the eaves of sacred places like temples, monasteries and places of worship. Buddhists’ sacred structures like pagodas and shrines often have hundreds of such small wind chimes hanging from the roofs and gently tinkling to the tunes of breeze. They sound as though they are offering prayers to the omnipresent, all pervading holy spirit.

In Japan and China the wind chimes made their way to private homes side by side with the religious shrines. People started to hang such chimes in their veranda and rooms for decorative purpose and for relaxing and soothing notes these bells create. Sizuko Miyake of Osaka, Japan says that almost every home in Japan has a wind-chime. " It makes lovely sounds. When you come home tired and hot in summer days, the wind-bells welcome you with gentle notes making you forget your tiredness and worries of the day. For me wind-bells are synonymous to home and cool respite in hot summer days," says Miyake. "In Japan we have wind-bells made from cast iron, glass and bamboo reeds. Their price depends upon the material used and the quality of sound," he adds.

In China, the practitioners of Feng Shui method of healing use wind chimes as tool to calm mind and expand conscious awareness of human beings. In Feng Shui, wind and water are two fundamental aspects of life’s energy which is always in motion. This flowing energy is known as chi and chi can be negative as well as positive. Positive flow of chi is necessary for happy and healthy life. Chi that moves too fast, too slow or stagnant are categorised as the negative chi which is destructive and this is where the wind chime can be put to use for cure of negative chi. The Feng Shi gurus believe that pleasant melodies from the wind chimes enhance the existing positive chi and stimulate relaxation, calm nervousness, tension and anger.

The wind chimes which serve as decorative object and tinkle with most pleasing sounds are popular among the people of the west as well. These wind chimes have also caught up with the Kathmanduties lately. They can be seen hung from the balconies and veranda of many houses. All wind chimes that are available in the gift shops and khasa bazaar do not give pleasant notes especially the dome-shaped metal chimes. If you are planning to get one for your home, try a couple of wind chimes before you settle for the one, which sounds best to your ears.

Lampshades for mellow light

For certain space in the room, mellow light is more preferable to white brightness of fluorescent bulbs. To tone down the brightness of your electric bulb you can use paper lampshades. The diffused light from these shades gives one a pleasurable experience. Though less durable, paper lampshades are as beautiful as the fabric shades. They come in a variety of textures, colour schemes and designs. One only has to visit the handicraft shops found in various places in the city to witness their intriguing shapes, colour choice and sizes. Above all things, they are environment friendly.

There are wall lampshades mostly used in restaurants, lampshades for tree decoration, stand lampshades for reading purposes. Over a hundred designs of lampshades are available in Nepal. Some resemble rockets, some temples, some animals, some stars and parachutes. Some shades are made in such a way that they last only for certain duration. For example, the lamps that are made for Christmas and New Year decoration do not last long and they are not meant to last for months. But the properly made, sturdy lamps do not wear out for one to two years.

If you have a beautiful paper lampshade and you want its long life, there are certain methods of giving them longevity. The first thing one has to remember is never to use fluorescent bulb under such lampshades because light will not diffused properly when shade is used with such bulbs. If 20 to 25 watt bulb is used, the paper shade will not turn brittle soon. The lampshades should not be taken from one place to another often. Heat coming from the bulb wears out the paper gradually and the shade may get torn while it is being handled. One should take care while removing dust from the shades. Feather dusters are best suited for cleaning paper lampshades.

Paper lampshades are prone to accidents caused by fire. They easily catch fire since the paper in the shade turn crisp and dry from the heat emanating from the bulb inside. Due to this reason, there should be a four-inch gap between the bulb and the shade so that air can freely flow through this opening.

When you want to create a cosy setting for your room next time, you can pick paper lampshades for your table lamp and bulbs in the room. These delicate structures will surely enhance the look of your room because they look as lovely during the day as they look at night.

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