Just Homemade: Basic Two Strand Bead Necklace

I always have an interest towards jewelry making. Recently, I got a chance to attend a jewelry making session and learnt a very basic jewelry making technique. In this instructable, I would love to share a simple step by step method of making a necklace that is simple and looks good. Hope it helps :-)

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Just Homemade: Look up Story

       From my childhood, whenever I kind a feel low or disappointed my dad would always cheer me up and ask me to see the positive things in the situation and keep going rather sitting and worrying on the negative. There will be always be ups and downs in life and worrying only makes it more worst. During my final year of engineering, a popular software company came for campus interview and since I was a topper in my class I was selected to participate in the interview with other toppers in my college, I attended the interview and did my best and I was 100% sure that I will be selected but result came negative. I really felt very bad, cried and did not talk to anyone for two days. Seeing me like this, my dad called me and told me about what he had gone through in his life to make me understand life much better.

     My grandfather was from a upper middle class family and my dad had a very happy childhood with all good facilities. My dad would never worry about his future as my grandfather was his complete hope. But suddenly one day my grandfather passed away and my dad and his brother along with my grandmother was suddenly left all alone and was unable to cope up with the situation emotionally as well as economically. My dad had just started his college and his elder brother had finished his education and took up a job but was not paid well. The household was running on a very small budget. Used to luxury life it was very hard for my dad to get used to the present life. Seeing his brother struggling alone, my dad took up part time job to support him. My dad used walk to the places he needed to go rather taking the public transportation. Save whatever he could so that  could finish his education without burdening his brother. After a lot of struggle he finally finished his education and got a central government job. Then slowly family situation started to improve and then my dad wanted to buy a house so he started saving for that. Unfortunately during that period he lost his brother too. It took some time for him and my grandmother to  recover from his brother loss. Days passed and one day my dad bought a land and started building a house. Then he moved to the house along with my grandmother and later started a new life with my mother there. Despite the struggle and problems that he faced in his life , he provided me and my brother with best of education and a good quality life. Recently he retired from his job as a southern region manager with a lot of satisfaction.

       Tears rolled down my eyes when I heard his story but he told he never regrets about his past and the struggle he had faced had only built him even more stronger. Finally he ended saying “ I don’t want you to be afraid of the future and break down very easily when things does not go on well. I want you to look in for the positives in all the situations you come across and keep moving forward with hope.”  From then on the respect on my dad has increased a lot. Even today he is a role model for me and I look up to him. 

This post is part of housing.com/lookup.

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Just Homemade: When I Took a Bold Step

When I took a bold step

It all happened couple of months before my first marriage anniversary, I was working as a software engineer in a multinational company with good salary, caring husband and lovely family, my life was flowing as a calm river.

 Image courtesy of [photostock] at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

One day my husband and myself went to our family doctor for a checkup and found that I am pregnant!!! my husband and myself became very happy and was waiting to go home and tell the good news to my parents and in-laws.

When I told the news, everyone was happy and conveyed their wishes. Days passed by, I become too busy at work, lots of stress, travel and sometime was too busy that I delayed my lunch and breakfast . Except those everything was fine and we started talking and thinking a lot about the baby.The excitement and anxiety increased day by day.

Image courtesy of [iosphere] at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

On the first month scanning day, my husband and myself had some important meeting to attend but managed to get permission for few hours for the scan. My husband and myself was called in for the scanning in a very busy and famous hospital in my home town and we were so excited to wait for the doctor to come.

Doctor came and after initial formalities she started the scanning and my heart beat started raising on seeing the reaction from the doctor. Finally she expressed her grief and said it was a miscarriage. For a second I felt my heart beat had stopped and that day was one of the bad day I had in my life. Everyone was worried and I was unable to talk only tears rolled from my eyes. I felt my world is completely filled with sadness.

Image courtesy of [David Castillo Dominici] at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

After lots of thinking, we doubted that whatever happened is because of the stress,anxiety, travel related to my work and it all comes to a point that to have a baby quit the job or change the job and try again. When discussed, few of my well wishers said leaving a good job or changing the job is not a right decision and few said baby is important. My husband asked me to take the decision and he will support me to whatever I decide. I was so confused.

Within few days, I told my husband that I want to quit the job and he said if that is what you feel will work then I am with you. I quit the job and it was not easy to convince my manager and the company. When my well wishers asked about my decision I said, I have to take a bolder step for the betterment of my family and for myself, so I thought setting up the family is most important at this stage of my life than the job that is why I quit. It felt like I started a new life after that.

Image courtesy of  nongpimmy at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Today, I am a happy mother of a beautiful daughter and I work from home on the job that I like. I must thank myself and my family for supporting me to take a bold step to start a new life. #StartANewLife :-)

This post is part of Housing.com

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Just Homemade: Friends get together is happiness

For me, friends get together during a weekend and sharing the joy with a good food is the real happiness.

I am living in abroad with my husband and my daughter for many years now, during first few months in abroad I didn't know anyone around my apartment or in my community so I started feeling lonely and worried. One summer evening, while I was playing with my daughter in the park I met a mother from the same community and soon we become friends. Slowly she got me introduced to many of her other friends and my friends circle started to grow. Thanks to technology, we use Whatsapp, Facebook group chat and keep in touch regularly and I started feeling happy.

After some days, we arranged for a get together at a friends house and invited all other friends and their family. Happiness and excitement filled me from the time we decide to have a get together. Everyday all our friends met at one other friend's house and discussed about the items to cook and activities that we can have to entertain kids and husbands in the get together. We had many different views, ideas and some crazy fun activity suggestions for families and kids. During the course of time there was lot of laughter, discussions, chats and  happy times we had in the friends group and then we will finalize the plan for the weekend. 

I, as other friends, did lots of cooking, tasting, preparing the kid and husband for the get together and waited for the time to pass by. On the day of get together, I was happy and got ready, pack the food items that are prepared and I called and confirmed the time to meet.

I went at least 30 minutes earlier to the house in which the get together is planned, to help the friend in setting up things. Slowly one after the other, all the friends along with their husband and kids came ans the whole living room was filled with happiness and joy.

Once initial greetings done and everyone settles down, all women, husbands and kids formed individual groups and was playing, chatting and laughing until a friend's husband said 'what is the menu for today', then the food was served. I was waiting for the comments for the food items that I prepared, then I saw a friend filled his plate for the second time with my food and a friend's husband  in the get together passes a comment that my food was good, I felt so happy and proud of myself. At every get together that we had, the food is not complete without a glass of Coke.

    

Watching my 4 years old daughter playing and talking with her friends, my husband laughing out loud and all the items that I prepared has been eaten without a piece left in the bowl makes me very happy and that ends the week on a happy note.

Happiness is incomplete without friends and families together!!!

This blog post is part of Coca-Cola International Day of Happiness

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Just Homemade: Achieved our dream together

As our child’s 2nd birthday was nearing my husband and myself who are from a normal middle class family had a dream of buying a residential land on our princesses birthday with all our savings money. Even though we have dream to buy a land, we actually did not know where to start and how to go about, we know buying land is a huge investment and we have to be very careful. we were not interested to take a loan from bank and pay the monthly installments for decades.

Once decided to give a try, we have expressed our interest to both of our family members. Everyone appreciated our idea and suggestions from each of them started to pour in.From the next day onward with lots of enthusiasm we started searching in the internet, local newspapers etc…. as days went by we felt everything became slow and a lot of hesitation and confusion was involved.

One day during evening tea time, my father called me and said buying a land is not easy but if we missed this chance then we may never get it back and he also asked me to discuss with my husband to put a plan with our requirements, desire and a budget on a paper to have a clear picture.That night was a sleepless night for my husband and myself. we discussed and came up with clear requirements and a plan. This gave us back our hope of continuing our search.

As my husband works from a different state, during weekdays myself along with my father, father-in-law and brother-in-law started to contact different land promoters and visited their lands later would discuss with my husband over the phone daily and during weekends my husband and myself continue to do the same.
Meanwhile my mother, brother, mother-in-law and sister-in-law gathered information from friends and other family members. Within couple of weeks we had lot of information and we had identified few lands to consider for buying. Those couple of months all the family members came together and worked as a team and spend quality time together.

Finally after thinking of lots of pros and cons we had decided a land that suits all our requirements, but the budget was higher than we estimated. Since the land was good and we decided to buy, my husband was thinking to get loan from family and friends for the rest of the amount but I told him that it is our dream and we will put in all our savings and jewelry and we did that still we were short. We informed our family member and without any hesitation they accepted to help us in all possible ways they can and they did it. 

Nearly around 3-4 months of entire families effort the day has come and we finally registered our land on our daughter's birthday. That day was obviously a very joyous day in our life not just because it is our only daughter's birthday or that we bought a residential land but it is that we did that as a family and as a team. The experience that we went through those 4 months was very wonderful and built our relationship with everyone even more stronger It was the time of my life when I realized that we are #together in this journey of life and were never alone.

This blog post is part of housing.com

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Just Homemade: Edible Fondant Rings

Rings in any format is always special. In this blog post, I will show you how to make beautiful, colorful and edible rings using the marshmallow fondant and some simple tools. These rings can be used to decorate engagement and marriage cakes. It can also be used to decorate muffins for special occasions. The design that I showed here is made using the simple tools available at home, there are endless design possibilities and the limit is up to our imaginations.

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Just Homemade: Vegetable Rice Cooked with Coconut Milk

The rich and creamy coconut milk vegetable rice is an easy to cook dish that is cooked with basmati rice (long grain) ,coconut milk, vegetables and spices.

Since the coconut milk is rich, creamy and bit sweeter than cow's milk, it is considered as vegan alternative for milk in many recipes. This coconut milk vegetable rice is so tasty it even makes a great recipe for your loved ones lunch box too. Try this easy yet tasty recipe and enjoy!!!

Just Homemade: Vegetable Rice Cooked with Coconut Milk

 Step 1: Ingredients

1) Basumati Rice (or Long grain rice) - 1 Cup
2) Coconut Milk - 1 Cup
3) Bay leaf - 1
4) Cinnamon stick - 1
5) Cardamom - 2
6) Cloves - 4
7) Green Chilli - 1 (add more if you need it spicy)
8) Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
9) Crushed Ginger(1" piece) and Garlic (2 pods)
10) Chopped onion - 1/3 Cup
11) Chopped Carrot - 1/3 Cup
12) Chopped Potato - 1/3 Cup
13) Green Peas - 1/3 Cup
14) Butter - 1 Tbsp
15) Chopped Mint leaves - 4 -5 strands
16) Chopped Cilantro - 4-5 strands
17) Lemon juice - 1 tsp
18) Water - 1 Cup

Step 2: Sauteing the Vegetables

1) Place a pan on medium heat and add the butter.
2) Once the butter melts, add in the cinnamon stick,cardamom, bay leaf, cloves, cumin seeds, ginger garlic, green chilli and saute for 2 min.
3) Then add the onions and half of chopped mint leaves and cilantro leaves.
4) Keep sauteing and adding on all the vegetables one by one.
5) Now add the salt and cover the pan and cook on low heat till the vegetables are 75 % done.( Add little water if the vegetables stick to the pan.)

Step 3: Cooking the rice in coconut milk

1) In a electric cooker, add the soaked and drained rice.
2) To that add in the sauteed vegetables,lemon juice, coconut milk, remaining mint and coriander leaves and mix.
3) Then add 1 Cup water(For 1 Cup rice = 1 Cup coconut milk + 1 Cup water ). Proportion of coconut milk and water can be altered as per your taste buds. For more creamier taste increase the coconut milk and reduce the water.
4) Now check for the seasoning (salt) and add if necessary. Later this point seasoning is not possible. 5) Cover the lid and allow it to cook. Cooks approximately for 20 min.
6) Once cooked, switch off the cooker and allow it sit for few minutes (5 min)

Preparing the yogurt side:
To the 1/2 cup of yogurt, add some grated carrots, diced onions, chopped coriander leaves and salt. Mix everything well. Yogurt side is done !!!

Enjoy this rich and creamy coconut milk vegetable rice and the side with your loved ones!!!

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Just Homemade: Homemade Fish Fingers

Homemade Fish Fingers are easy to make and are kids favorite snacks that can be made for any type of party and events. Fish fingers are made with fresh fish fillets cut into the shape of fingers (according to the size you require), marinated in spices and deep fried / shallow fried until crispy.

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Just Homemade: Sprouted Moong/Mung Bean Cups

Sprouted Moong / Mung Bean Cups are a delicious and a fun way of eating the healthy home made sprouts topped with fresh vegetables for a snack or as an appetizer.

Bean sprouts have the richest source of amino acids (for protein), vitamins and minerals, and also contain a good amount of fiber. They contain all types of vitamins (A, B, C, D, E and K), folate and are an excellent source of iron, potassium, calcium, phosphorous, magnesium and zinc.

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Just Homemade: Tandoori Chicken In The Oven With Coriander Yogurt Dip

Just Homemade: Tandoori Chicken In The Oven With Coriander Yogurt Dip

Tandoori chicken is a popular Indian dish, consisting of roasted chicken prepared with yogurt and spices. The name comes from the type of cylindrical clay oven, a tandoor, in which the dish is traditionally prepared. (Thanks to Wikipedia). In this blog post, I would like to show an easy and simple method of preparing tandoori chicken in the oven. Tandoori chicken is an easy and tasty dish, that can be prepared and served with coriander dip for parties and get together.

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Just Homemade: Pineapple Layer Cake

Just Homemade: Pineapple Layer Cake

This Pineapple layer cake is simple, yet tasty and can be easily made for any special occasions.

The sponge cake soaked in pineapple juice, topped with whipped cream and pineapple chunks makes this Pineapple layer cake more softer and tastier.

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Just Homemade: Simple Mixed Berry Tiramisu

Just Homemade: Simple Mixed Berry Tiramisu

Simple Tiramisu made with mixed berries is very delicious and colorful. It will easily impresses your family and friends in any get together. Try it and sure you will love it. ** Happy New Year 2015 **

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Just Homemade: 5 Golden Remedies Using Turmeric (The Golden Goodness)

I am feeling exited and happy to write about my favorite spice of all Turmeric - 'Golden Goodness'. In this Post, I have shown the '5 powerful home remedies using turmeric' that can cure and to protect us from illness. Introduction: Turmeric has been recognized by yogis and ayurvedic healers since ancient times for its many healing properties. Grown mainly in India, the turmeric root is a close cousin to ginger root. It is dried and ground into a fine powder, brilliant gold in color, and used in many Indian recipes.Turmeric is considered highly auspicious in India and has been used extensively in various Indian ceremonies. Even today it is used in every part of India during wedding ceremonies and religious ceremonies. Benefits: * Turmeric is used for arthritis, heartburn (dyspepsia), stomach pain, diarrhea, intestinal gas, stomach bloating, loss of appetite, jaundice, liver problems and gallbladder disorders. * It is also used for headaches, bronchitis, colds, lung infections, leprosy, fever, menstrual problems, and cancer. Other uses include depression, Alzheimer’s disease, water retention, worms, and kidney problems. * Some people apply turmeric to the skin for pain, ringworm, bruising, leech bites, eye infections, inflammatory skin conditions, soreness inside of the mouth, and infected wounds.

Step 1: Turmeric Paste - The Base

Ingredients : 1) Turmeric powder - 1/4 Cup 2) Water - 1/2 Cup filtered water (Add more water if needed) 3) Ground pepper - 1/2 Tsp (optional) 4) Olive oil/ Almond oil/ Clarified butter - 1/2 Tsp (optional) Preparation : * Place a pan on medium heat and mix the turmeric powder and water. * Cook till raw smell of the turmeric goes (add more water if needed) * When the turmeric is completely cooked, add the pepper and clarified butter and remove from the heat. * Transfer it to a air tight container and can be stored in the refrigerator for about 2 weeks.

Step 2: Golden Remedy 1 - Turmeric Tea

Ingredients : 1) Turmeric Paste - 1/4 to 1/2 Tsp (as preferred) 2) Water - 1 Cup 3) Ginger - pinch grated. 4) Lemon Juice - 5 ml 5) Honey - as per taste Preparation : * Place a pan on medium heat and add grated ginger and water. * Then add the turmeric paste and allow to boil. * Finally add lemon juice and honey and mix well. * Strain it in a glass and serve. Benefits: * Lessen seasonal allergies * Reduce symptoms of cold * Turmeric is anti-inflammatory so it's a great decongestant * Powerful pain reliever * Honey is anti-bacterial and promotes healing. It also relieves coughs and sore throats

Step 3: Golden Remedy 2 - Turmeric Milk

Ingredients: 1) Turmeric Paste - 1/2 Tsp 2) Milk - 1 Cup 3) Ginger grated - Pinch 4) Cardamom powder - 1/8 Tsp 5) Ground Pepper - 1/8 Tsp 6) Palm Sugar - as per taste 7) Saffron - few strands 8) Water - little Preparation: * Place a pan on medium heat, add grated ginger and little water to boil (sometimes fresh ginger may curdle the milk.so I boil it in water to prevent that) * Then add the milk, turmeric paste, ground cardamom, ground pepper and allow it boil. * Then add palm sugar (panam karkandu) to it. once the palm sugar is dissolved strain it into a glass and top it of with saffron and serve. Benefits: * Milk and Turmeric provides bone health * Powerful anti-oxidant * Cure cough and cold * Can treat diarrhea and indigestion * Helps in blood purification and liver detox and much more...

Step 4: Golden Remedy 3 - Healthy Turmeric Smoothie

Ingredients: 1) Turmeric paste - 1/4 to 1/2 Tsp 2) Chopped Mango - 1/4 Cup 3) Chopped Banana - 1/4 Cup 4) Milk - 1 Cup 5) Honey - as per taste 6) Ground Cinnamon - 1/4 Tsp 7) Ginger - small piece Preparation: * Put all the above ingredients in a blender and blend it well. (Add more milk/water as per preferred consistency) * Serve it in a glass sprinkled with ground cinnamon on top. Benefits: *Anti-Inflammatory * Helps Weight Loss – By helping increase the flow of bile, an important factor in digesting dietary fat. Also helps the liver detoxify. * Anti-Cancerous Properties – Turmeric helps prevent and destroy cancer cells. * Powerful Antioxidant – Potent free-radical quencher. * Anti-Bacterial, Anti-Viral, and Anti-Fungal – Perfect when colds or the flu strike. * Skin Health – Promotes healthy skin and can reduce skin problems. * Turmeric has been implicated in helping relieve Alzheimer’s disease, arthritis, asthma, cancer, diabetes, and depression.

Step 5: Golden Remedy 4 - Turmeric Face Mask / Scrub

Ingredients: 1) Ground Turmeric - 1 Tsp 2) Gram / Besan / Chickpea Flour - 2 Tbsp 3) Almond Oil - 1 Tsp 4) Milk - 2-3 Tsp Preparation: * Add the ground turmeric, Gram Flour and Almond oil and mix well without lumps.(This can be stored in the glass container for later use) * Add 2 tsp of the above mixture in a bowl, add the milk and mix well forming a smooth paste. * This paste can be applied on the face as a mask for 15 minutes and washed with water. * This paste can be used as a facial scrub and washed with water. * This is a basic face pack. Other variations can be done based on the skin types. Benefits: Anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant properties that turmeric possesses are both important in treating these skin conditions. * In acne, using facial masks can soothe skin blemishes and heal acne scars. * In patients with eczema, applying a facial mask can reduce inflammation and redness. * Rosacea patients use turmeric masks, it can reduce the tiny pimples and redness that this skin condition causes. * Turmeric face masks are used to rejuvenate skin. Regular use of turmeric with various combination of ingredients can soften the appearance of wrinkles and fine lines.

Step 6: Golden Remedy 5 - Turmeric Oil

Ingredients: 1) Freshly ground Turmeric paste 2) Organic Coconut Oil Preparation: * Place a pan on medium heat and add the coconut oil and freshly ground turmeric paste. * cook till the raw smell goes away. Strain and store in a glass container. ready to use once it cools down. Benefits: * Anti-inflammatory * Arthritis and joint problems * Antiseptic * Good for liver * Reduces skin problems(scars,cracks in foot etc..)

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