VARNIKAA : Madhubani themed colouring book for adults review

Being a psychologist, I know the role of stress and how important it is to cope. Lucky are those who love art. They have numerous ways to De-stress themselves. When we are stressed, more chances of our thoughts and energy being focused in the wrong way. drawing/Coloring  is one such technique which helps us positively channelize the energy. At the end we have a beautiful piece of art and during the process we mindfully focus our thoughts on one thing which is equal to meditation.

So these days since I am jobless at home resting all day, I wanted to get back to my most favorite hobby “painting”. I looked out for some colors but they were all dried up due to my careful packing and storing it in the safest place *sarcasm*. Next option: open amazon, since I have a 1000rs unused voucher, I thought I can use it this way. 😀 While I checked out for the paintings I found this beautiful book with amazing reviews hence booked it immediately and was delivered within 3 days.

The book by Ms.Deepika Mahalakshmi contains completely hand drawn 20 madhubani patterns that can be colored using pencils, pens, crayons, paints.

Each pattern can be colored and has an option of tearing out the work and framing it. On the left side of the sheet there is description of the art and space to write our thoughts while working on it.

This is the first picture in the book, Egyptian sky goddess of love. (Sorry for the colored portion, I was in such a hurry to color that I even forgot to click the picture). 😦

I used Faber-castell 24 triangular color pencil set which has even golden and silver shade.  The design on the left wing top part was incomplete. I justified myself saying that the artist wanted us to focus, find out and complete the art form with utmost dedication. 😛

So here is the output. 😀 hope you guys like it. There are 20 similar amazing patterns (I don’t want to post the others and spoil the surprise)

Price: 499+shipping charges
Buy it from: Amazon/flipkart/snapdeal
colors used: Faber-castell colour pencils
Paper quality: Amazing thick paper so you can even use paints without the fear of spreading it to other pages.

Final verdict :  This is one of the affordable madhubani themed books. Go for it. Bring out your inner child and have fun coloring within the lines. After a stressful day at work try this out to relax yourself. 😀

Guava Leaves Hair Mask + Hair Oil

We all know about the amazing benefits of guava. Annnddd the guava leaves have much higher benefits than the fruits. leaves are mostly used for tea that aids in weigh loss and hair mask is the second thing is is highly used for.

This is one of the most popular hair masks since the days of my grandma. My granny used to grind the guava leaves and apply its paste on my mom’s hair 10 minutes before washing. After my mom got married she hardly had time for DIY’s. Few years back she started preparing coconut oil at home and that is when i heard about the mask for the first time.

I loved the amazing results but since I have long hair it was very difficult to completely wash away the mask from my hair.  So after some research I used the leaves in a different way.

The procedure to prepare the guava leaves hair mask:
Boil a handful of guava leaves with 1 liter water for around 20 minutes and it eventually changes its color to brownish red. After the mixture completely cools, apply it all over the hair and scalp, massage for 5 minutes, tie the hair in a bun and wash it after 15 minutes.

Since i used to stay in the hostel, it’s impossible for me to prepare the hair mask. so i mix it in the hair oil along with aloe vera gel and boil it until it turns dark brown color (The last picture). There is no expiry date as such for this oil. we can use it almost everyday until the oil gets over. 😀
Hope you guys like it and try this at home.  😀 🙂

 

Nyle black shampoo – Long and bouncy

My entire childhood was a clinic plus journey. According to my mom every other shampoo except clinic plus spoils a child’s hair. 😦 Once i reached my 11th standard, i somehow convinced my mom that going to college means being able to choose anything for my hair. 😀
That is when i remembered my grandmother’s stories about the natural Nyle shampoo.
I initially brought 100 ml of black Nyle, which my hair loved and i went on with it for more than 4 years. ❤

It is: Nyle naturals shampoo – Black.

It claims: Nyle naturals shampoo filled with nutrition boost complex, amla, reetha, blackberry and lavender, strengthens, nourishes, and promotes long and bouncy hair  by reducing hair fall due to hair breakage.

Ingredients : The picture below shows the ingredients mentioned on the nyle bottle.

PPQS  (packing,price,quantity,shelf life): Rs 260/- for 800 ml,  with a shelf life of 2 years. The opaque bottle has a tight black flip top cap, it looks sleak and is also travel friendly as there are no chances of leakage.

My experience: I have used nyle shampoo from 2011 to 2015 and i must say, this is the best natural shampoo ever. My hair was already thick and it helped me preserve the waviness.It always kept my hair soft and shiny even without using any conditioner. I always oil my hair before shampooing and with mild fragrance,a coin sized amount of shampoo was more than enough to create lather and remove excess oil and dirt. :*

Pros: The best part is the quantity for such lesser price. For my hip length hair, it lasted for at least 6-7 months. 🙂
Cons: It lasts so very long that you cannot think of buying a new one any soon. It also contains sulfate due to which the lather effect is very high.

After i shifted to Hyderabad in 2013, due to the hard water i used to see dandruff flakes on my clothes and a very dry scalp. When i went for a haircut, the hairdresser told me that we need to change the shampoo every 2 years at least, as our hair gets adapted to the same old shampoo and doesn’t co-operate with its function (Like i say- my hair has reached its shampoo tolerence level, and it no more gets the same kick). So in 2015 I shifted to Patanjali anti dandruff shampoo which i would review next. 😉

Final verdict: Go for it, The best natural shampoo you can ever think of. There are wide varieties in this brand so try the ones that you like! 😀 😀 😀