Cast Off The Evil Eye, Indian style

Have you ever walked past a shop or home owned by an Indian and seen a string of chillis and lemon hanging in the doorway? What you see is Nimbu (lemon) Mirchi (chilli).

All Indians are superstitious, it just varies from the odd adherence to a traditional superstition to full blown paranoia. When I was I child, we would practically choke on chilli fumes, as my grandmother burnt dried red chillis and wafted the smoke all around us to cast off the Evil eye and anything else (Indians were doing strange things with smoke way before Goop got into it).

So the story with the Nimbu Mirchi goes like this... Once upon a time.. No wait this is more than a tale, it's woven into the fabric of life in India. There is a good Goddess Laxmi, Goddess of Wealth, she has an evil sister Alaxmi, who is said to bring misery and poverty to your home. People leave out sweet and fruit offerings for Goddess Laxmi, her sister on the other hand prefers spicy and sour. So if you hang the Nimbu Mirchi outside your house Alaxmi will feast on these and not enter your home, therefore bringing no misery or poverty. The lemons and chillis are claimed to have anti bacterial and insect repellent qualities. People hang them in the doorways of their homes and businesses and actually look really pretty.

Klove Studio have taken the symbolism of the Nimbu Mirchi and modernised the look making something so stylish and long lasting. Made from hand blown glass by skilled artisans combining new and traditional techniques. Here's the link to it. Nimbu Mirchi