A Cup of Shai

Salaams and hello everyone! How are you? My post today is a creative, hands on one! It's all about how you can make these beautiful, colourful and vibrant canvases using the concept of Islamic geometric art! Below is an easy peesy step-by-step guide on how to create the above masterpiece!  You will need:  A price tag Canvases Pencil and rubber. Acrylic paint. Metallic paint. Paintbrushes. Plastic sheet/newspaper to cover the surface you're working on. 1. Firstly, on your canvas, draw around the price tag, ensuring you have filled the space.  2. Then, paint the white space around the eight-pointed star in various colours. Make sure you blend the colours properly whilst still wet or else the acrylic paint will dry. 3. After this, outline each eight pointed star with metallic paint to create that sense of  "Middle-Eastern" opulence. 4. Repeat this until you have completed the full set of canvases. 5. Finally, arrange in a space and ...

Hello everyone. How are you doing? I  hope  you're well, but it is totally understandable if you're not well either. Know that it's okay to not be okay during this testing time. Some people are rightly taking advantage of the time and pursuing new hobbies or taking online courses, and then there's going to be times when we just feel like having a cry about when (if) we will see certain loved ones again. That's the reality. We're all bound to ride the 'emotion' wave. God knows I've been riding the emotion wave and trying to keep my surfboard well and truly balanced! So in this post, I've brought to you six ways you can keep going :) 1. Get creative. Simply grab a pencil and doodle on paper. If you're artistic, reach for the stars and go crazy with collages and paints! Research suggests that creative activity increases the production of dopamine, the hormone which creates pleasure in you :) 2. Meditate and Mindfulness. By swi...

  Hello all! Since Mother Nature is in full bloom, I've brought to you some brilliantly bright and downright cheery card ideas that you can use with your little ones at home. Some of these cards can be used as a belated Easter craft, as a Spring craft, or just to have plain old fun :) Let's get started! Cherry Blossoms (above). You will need: Strips of black card. Cotton buds. White and pink paint. Pink tissue paper. Steps: 1. Firstly, stick the strips of black card down to make it look like branches of a tree. 2. Then, with a cotton bud, dot some white paint in groups of five to make your cherry blossoms. 3. Repeat with the pink paint. 4. Finally, scrunch up your pink tissue paper and stick on the branches to make blossoms. This will add depth to your beautiful blossoms! Sunny Spring!  You will need: Plastic fork. Yellow paint. Googly eyes/black paint. Coloured tissue paper. Steps: 1. Firstly, draw a circle at the top of your card and using...

Hello and salaams everyone! How are you keeping? :) In my previous post, How to Organise Your Ramadhan Duas. Part 1 ,  I was speaking about how to organise your duas, and these are the headings that I have come up with, and have given some examples of what you would like to ask for under each heading.  Personal. 1. Dear Allah, make me be useful, reliable and helpful to people and my family.  2. Help me to make the best decisions.  3. Protect me from people who could harm me.  Professional. 1. Dear Allah, allow me to add value to my work role.  2. Dear Allah, allow me to always flourish and grow in my professional role.  3. Dear Allah, allow me to work to the best quality that I am capable of.  Married Goals. 1.Dear Allah, allow my spouse and I to have a healthy and happy relationship.  2.Dear Allah, allow my spouse and I to help each other grow, support and motivate one another.  3.Dear Allah, allow my spous...

Salaams and hello everyone! How are you doing?  I pray you are in the best of health and happiness :) With Ramadhan just around the corner, there’s no doubt that we will start thinking about what to pray, ask, and give thanks for in our duas. *Ramadhan is the ninth month in the Islamic calendar when adult Muslims worldwide fast from sunrise to sunset in order to empathize  with the poor and needy. * A ‘dua’ is a personal prayer or a supplication made to Allah by a Muslim. * ‘ Halaal’ means something which is permissible in Islam. No doubt about it, it can be quite easy to fall into the trap of confusion and feeling overwhelmed with what we should ask for! After all, Allah is the King of the Universe, and nothing, absolutely nothing is impossible for Him. It’s crazy when you think about it, because you can ask for anything, and with firm Faith and Perseverance, He is the One who can grant you all your heart’s desires, provided they’re Halaal and i...

*"Alhamdulillah" means an expression of Gratitude to God, Allah. It means "All praises to Allah." Hello everyone! I hope your loved ones are in the best of health during this time. So we are all in the midst of a lock-down, and Covid-19 has become a global pandemic, bringing us all to a standstill. I was scrolling through my photos on my phone, and came across the above picture. And I thought to myself how quickly circumstances in life can change. I laughed to myself at the so called "silly" things we take for granted, and it made me reflect about the everyday things that I said "Alhamdulillah " for. Being able to go to a cafe. To be able to stand closer than 2 metres to someone.  Going on holiday with my siblings. Coughing without someone giving you a death glare.  Going for a walk in the park without any time limits.  To be able to not always be on tenterhooks about when the next death will be announced.  To be able to g...