Tag: A-Z Hobbies

Sculpting the Ice

April 9, 2023 / / 0 Comments

As you must have guessed, this hobby post I am blogging about has little relevance in India, thanks to it being a Tropical country! Only the people at the tip of the Northern India have any semblance of continuing this hobby! But there is no harm in learning more about Ice Sculpting.

So, let’s check out, I for Ice Sculpting.

Ice sculpting is all about sculpting naturally formed or artificially made ice. It is also one of the most temporary kind of art form (Ice melts away, isn’t it?)

Ice sculptures made of clear ice look like crystal, more like Swarovski crystal!

Cupid ice sculpture

The ice sculptures made of clouded ice look something like this, resembling snow.

Ice sculpture-China

Ice sculpting requires tools like chisels, hand saws and hair dryers and is mostly taught at culinary institutes and schools. Clear water ice, which is free from impurities is used for sculpting. Frozen rivers are generally cut into blocks of ice and used in the sculpting.

The sculptor must work at top speed if the sculpting is not being done under cold climate.

International Ice festivals and sculpting competitions take place around the world.  Basics of Ice sculpting are sometimes taught at the Ice Festivals.

Ice Sculpting is also a part of Winter Olympics, not as a sport, but for showcasing the talent.

Wait! Did I mention Ice Hotel, in Sweden? Yup. If you ever visit Sweden, go ahead and check out the Ice Hotel where you can even stay for a night or two! (There are around 20 such hotels around the world. I just mentioned one of the oldest.)

What a beauty!

India also boasts of an Igloo Stay at Manali. Why not plan a night stay?

P.S:

  1. Ice Sculptures are also used as decorations at wedding receptions. If you are not happy with just ice decorations, why not go the Phoebe Buffay  way and marry during a snowfall! (A silly FRIENDS fan here!)
  2. The other hobbies which start with an I are also related to Ice, they are, Ice Skating and Ice Fishing.

Till the next post, ta-ta!

Let’s go Hula Hooping!

April 9, 2023 / / 1 Comment

If you are into fun filled entertainment along with exercising the body, Hula Hooping is a good choice.

Let’s start about H for Hula Hooping!

A Hula, which can be made of anything from plastic or wood or even pvc pipes for that matter, is the main component of Hula Hooping as the name implies. The hula is twirled around the neck, torso or limbs, like wheeling. It can be a good hobby for both children and adults.

Kids – Hula Hooping

In olden days, people from circus would do most of the hula hooping. Now thanks to the ‘fitness revolution’, it can be done by anyone. The most important advantage of hula hooping is that it strengthens the core, which naturally leads to a slimmer waist and also hips.

I was always interested in watching Rhythmic Floor Gymnastics and that was where I also saw hoop being used as a prop , apart  from balls, clubs and the ribbon (which is my favourite). Thanks to the rhythmic gymnastics, hula hooping is also an Olympic level hobby!

Girl performing rhythmic gymnastics with hula-hoop

For the more adventurous people, there is also the fire hula hoop variation! Although I am not recommending it for people who have no proper knowledge of the risk involved and the safety precautions that need to be taken. 

Fire Hula Hoop

 

Are you looking to start hula hooping already? Check out the post about the Hula Hooping beginner’s guide.

P.S:

  1. The other hobbies starting with a H are Hacking, Horse Riding and Hammocking!
  2. You may have an idea about Hacking, because most of us have had atleast our FB profile hacked, it is advisable to try ethical hacking! I am not advising you to be hackers, who go against the law! There are ethical hacking courses too, for interested people.
  3. I initially wanted to blog about Horse Riding, because it is one hell of a stylish hobby to have, thanks to English shows like Bridgerton . You can even go for polo matches and all.
  4. Wait, I forgot to mention what Hammocking is! It is the hobby of the lazy souls of the world. It is the act of setting up a hammock at every possible location and resting!
  5.  As usual, I take no credit for the images in the post. Till the next hobby post, cheerio!

Gardening with Gusto!

April 7, 2023 / / 0 Comments

Do you have a young child or toddler at home? Do they love playing with water and manage to drench themselves wet? Do they also like playing with mud and don’t mind the occasional insect they come across? Good!

Gardening is an excellent hobby for such tiny tots.

So, for G let’s go with Gardening.

Gardening is the process of laying seeds, watering the plants and taking care of them either on ground or in pots. Gardening is a useful hobby to have, because no amount of cooking is complete without herbs and growing your own herbs can be so gratifying.

If you don’t have enough place for gardening, you can at least install a Herb wall in your kitchen or utility area like this…

Herb Gardening on the wall

If you are more invested in this than an average person(and have deep pockets), go ahead and get yourself a smart monitoring technology for your kitchen garden inside the cabinet! Something like this….

Smart Monitored Kitchen Herb Garden

Look how stylish the good old gardening has been given a makeover.

So what do you say? Are you up for some gardening experience?

P.S:

  1.  Gardening should be part of the school curriculum, just like that in Western countries. I wish we had something like this during our school days! (I don’t take any credit or the images in the post)

Ms. Appleberry with her students Cody, J.J, Rico, Nina, Cece and Bella – The Cocomelon Gang

2. Although gardening is therapeutic, it comes with its own set of problems, like the insects which keep ‘guest appearing’ in our tiny gardens. It is upto us to march them out of our plants!

3. I know a couple of doctors who swear by gardening and grow quite a lot of plants on their terraces and balcony gardens.

4. The other hobbies which start with a G are Geology (my favourite subject of all) , Glass Blowing, Gymnastics and Graphic Designing. Wait for the next post, cheerio!

Charming Decoupage!

April 6, 2023 / / 0 Comments

If you really really really really love anything that looks remotely vintage and classy, then the French sounding Decoupage is the art for you.

Let’s go ahead and get acquainted with D for Decoupage!

Decoupage, is the art of decorating any boring and plain object or furniture, with paper and applying layers of varnish, (more than the thick makeup some actresses apply!) to make the layers of paper seem like it has been painted on!

An example will explain it better….

Design transfer

Do you have old steel boxes or wooden boxes ? They can look something like this, after decoupage!

Old boxes look like heirloom after decoupage – Done by S

Since my post is only about A-Z hobbies, I don’t go too deep into the topic, but leave it for specialists. So if you want to learn the art, check out this website for more ideas.

If you are sick of old glass jars or even mason jars, go ahead, decoupage and reclaim them as pieces of art worth showcasing!

Mason jar decoupage

All you need are some beautiful designed rice papers, old objects and some mod podge. Get ready for decoupage!

P.S:

  1. If you would like a little more challenge in your life, go ahead, combine Candle making and Decoupage to make beautiful decoupage candles. They look something like this…

2. All the images that have my logo on are the ones I got from my sister, who is into decoupage too! (She has all her fingers and toes in number of pies. Its a given thing, to most creative and artistic people!)

Decoupage on old glass jars – Done by S

All the images which don’t have beeafteryou written on them have been freely lifted from different websites and they are not my own.

3. In pottery too, we have a technique called design transfer which is similar to decoupage. We can transfer beautiful designs onto freshly made pottery, before sending them in for firing. I have never tried this though!

4. The other hobby ideas starting with a D are Doodling, Dancing and DJing.

Till the next post…cheerio!

The Art of Candle Making

April 6, 2023 / / 1 Comment

The life span of a candle is less than a day, in spite of that, candle making is a time taking and painful art form (if you are into handmade stuff,  with unique shapes).


So, C for Candle Making.

The process is quite easy if you are making a plain candle. The wax (is sold either like chunks or granules) is melted on a stove through double boil technique, wax crayons of different colours are added for the required colour, moulds are well greased, wick is placed and molten wax is filled into the moulds. Voila, you have a candle!

Pillar candles and a flip flop floating candle made by my sis.

Proper precautions need to be taken while boiling the wax, as it is a safety hazard. Even breathing the fumes can be dangerous for people with delicate constituency, so proper precautions are required.

Chunk candle – Made with chunks of coloured wax

The art of candle making is vast and it depends on ones creativity.

Rose shaped floating candles – handmade

So, the next time you want to gift, why not try some aroma candles? Your friends will thank you.

Scented and coloured gel candle

P.S:

  1. In olden days, Candelabra was used to hold candles. Even now they are used, but for special occasions.

2. Candle Making and Carpentry are the two hobbies starting with a C and even though I tried my hand at carpentry thanks to my  Engineering background, I am blogging about Candle Making, thanks to my sis S, who learnt it in her college and is still pretty serious about making candles.

3. The other hobbies starting with a C are Calligraphy(one of my favourites) , Canoeing and Cheese Making. Until the next post, ciao!

Baking is fun!

April 4, 2023 / / 0 Comments

Pat-a-cake, Pat-a-cake baker’s man,

Bake me a cake as fast as you can,

Pat it and roll it and mark it with a ‘B’,

Put it in the oven for baby and me!

so goes the rhyme….that is how much fun baking can be, if you put your mind into it!

B for Baking….

If you search the net for the definition of baking, you will know that, baking is a process in which cooking is done using dry heat, like that in an oven or cooking on hot stones or even hot sand. (I remember when my mom used to make yummy Osmania biscuits, which she baked on hot sand and fed us poor souls! She loves to cook, so I have tasted many varieties of dishes and that has made a picky eater like me into a complete foodie. Thank you Amma.)

Thankfully, baking doesn’t only mean cooking in oven or on hot stones and sand, it can also be done through steam, called steam baking and our own pressure cookers are the perfect examples of that. You can even buy Steam Oven if you are invested in cooking healthy!

But it is difficult to talk about baking and not to mention French Bakers and their breads.  While we lived in Charlotte, NC, USA, Mr.Bee and I used to visit a French Bakery Amelie, which always had a heavy inflow of customers, coming for their chocolate eclairs and croissants. Although I didn’t mind eating there, I still missed the curry puffs from our Desi bakeries, back home! I love their bread, though. Never seen so many different shapes of bread and I found heaven on earth. (Bread makes me salivate!)

Anyway, baking is a good hobby. I managed to bake a cake on GBee‘s third birthday, during peak COVID lock-down, with the help of Mr.Bee. I decorated it with crushed Gems, because GBee loves them, like a lot!!

The cake may not look like it, but it was yummy. We made it with bourbon biscuits, thanks to my friend K. (Even Marie biscuits can be used to bake a cake. They are Indian alternate to Graham Crackers)  Even though the cake had a wonderful taste and vanished into our mouths an hour after our baking, GBee hardly had a spoonful. He hates cakes. Even now, he only eats the chocolate flowers or balls which are used on top of a cake for decoration, but leaves out the main cake!

Now that I think about it, Mr.Bee baked me a cake, a year into our marriage.  He made it from scratch, moulds, multi purpose flour, whisking, baking in oven etc etc. (we were in USA then) I think it was a chocolate lava cake or something. Thank you Mr.Bee, once again!

Mr.Bee made the cake, topping it with my favourite fruit, strawberry.

So, have you even tried baking as a hobby yet?

P.S:

  1. Cooking in a Tandoor (clay) oven to make naan comes under baking.
  2. The French bread that I love is the Wheat Stalk bread, which I had at the Venetian, Las Vegas. (That might be because I loved the place as well!)

3. I love watching MasterChef Australia. It taught me so much. Although I don’t cook most of what is shown in the series, I enjoy watching chefs exhibit their creativity.

I also love a webtoon, Gourmet Hound, which taught me so much about French Baking!

Let me add Li Ziqi in the mix! She is a Chinese vlogger, whose videos I watch, which promote healthy traditional way of living.

4. The other hobbies starting with a B are Barbecuing , Badminton and Body Building. I have a long list of hobbies to post, so there will be a windfall of posts this month. Till the next hobby post, cheerio. Oh, do check out all the links in the post, if you want to go deeper into the topic. Au revoir my French bread loving friends!

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