Crafter in the Spotlight Vaishali Manubarwala

Hello arty crafty friends! It’s Thursday again and as usual, time to hear about the interesting crafting journey of another ardent crafter. This week I bring you the story of a passionate crafter, Vaishali Manubarwala from Mumbai in “Crafter in the Spotlight”.

Vaishali, a corporate lawyer, is a doting mother to two young boys along with being a versatile crafter. After taking a step-back from her job, she knew she wanted to channelize her energy in doing something she was really passionate about, i.e. arts and crafts. It all started with teaching art and craft to kids and since then, there was no looking back.

Vaishali is in love with the world of decoupage and mixed media. She is extremely grateful for all the guidance received from her fellow crafters and is always on the look-out to experiment with newer techniques. Given some magical powers, she would love to encourage everyone to buy handmade products.

How did Vaishali get into crafting, what inspires her, what are her tips for fellow crafters, her favourite quote, how would she contribute to the crafting world if she had magical powers? Read along to find answers to all these questions and discover more about Vaishali’s interesting journey and catch glimpses of a step by step project by her. Don’t forget to leave your loving comments for her.

Rashmi Closepet M.D Itsy Bitsy: Tell us a bit about yourself & your background?

Vaishali Manubarwala: First and foremost, I would like to thank Rashmi Mam and Harish Closepet Sir and the entire Team of Itsy Bitsy for the fabulous work they are doing! Tons of crafters like me are inspired by Itsy Bitsy and are able to follow their passion for crafting. My background is a complete misfit for a crafter, as I come from a family full of lawyers. I too am a lawyer, having completed my studies from Mumbai. I was practicing as a corporate lawyer with one of the leading law firms in Mumbai.

RC: How did you get into crafting?

VM: Since my childhood, I have always been on the creative side and passionate about art and dance. I would keep on learning and experimenting with various forms of arts such as calligraphy, bread craft, card making, canvas painting, etc. but never found the right platform to pursue it. After studying law and practicing as a corporate lawyer for more than 10 years, I took a back seat to raise my children. However, I always felt a need to channelize my energy towards things I was passionate about. After encouragement from friends and family, I decided to start teaching art and craft to kids. One thing led to another and I got introduced to this beautiful and fascinating world of decoupage! Fortunately, I received guidance from the right set of people including my fellow crafters and there has been no looking back!

RC: What is your favourite type of craft?

VM: Decoupage is my first love and I am completely fascinated with it! I am also very fond of mixed media art especially using the different shades of colors and using different creative mediums.

RC: What are your favourite products at Itsy Bitsy?

VM: Now that’s a question that’s so difficult to answer! Especially with so many new things being launched one after the other. But having said this, I totally love the handmade flowers by Little Birdie, chalk paints and all the mixed media products.

RC: If you had magic powers, how would you contribute to the Crafting world?

VM: If I had magical powers, I would love to set up my workshop and teach various art and craft forms and spread the joy of creativity. Also, I would really like to bring awareness amongst people to purchase more and more of handmade products.

RC: Your prized possession in your craft stash from Itsy Bitsy?

VM: Honestly it is very difficult to pinpoint, but I love the handmade flowers, stencils and chalk paints.

RC: How would you describe your style of crafting?

VM: I am a very versatile crafter with an excitement to experiment at all times.

RC: How do you organize your time for crafting?

VM: Glad you asked this question! Being a mother to two active boys is really demanding and there are days when I just can’t devote much time to crafting, although I really want to! I generally start to craft when my boys are at school and then at night when the kids are asleep.

RC: Tips for people who want to craft

VM: Just follow your passion with complete dedication and honesty, and you surely will achieve beautiful things.

RC: Your all -time favourite quote?

VM: Actually, I have a few of them, which I deeply connect with, but the one that really inspired me to get into the craft world would be “The only impossible journey is the one you never begin”.

Here is a Step by Step project by Vaishali 

Hello friends. Today I am going to explain how to make a mixed media panel on canvas. Have set out below a step by step tutorial of my project titled “Garden of Life”, for your reference. My most supportive person in my life has been my husband and I would like to dedicate this project to him for walking down this beautiful path with me.

Supplies used from the Itsy Bitsy store:

 

  1. –          Black gesso
  2. –          White gesso
  3. –          2×1 mixed media paste
  4. –          Silicon glue
  5. –          Stencils
  6. –          Chalk Paints
  7. –          Chipboard
  8. –          Handmade Flowers
  9. –          Fairy Dust
  10. –          Alcohol Sprays

 

So lets get started

Step 1: For this project I took a 12×12” canvas and applied Liittle Birdie’s white gesso across the entire surface. Allow the canvass to dry. While my canvas was drying I removed some chipboard and other embellishment from my stash which I wanted to use for the project. Thereafter,  I applied white and black gesso on the embellishments.

Step 2: Once the canvas was dry I decided to give some textures with the help of stencils and Little Birdie’s Mixed Media Paste. Before I started the stenciling I arranged my embellishments on the canvas. Once I was satisfied with my arrangement I stared stenciling in the remaining portions to ensure all the remaining areas were covered. Now I left all these for drying overnight.

Step 3: Next day I started the process of applying colours on the canvas with Little Birdie’s chalkpaints. As I was creating a garden I used Marsh Green, Bubble Gum and Terracotta for my project. In addition to these I also used Little Birdie’s colour splash Mocha and Gold Alcohol Spalsh Midnight Blue, Marigold and Golden Canary over the canvas.

 

Step 4: Once the paints dry I started fastening the embellishments on the canvas. I wanted to create the moss effect on the fence and window for which I have experimented and used the pencil shavings (best out of waste ?). I used silicon glue to stick the pencil shavings on the fence and painted them, to create the moss effect. I applied the moss on the chipboard window and garden veils as well. Thereafter, I did dried brushing with Gold Alcohol Spalsh Midnight Blue, Marigold and Golden Canary.

Step 5: The last step which is my most favourite part was to stick the Little Birdie’s beautiful flowers, to complete my Garden of Life.

I hope this was helpful. Thank you for stopping by.

Here are a couple of  Vaishali ’s  other awesome creations:

Many congrats  Vaishali for being the CRAFTER IN THE SPOTLIGHT – ITSY BITSY!!

You will receive Rs.500/- Itsy Bitsy gift voucher & a Crafter in the Spotlight badge, which can be proudly displayed on the side bar of your blog and other platforms. Looking forward to many more creations, Happy Crafting!

7 comments

  1. Many many congratulations Vaishali. Well deserved. Its just great to know more about you. All the very best.

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