the three musketeers
A few years ago I got on a plane and my life was never the same, in the best way! I traveled to Southern India to marry my best friend. Two very different worlds came together - Jewish / American + Hindu / Southern Indian. To this day we are lovingly connected across continents. His family embraced my family with open arms and visa versa. This collection celebrates my first time traveling to India, being open to new things, and the beautiful union of two contrasting worlds.
On that first (very overwhelming) day, only a few hours of meeting each other, Mokksha, my older niece, came up to me to show me a drawing she had done. She was so proud to show me her creation
I was stunned when she handed me the paper. She had taken our names, Mikaela, Mokksha, and Mukktha and written them out in an ordered grid to identify below which letters within our names were similar - M, K, and A. She then found the words within those three letters that she could make: MAK and KAM. What a thoughtful and inquisitive child. This moment was the start of a beautiful bond between the three of us.
At this point in time, Mokksha spoke and wrote decent English and her younger sister, Mukktha spoke none. A simple letters and writing exercise had so much power and meaning behind it. This message translated beautifully throughout the rest of my experiences marrying into a Southern Indian family as a Jewish American:
No matter where you come from, what language you speak, what color your skin is, how old you are, or how long you have known someone, we can all find unique commonality as humans to celebrate, explore, and understand.
I took the the Ms, Ks, As, and a few other S’s and commas to create mandalas, florals, and butterflies reminiscent of our fun doodling sessions and the patterns that repeat themselves throughout Indian culture.
Fast forward to the rest of that first trip along with all the new memories we continue to create together, I tend to spend more time with the girls than the adults. We play together, draw butterflies and mandalas, do fun crafts activities, and laugh a lot. They are my buddies and we are the three musketeers.
Check out the rest of my HELLO INDIA pattern collection designed with fabric and wallpaper in mind within my creative portfolio. I would love to connect with you to share more fun stories, discuss alternative scales + colorways, and learn how I can support your brand through my thoughtful surface pattern design approach.
