Raksha Bandhan 2017: Make your own Rakhi at Home

A Little About Raksha bandhan

Raksha Bandhan or Rakhi is celebrated all over India with great enthusiasm and joy. It is one of the most important festival for Hindus. Sisters tie rakhi on their brother's hand in order to protect their brothers from all evils. In 2017, it will be celebrated on 7th of August. As per the Hindu Calendar, it is marked on the day of full moon in the month of Shravana. Read on to know more..

What is Rakhi?

Rakhi is basically a thread made out of moli or kalawa and sometimes silk or cotton thread. The thread is then weaved with other colourful threads, pearls, zaris to beautify the Rakhi in your own way. Rakhi is at times also decorated with soft silky threads of various colours, ornaments, religious symbols or even studded with jewels like gold and silver threads etc.

Homemade Rakhi can serve as ideal gift on Raksha Bandhan. So this Raksha Bandhan, let your creativity flow out. Money, of course, can buy the best rakhi in the market, yet nothing compares to the pleasure and pride of making Rakhi with our own hands for our loving brother. Besides being less expensive they involve a personal touch and depict your love and affection for you brother. We are suggesting some real easy ways of making Rakhi at home that you will enjoy.

Materials Required to Prepare Rakhi

• A bunch of silk thread (color of your choice, preferably red or green)
• A bunch of cotton threads (matching to the silk reel color)
• Toothbrush (an old one)
• Scissors
• Glue
• Small artificial pearls
• Sequins
• Sitaras
• Bunch of Zari

Method of Preparing Rakhi

• Take the bunch of multicoloured silk threads; you can also use single coloured threads if you wish to make simple Rakhi. The length of threads should be between 20-30 inches. Add some zari or golden-sliver colour threads to make it shiny. Fold the length of the thread bunch to half.
• Take the cotton thread and tie the bundle on the 1/4th part of the silk thread that is somewhat about 4 to 5 inches to the midpoint. The one-fourth part in the centre will be made into a Rakhi while the 3/4th part remaining will be the string to tie around the wrist.
• The heads of the silk threads of the 1/4th part of the bunch should not remain in loops. Otherwise cut them with a pair of scissors.
• Once they are independent of loops, use a toothbrush to rub hard on these threads and brush them with strong strokes by holding tight on the knot. With repeated strokes the silk threads will turn feathery
• Divide the longer part of the thread into two halves and plat them in desired way. At the end tie a knot and brush the end again. This makes the string.
• Once this is done, decorate the it with sequins, pearls, religious symbols, sitaras. Stick them with glue. A sponge or a coloured paper of the same colour can also be used which can be cut into different shapes and then put some beads or sitaras randomly.