Bira91

Found a tossed Bira cap in the garden, picked it up and pinned it up on someone’s softboard. Only because of the funky monkey on it.

The rest of this new desi craft beer bottle and the colours on it are just as funky monkey. There’s White where the Bira monkey just stares straight ahead, and there’s Blonde where the Bira monkey holds out a peace sign in Freddie Mercury style.

The best part about the packaging is that they have a Growler. That’s a traditional jar used to carry beer from the brewery to your home. Keeps it fresh and bubbly.

I found Bira at Thoms. And you can read more about Bira here.

Alta

Alta or Rose Bengal is a deep red dye made from lac and used to grace the feet and hands of women and dancers in the North East regions of India. I’ve always seen the dye in glass bottles that stain red even after using it once, making it difficult to store and handle, especially after one is dressed up. Glass bottles also make it scary to hold because if this breaks and falls you’ll have very deep red dye stains all over the place, forever.

So it was nice to find a plastic bottle shaped to be held comfortably. Found this one right outside a durga temple in Calcutta. Love the kitschness and joba-ness of the cover and love the shape of the bottle and the chauka depiction on the front. The chauka is the basic position in Odissi and symbolic of Lord Jagannath.

Not too sure how well that stopper will work once open, but will definitely be more seal-proof than the screw-type cap.

 

Maya Kaimal.

When I read Chitra Divakarni Banerjee’s Mistress of Spices, there were certain colours that stuck in my head. And those are the same colours that the lovely Maya Kaimal has used for her vibrant, exotic products. The labels are bright, inviting and I can just imagine how yummy they’ll look to a homesick Indian in the US.

p.s – Couldn’t resist adding a picture of Maya and her Aunt Kamala in Kerala who she learn a lot from.

 

Picture courtesy: Right here.

Lights on at Cafe Delhi.

What better way to keep memories alive than have the very bottles that held them to hang over your head. Pii loves how Cafe Delhi has upcycled and added oodles of charm to the space. Do yours now. But please to be firmly securing else it’ll fall on someone’s head and we’ll have a total cartoon show.

Picture courtesy, the Cafe Delhi FB page. Click here to go there.

The bottle bag.

Cool way to hop onto bus or bullock cart without dying of thirst 5 minutes later.

Deets: Handmade by rural folkswomen for brand Jugaad. Picture and online retail therapy from spanking new iTokri here.

The Colour Caravan

I fell in love with these, sadly they’re all sold out. But you must check out what The Colour Caravan is doing.

These bottles have been painted using a traditional art form from Orissa called Pattachitra. Here’s what they have to say about it – “Pattachitra, a domain of the Chitrakar community of painters, depict religious themes. The paintings are colorful and characterized by creative motifs and details of human figures, jewelry and costumes.

The Color Caravan is working with some of the ‘finest’ pattachitra artists from Orissa.

The canvas is skillfully made. Cotton cloth is pasted on the bottle with gum made from powdered tamarind seeds dried in the sun. It is then coated with a paste made out of white chalk and powdered tamarind seeds. After the canvas has dried, it is burnished first with a coarse stone and finally with a smooth pebble.

The design is sketched and the outlined areas of the sketch are filled in with colors extracted from rocks and seashells. The painting is finished with a coat of lacquer, applied using a soft cloth.

It takes about 3 days to just prepare the canvas and another 7-9 days to paint & lacquer coat one bottle.”

Isn’t it lovely? Read about it here on their FB page.

Picture courtesy: Colour Caravan.

Just Herbs.

What a lovely way to begin Pii posts after my stay at the yogashram. Here is pure ayurvedic goodness the way Maa and Maa Nature intended it to be. Handmade (looking) paper labels on bottles that are meant to be reused. Meaning, fill it with your besan-sandalwood facewash when you go out of town next. Catch them on FB and visit the site here.

Forest Essentials.

Forest Essentials take recipes your grandmum knew and puts them into a little black dress by Dior. Based on the ancient principles of Ayurveda and the divine scents of the forests, FE comes in delicate classy packaging with a logo that retains the Indian essence (the tree is so intrinsic to India).

The most exotic and colourful one is their very potent age-defying serum – Soundarya.

Images from here and there.

Post inspired by Pii friend and talented designer‘s shopping spree one day.

The Altitude Store.

The Altitude Store is an all-organic food boutique that specialises in yummy delicacies (including some really great cheese) from pristine farms situated high up in the hills. Their packaging reflects this natural, pure philosophy. Picture courtesy: Wallpaper.

Omved.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Omved products are natural and based on the ancient vedic texts in India. They’ve got a bath range, a baby range, a For Him and a For Her range. But the Hair Products have the best packaging.

 

A bottle of water at the Kashi Art Gallery cafe.

 

Located in hot and humid Kochi, this green and really cool corner is a lovely space to grab a bite, meet friends, run through your lists or just sip some perfectly chilled water from these sterilized, reusable glass bottles (with cork stoppers!) that the cafe keeps aside just for us thirsty patrons. The label is replaced with a new one every time. A small, simple way to make a reused article look and feel new. Not for sale, sadly. But we like not owning things, but experiencing them, don’t we?

Via, another lovely Pii friend and curator/ photographer/ stylist, Archana Srinivas.

A feni bottle.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Feny or fenny is the Goan drink everyone carries back with them but never get around to drinking. Made from either cashew or coconut, this potent drink comes in nice earthy packaging that your girlfriend will never crib about carrying back. And p.s – there are many many ways to be feni.