A crafted summer scene

Text by Nischal Oli

A glance at the new collections launched in two of Kathmandu’s favorite craft stores.

Dhukuti
Dhukuti’s new collection covers your home’s entire needs with selections for kids’ rooms, the kitchen, kitchenware, furniture, and much more. The collection, rolled out two months ago for the summer, adds an assortment of items to the store’s extensive catalog.

Starting with furniture, Dhukuti has moved away from copper-topped tables and side-tables, for the season, to completely wood designs with sculpted legs. General-purpose tables now sport spaced panels up top, meaning less cost, more value and a contemporary feel to the design.

Need lamp-shades? There are various colors to choose from and materials vary from paper to cloth. New to the line-up are sparsely painted tie-die inspired shades that produce striking contrasted colors when lit.

Cushions, covers, and sheets come in two variations - for adults and kids. Thematically, the stitching has been done away with and replaced with minimal designs using stencils of lotus leaves, boats, and cycle-wheels. There are also a few designs with dense floral patterns outlining the inner edges of the fabrics. Dhukuti has a wonderful sample kid’s bedroom in the store that is worth a visit. Complementing the patterns of the sheets and covers, the store encourages the use of recycled items and the DIY method to decorate kids’ rooms. Overall, the colors are nautical (although more options are available) with hard-edged lines of colors in blue and sporadically in red.

There is some great news in the kitchen department. Dhukuti has re-introduced some of its clayware, which had been discontinued for the past few years. Teacup sets with subliminal colors that come in dark green and cobalt blue look earthy and almost meditative. Mittens, runners, and tablecloths have gone full Nepali with local spices printed on the fabric and spelled out in local script.

Accessories, accessories. The totes and laptop bags share styles and colors with the bed-sheets and covers. Decorative items for kids include handcrafted and varnished toy models of trucks and smaller stuffed felt toy animals.

And finally, in lieu of the coming monsoon Dhukuti has rolled out a selection of umbrella stands; you have your option of larger or leaner models of copper receptacles. Leaner stands are now cut out and look more elegant while saving up on valuable home-space.

Mahaguthi

Mahaguthi too has brought its new collection for the summer, and it’s all butterflies (and, to a smaller extent, lotuses). Nepal is home to a variety of butterflies, some of which are native and only found in the region. They come in different sizes and colors and, of course, give a whole new meaning to the vivacity of summer. Inspired by these little denizens of warm seasons, Mahaguthi introduces a collection of jewelry, paper products, and fabrics to encapsulate the spirit of summer.
Diaries and notebooks featuring hand-made paper on the inside, covered with stencils of butterflies, or lotuses in tribal variations, can be found with further embellishments of synthetic stones.

Paper cutouts of butterflies are featured on lampshades and ready-to-hang decorations. The trend carries on with jewelry. Women will be happy to know the lightweight earrings available at the store have all been masterfully crafted with fine details throughout.

Cushion covers are available in neutral background colors stitched with brighter cutouts of geometrical lotuses or butterflies. Sheets and tablecloths, on the other hand, are halved with prints on one and solid color or stripes on the remaining half, which make for interesting combinations with pillows and other decorations.

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