shalini’s gift: bunting
this is the first exchange in the letters line of gifts.
“this is that most english of decorations: bunting. it has a lot of significance for me – i made bunting for our wedding, as a way of making something for the day myself, but also to represent the merging of english and indian. my husband’s family is english from way back when, but mine is south indian; my parents came here in the ‘60s to study and ended up making their life in south london.
the fabric came from the street market in southall – it’s practically the cheapest fabric you can buy and it’s shiny, brightly coloured and gossamer thin – what I liked was the clash of colours, just like women wearing richly toned saris which all compete for brightest hue. the making of the original bunting for my wedding was a nightmare! but, once i had mastered the process, it was straightforward, and – a year and a half later - making the gift was fun. i recalled my wedding as i was making it, and all the people who had played a part – including pilar, who sang very beautifully and caused many a tear to be shed! i got out my wedding pictures too, and found pictures of the marquee decorated with bunting and foxgloves, and remembered what a wonderful day my wedding day was.
what i’m hoping is that someone sees the bunting and gets inspired to make their own – i love the idea of passing on knowledge, and if you wanted to know how i did it then I’m happy to share what i found out through trial and error!”
shalini sequeira, january 2009