The Palette Reef Designs

Taking orders for a personalized gift for the upcoming holidays!!
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A Pakistani Expat's Mango feast

If you are a mango lover like me and reside outside the mango haven of Asia and tropical countries.. you definitely miss the exotic aroma and succulent sweetness that is distinct to them!!

If you have been residing here for a while, you probably have experienced the mango malfunctioning we expats often experience.
Desi stores selling overly priced Pakistani mangos that are often short of supply.
Amazing looking mangos at Walmart stores that are 101% sour and its actually offensive to call them "mangos"!!

Behold. THIS mango shake was as close to the ones we have back in Pakistan.
This is made from , a produce of Mexico!! But here is trick.
Though they look so green and unpleasing from outside but surprisingly turn absolutely sweet when kept in your garage spiking an 85 F + temperature for a week.
( a lot of you might already be doing this.. but when you are pleased ..you have gotto share!!;))

*The Good old Mango shake!*

Ingredients:
1 Marathon Mango,peeled and cut
1 cup 2% milk
(Additional sugar if needed. I didnt add any)
3-4 Ice cubes

Recipe:
Blend all ingredients..give it a blizzzz..
*(i did mine in a Black & Decker blender which is working great for me, with an ice crush option);
Pour in your favorite glass and enjoy in a hot summer afternoon!!

That's my work on another page I run.:)

I wrote this in March 2020, around 3 months ago. Posting it finally cause now the illustration is complete!! ..:)
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A Thousand Steps to Home

That friend you met on your way
Passing by, or crossing the street that day
You greeted him with a virtual hug , a victory sign or hand on your heart,
You wondered if it was safe to say,
"Its better to stay away".
Chatting on the street that day
Your pitch was high
And you stood 15 feet away

When did you expect that anyway?
Until we saw some strange things that day,
Peculiar and good in their own way;

I saw a few people using dumb bell,
Working out in their garage they laid,
What a well equipped gym they managed to make,
Of course no excuse for not staying fit that day;

A few more steps ahead I crossed,
A family of five passing the road.
Their bicycles of all sizes following one another,
The family moved together on a mission, in a herd.

When I came around the street in my blue sneakers ,
I heard some drilling and sawing at the house with creepers,
A dad came out with his tools in his workshop,
Doing a DIY furniture using car beamers;

Some dumps of hardware and trashed doors on my way,
Some smell of BBQ happening in the backyard of theirs,
Some chalking on the ground to Twist , Turn and Hop,
From Start to finish I managed without a Stop.

A little girl sitting on a folding chair that was grey,
Chatting with the girl next door, relaxing on the bridge ledge in her own driveway ,
A dad practicing a sport with a teenager in his front yard,
Another person gardening and growing flowers;

Some masked teenagers helping with grocery from the trunk,
Another person picking mail with hands covered with gloves;

I arrived home thinking to myself in dismay,
The pandemic has made us all at bay,
Closer to family and more time to ponder,
Lets use the time wisely, believe in Him and get fonder!

Keep your trust in Him, believe you are not alone.
I pray for all, sick ,worried and quarantined.
At hospitals worrying ,when will they ll be home?

Lets keep the good from it and get past the bad
Stay at home for now, and do not Add to the unrest!

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☆ Written & Illustrated By
Sundas (Tariq) Sajid.

Another beautiful upcycle by Mirha Tariq Waqar!!!

Featuring a wonderful Pakistani Mom from UAE, Tariq Waqar on my page today.
Lets see what she has to say about this beautiful piece of artwork!!

"When my sister placed a beautiful fountain in the middle of her garden in Pakistan giving a look of Mohatta palace, my son's instant reaction was he also wanted to have one for his home, on which ofcourse, I laughed.
As being residing in UAE it was not that quite possible, so I searched for this little fountain online and came across this solar powered small fountain as it can be used in fish tanks.
Ordered it, had this metal plate from some restaurant painted it up with oil paints, glued it on top of the plastic pot (ceremic would have been great, but again didnt have it), silver polished the pot, placed the solar powered fountain on top of it with some glow in the dark rocks, and here we go!!
Our own little fountain works efficiently in presence of bright sun, and birds can also drink water from it, and most of all kids absolutely loved it!!"--- Mirha Tariq Waqar

"100 times Awesome"

*Made this shirt for my daughter's 100th day of school at Kindergarten!!*

Midnight testing Golden Acrylic paint I bought from somedays ago and ended up making this bookmark in 5 minutes!

Why the world needs art!!

The only creativity I could manage these days!!

Oh!!!!

The Notre Dame Cathedral In Paris Is On Fire Video and photos posted on social media showed flames engulfing the spire of the church.

Amazing!

Mural is Purposely Painted Upside Down to Reflect Right Side Up in the Water Artist Ray Bartkus wanted to incorporate Lithuania's Šešupė River into a captivating work of art, so he intentionally painted his mural upside-down. While

Morning inspiration today.💫
Trying Brush Lettering techinique for the first time!! 😍👌 Loving it!

Cat in the Hat, Dumbo and Grinch..
Sculptures...👌👌👌

MEXICAN Festival of the Dead .. 💀💀💀💀☠☠☠☠ EXHIBIT at Fortworth museum of science and history!!

Superb imaginative alphabetic chair at the Fortworth Museum of Science and History!!

Downtown Disney!!!
Just before the end of the year!

Who loves Holiday decorations??
Just loved this one on a walk in a San diego neighborhood!!

Relax!