Daily Times

KARACHI: The Indie Art and Craft Show organised by the Crafter’s Guild and Firefly’ was held on Sunday at the Royal Rodale Club, DHA.

It was a spell of colours and creative work by local makers representing a positive image of the country. Finding something novel to explore in Karachi is always exciting. Due to the craft shows, local businesses receive support and immense encouragement to thrive.

The visitors flocked to halls to look through novel and collected their favourite little treasures for their loved ones.

The variety on display included sugar craft by local bakers and dessert makers such as delectable fudge by ‘Terry’s Treats’ and traditional sweets by ‘Isholicious’. The show also included a range of artisan beauty products such as herbal skin care, natural cosmetics and aromatherapy-infused products. Some favourites were ‘Food for your Face’ by Firefly, all natural skin care infused with essential oils, as well as Long Time Loves by HeaLiv.

The crafts diversified into home decorating items done in decoupage by Artylicious, exquisite stained glass in calligraphy by Sakina’s hand-painted glass collection, wood craft by Yunus Marvi, and even traditional truck art was on display.

The metal box clutches and wall hangings by Enigma, House of Fashion and Design, all the way from Lahore made a lot of noise. There was a mix of quirky gifts and lifestyle products, done with resin by Iff’s collection; others completely recycled. Other brands, such as Bingle Mania, Doodle Diaries, Zara Batra and Prisms and Paintbrushes took to popular culture and local trends to churn out stationery, coasters, cosmetic pouches and magnets.The paper crafters made their mark with unique cards and keepsakes as well as the ever popular demonstration station in collaboration with supply stockist, Craft Circus. The visitors watched with interest as fellow crafters from the local paper crafting scene took to teach various techniques. The demonstrations lasted from 30 minutes to an hour and covered basic card making to detailed science behind inks and wet embossing.

Traditional crafts from rural areas of Pakistan were represented by NGOs such as Sabah Pakistan, Khazana Crafts, Indus Crafts Foundation as well as brands like Zed Mars and Kashmina who work with artisans to develop contemporary designs and modern day products.

Paintings done by artists, which were also on display were a great highlight featuring the likes of Muneeza Khan, Shafia Yasmeen, Seerat Jafri and Zahra Hussain to name a few. In addition to these, fashion accessories such as jewellery, scarves, shoes, and handbags are also unique things one can find at such a show. Leather footwear by Walk About and screen printed Kolhapuris by Kolhart looked appealing. Contemporary apparel by Naeema Soomro and modern-day block prints by ‘BLOCK’ were a fun addition to the genres available at the show.

The Indie Art and Craft Show scaled the fair’s spirit. The collaborations with supporting partners like Commune Artist Colony, KITE and Co Pakistan this year aimed to offer more to the participants on board in terms of mentoring, training and the overall growth for their home based enterprises whereas other supporting partners included Tryst Salon & Spa, Schoeps, Artsy.pk and Dasktari.pk.

The Indie Art and Craft Show was a platform that upheld diversity and surfaced as a pedestal to unite various crafts and individuals under one roof.