This is a must element for all hosting a Royal Rajasthani wedding. A little something must be gifted to all your guests as a token of appreciation for their presence! This is something you cannot ignore post that magnificent wedding.
Rajasthan offers you many choices within your budgets to choose a souvenir that your guests will love and cherish forever. Before I go on to mentioning a few options, it is necessary to understand Rajasthani Art.
Rajasthan perhaps more than any other state in India, is a shopper's paradise. Centuries old skills in the traditional crafts continue to produce some of the most exciting wares on stone, clay, leather, wood, lac, glass, brass, silver, gold and textiles, Art flourished in this region as far back as 2nd-1st centuries BC. History of Rajasthan reveals that the Kings and their nobles were patrons of art and craft and encouraged their artisans/ craftsmen in promoting their creativity.
Rajasthani art consists of various forms of paintings, jewellery, textile & prints (Bandhani, Block Printing, Embroidery, Appliqué), antiques, pottery, rugs/ carpets, wood carving, gesso work, leatherwear, metal craft, puppets and stone carving to name a few.
You can choose any of the above forms for a great wedding memento to be gifted to all your special guests.
Rajasthan paintings:
Rajsathan has many schools old painting having Their own districts styles, well known among them being Marwar, Mewar, Hadoti Kishangarh, Dhundhur and Alwar.
The Miniature Paintings of Rajasthan had flourished under princely patronage are still reproduced by descendants of the original craftsmen as they continue to produce miniature masterpieces, retaining their classic elegance. These are often made on hand made paper and mythological characters from Ramayana, Krishna Lila, Ragamala, and Geetgovinda are commonly used. Miniature paintings, portrait and courtly paintings, murals, cloth and furniture painting, mehndi or henna, domestic painting and mandana or the art of decorating houses are some of the famous forms of Rajasthani paintings.
Rajasthan Jewellery:
Bangles are a special attraction of Rajasthan. Lac bangles are believed to be worn as a sign of good omen and are available in many colours & designs. Glass bangles, made in great variety in Jaipur & Jodhpur, are perennially in demand and are available in most parts of the state.
Kundan and enamel jewellery has been a specialty of Rajasthan, particularly that of Jaipur. Kundan is the art of setting precious stones in gold. The stones are embossed into decorative shapes & patterns and embellished with delicate enamel ornamentation in the champeve ( raised field ) technique. The designs are mostly exquisitely entwined flowers and birds and sometimes human and animal figures.
The thewa work of Pratapgarh is highly exquisite and popular, in this technique, designs are enamelled in gold on a glass base. The base used is generally green or red in colour.
Rajasthan is one of the largest centres in the world for the hand-cutting of gems. It is not unusual to find shops piled with onyx, cat`s eye, lapiz lazuli, carnelian, garnets, amethysts and topaz. Even precious stones like rubies, emeralds and diamonds are easily available. Semi-precious and precious stones at Jaipur are also carved into figurines and statues.
Rajasthan Textiles:
Heart-warming textiles, dyed in the bandhani or tie & dye style reign supreme in Rajasthan.Different methods are used to tie the fabric into small points producing different patterns like Lahariya, Mothda, Ekdali and Shskari. The best bandhani work comes from iikar and Jodhpur, while Jaipur, Pali, Udaipur and Nathdwara are the other centers.
The women of Rajasthan have high skills in embroidering fabrics. Embroidery practiced in Bikaner is done by counting threads. The women of sikar and Jhunihunu specilize in making patterns of animals. Chain stitch is popular in A!war. Dancing figures, Flowers and peacocks are the favourite motifs. Women of Barmer use mirrors. Another famous art in textiles is that of appliqué. In appliqué, different pieces of cloth are patched together to make a multi coloured mosiac.. The exotic colours, shapes and pattern combinations against constrasting backgrounds is a specialty of rajasthani appliqué.
From home furnishing to high fashion cloth items- Rajasthan textiles (Prints and embroidered pieces) have a lot of gifting options to offer.
Rajasthan Antiques:
Antiques can be found in small shops in places all over Rajasthan, as well as in large handicraft stores, and are part of the landscape of the state.
Rajasthan Pottery
Blue Glazed Pottery famous in Jaipur was introduced to India by the Muslims and popularized by Maharaja Ram Singh of Jaipur. The pottery is made of ground quartz stone, fuller’s earth and sodium sulphate instead of the simple clay. Blue and white are the traditional colours used, more recently, yellow, pink and green are also being used. Most pieces are hand-painted with conventional floral patterns, figures of animals and scenes from the lives of the royal families. Terra-cotta pottery Molela, a village to the north of Udaipur specialises in making these images. Alwar produces paper thin pottery, Bikaner is famous for painted pottery, tinted with lac colours, while white and red clay articles with geometric designs come from Pokharan.
Rajasthan Rugs/Dhurries and Carpets:
Available in a variety of sizes, the dhurrie is woven not only in Jaipur, but in villages all over the state. In places such as Bikaner and Jaisalmer, where the temperatures can dip alarmingly, woollen dhurries made of camel hair are very much in vogue. Carpets: Initially, huge carpets were specially woven for royal residences. Inspired by the Mughals, prisoners were employed at looms, a tradition that was continued from the past. Bikaner is still famous for its so-called jail carpets. Namdah:Another floor covering that has widespread use in Rajasthan is the namdah or felted rug. The namdah comes in mainly two fashions - embroidered and in applique work.
Furniture and wood carving:
Rajasthan excels in the art of making `antique furniture`. Doors and windows, wooden jharokhas, tables with cast iron jaalis, side-boards, chairs, benches, jhoolas or swings, and dressers are made to resemble the furniture that was in vogue in havelis a hundred years ago. While Jaipur is a popular centre, Jodhpur, in particular, is well known for its `old` furniture, and Ramgarh, in Shekhawati, has become a major centre for its manufacture. Shekhawati and Bikaner have been the traditional centres for woodwork. Jodhpur and Kishangarh are especially popular for painted wooden furniture. Shekhawati, Bikaner and Ramgarh specialise in making delicately carved wooden doors. Barmer craftsmen specialise in woodcarvings. Other pieces of furniture include the leather-embroidered chairs of Tilonia, and the carved-back, string-bottom chairs of Shekhawati. Marble tops for tables are also popular, and screens are available with both painted panels and brass embellishments.
Gesso work:
One of the finest crafts to emerge from Bikaner, the inner hide of the camel is used for the purpose. The hide is scraped till it is paper thin and transluscent. It is then moulded into various forms of lamp shades, hip flasks, perfume phials or vases. It is then painted over with fine gesso work using gold to lend richness to the otherwise bright reds and greens used in the work.
Leather wear:
The hides of dead animals have never been put to better use than in Rajasthan whether as juttees (the embroidered footwear), or as saddles, bags and pouches. It is even used as backs for chairs after it has been embroidered with woollen motifs. Jaipur and Jodhpur are the traditional centres for juties.
Metal crafts:
In later years the art of enamelling became merely decorative and, in Rajasthan, has been used for everything from tabletops to wall plates, flasks, and for crafting objets d`art. Brassware- enamelled, engraved and filigree cut work on silver are available in Rajasthan. Jaipur, Alwar and Jodhpur.
Puppets
Inexpensive souvenirs, they recall more easily than most other things when it comes to memories of a this state of chivalrous kings and beautiful queens.
Stone carving
From Dholpur to Barmer in the heart of the desert, the chisel of the stone mason is put to incredible use. From pink and red sandstone to marble, tamara and chlorite all are used to create panels of frescos for buildings, large statuary, planters, figures of gods (usually in marble and crafted almost entirely in Jaipur), and elephants and horses as garden sculpture, table pieces, jewellery boxes, etc.
Rajasthan with a treasure of history, picturesque architecture, magnificent art & culture and bewitching landscape is an unparalleled destination dream weddings!
For any wedding shopping assistance from Rajasthan feel free to mail us at dreams@theroyalshaadi.com
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