Kolam by Sudha Balaji

The images below show the difference in the size of the dots depending upon the quantity of kola podi we use. If we take minimum quantity of kola maavu, dots look like this If we take more rangoli powder dots are thick and some times look like small lines.  When we join them with lines , they are not covered entirely by the lines The gap between 2 dots should be uniform to the extent possible  When we place a dot grid , for example  for 7 to 4 dot grid, place the 7 dots first and then the remaining dots above and below for better symmetry. Also if your question is how to keep pulli or how to keep chukkala , please read this post.

 How do we get thin lines in rangoli.  It is a simple trick. For drawing thin lines we have have to take minimum kolam powder.  This way we can draw thin lines.  The more kola podi you take the thicker the lines will become. Also lines should be drawn in a single stretch without joints.  If there are joints we try to hide them with kolam maavu and the lines will become thicker.  Thin lines in kolam are called ezhai .  An ezhai is a single strand in a thread.  Two images as examples If you observe the pictures , the curved lines are also drawn without joints.  This technique of drawing straight and curved lines continuously without any joints is the hallmark of a beautiful kolam.  The more we practise the better we get at this techque. 

Kolam tips Tamil | Simple kolam tips  The video below is from my YouTube Channel Rangolisansdots.  Some of the tricks and tips I follow for my Deepavali and Pongal kolam are given.  The subtitles are in English  The link for the video is 👉  tips for beautiful kolam in Tamil       What is the information available in the video How to prepare kola podi for getting fine lines For three parts kola podi mix one part rice flour.  Sieve the kola maavu first.  Mix both well you will get very nice lines. How to place dots The quantity of kola podi taken should be minimum to get perfect dots.  If you take more podi the dots lose shape. For a 7 to 4 dot grid place the centre row of dots first and then the pulli above and below to ensure uniformity.  If you start from the top the dot grid may not be straight. This is more evident when bigger the dot patterns are used. How to draw thin lines in kolam Take as little kola podi as p...

Some tips and tricks shared from experience 1.  The most important factor is white rangoli powder. 2. Traditional kola podi available in Chennai , Tamil Nadu is not suitable as it is 3. If we use it we have to sieve well and then use to make the texture smooth 4.  Rangoli powder available online and in Maharastra flows quite easily 5.  I purchased one pen in Jayanagar Shopping Complex , Bengaluru and one in Lakshmi Road, Pune     Both are working quite well.  It is available online on Flipkart and Amazon also 6.  Fill the powder to the maximum extent in the pen.  When the quantity decreases the flow of the       powder is affected 7.  After we have solved the flow of rangoli powder the next important factor is using the lid to close        the pen at the right time. 8.   If we learn 7 above perfectly we can avoid smudges and nonuniform flow of the powder. 9.   Same points appl...

This information is based on the questions that were asked through comments on my videos on YouTube.  The information has been collected here so that it can be book marked for reference particularly when kolam or muggu drawing is at the peak during Margazhi ( Dhaurmasam ) upto Pongal ( Sankranti festival )  1. What rangoli powder do you use I use kolapodi as we say in Tamil Nadu purchased from the local vendor.  It is sieved to remove rough particles.  Then to three parts kola podi one part rice flour is added and mixed well.  This video shows how it is done . The YouTube video is 👉  rangoli tips video     2. Do you make rangoli colours at home Not at present.  I get colours from Nagpur where my sister lives.  There are many requests for rangoli colours making tutorial , so I am planning to make one 3.  Which rangoli book do you follow There are thousands of designs in Rangoli-sans-dots blog and hundreds of videos in Rango...