Benjamuna's Blog

Stories…. with a touch of India….

My very special colour combination… July 9, 2010

Is it possible to fall in love with a colour combination? Well yes…. But I am in fact a bit shameful to say that it was the Norwegian princess Märtha Louise who brought my attention to the combination of brown and turquoise. She was wearing a dress some years back, can’t remember the details any longer – only the colours! I thought it was an unusual combination, but I got hooked. And – the hunt was on! But I realised I needed a bit of luck. Shops do not swell with brown and turquoise!

I always find what I look for, in India…. In 2009  I visited designer  Geetha Hardasani’s shop in Bandra, Mumbai. When Ida and I visited Mumbai in 2008, we visited her shop, at that time in Colaba. I kept in touch with Jharna, the designer’s daughter, and thus made sure to pay their new shop in Bandra a visit in 2009. I saw the kurta only seconds after I entered the shop. Wow – something brown and turquoise. Before the others had managed to manouvre themselves inside, I was dressed in…. brown and turquoise… And – sold!

I almost spotted this one from outside the Hardasani shop....

I wanted to buy a designer made outfit; a kurta, churidar and dupatta – and went searching through Geeta’s rows of fabric. I chose the best one, the most expensive one (!) with a fantastic dupatta made of a variety of fabric. But the embroidery on the kurta had the colours of…. brown and turquoise…

My designer made wedding outfit!

Close up of the kurta.

 

In 2009 Asbjørn and I went to Delhi and one day, strolling through the arcades of Connaught Place I saw it from a distance, a tunic of – yes – brown and turquoise. It was only one left, my size, which proves it was meant for me!

Bought at Connaught Place in Delhi, photograph taken somewhere around the Fort in old Delhi. A young girl wanted her photo together with a farangi...

It’s not so hard to find jewelry in the colours of brown and turquoise. Maybe because of the stone itself, the turquoise…. Moreover, I can’t be the only one in the world thinking that this is a great combination!
My favourite bracelet is bought at Arts and Crafts (Norwegian brand), and people often comment on it. But a while back I was thinking; it must be possible to make jewelry by oneself?!!? So I took a course at a bead shop and learnt some tricks… I’m not going to make a home industry out of it, but it’s nice to be able to make something when inspiration hits you…. Beads do not come very cheap in Norway, what I’m now looking forward to is my travel to India later this year. Shopping for beads in Mumbai….. Must be some treat!

Three strands of beads made by myself, beads and colours carefully picked....

These - my favourite bracelets - have everything that I like; the beads, the colours, the antique look...

 

Last summer our grandhild Claus, now aged 10, known for his high level of justice, realised that everybody had gotten a summer’s gift  except from granddad… He had seen something suitable though, in a shop in Stavanger…. So Asbjørn and I were left to wait in a cafe, whereas he dragged his mother to Ting and bought a case for toothpicks – and what’s more; the colours were brown and turquoise. The young man was very proud of himself; not only was it the perfect present for Asbjørn who can’t live without toothpicks, but the colour combination was such that Anne-Trine could enjoy as well! He proudly stated. A 10-year old to be proud of!

A perfect hiding place for tooth picks!