Hey everyone! We're already into the month February and as you know, there are several events coming up this month. Yes, we will walk you through each of these events, be assured; we promise some more things: we will add to your celebrations, make you well-informed about everything around you and lastly, we will assure that you make the most of all these celebrations! Yay!! Now, that's a great. Isn't it?

Okay, we know that you're excited about the upcoming events and you wish to know more about it. Alright, we understand your curiosity! So, we’ll give you a brief insight into what you can look forward to this month: Chinese New Year and Valentine's Day. Now, both the occasions are sure to pack a punch and keep you feasting!
In this article, we wish to help you with your preparations for the Chinese New Year. Well, hope you remember that it's on the 8th February this year.
Chinese New Year, also known as Spring Festival, is the most important festival in the Far East Asian countries, mainly those which follow the Chinese calendar. Celebrations, traditionally, run from the evening preceding the first day to the Lantern Festival on the 15th day of the first Chinese calendar month. The first day of the New Year falls on the new moon between 21 January and 20 February.Hey! Sorry to interrupt the flow of your reading, but have you observed that the entire festival is marked with the color red? Umm…You did? Exactly! The color red holds an important significance for the entire occasion.

HISTORY OF THE FESTIVAL
The festival of Chinese New Year has got an interesting tale to its background. The legend has it that about several years ago in the land of China, there lived a ferocious beast named Nian. This intimidating figure, Nian, was the cause of severe distress for the people. He would destroy land, property and crops; he would rob people of their food and sometimes, he would even kill people. The entire state was massively tormented by his wrong doings. But obviously, since they were very weak in front of the ruthless creature, they would place food and other goodies on their doorstep, so that they are saved from his wrath.

As it is said that time changes for the good, there came a situation where a local man – being fed up of the beast’s torture – decided to do something to alleviate the situation (time to get your dictionary, sweets!). He resolved to do something that will put an end to all the atrocities put forth by the barbaric creature. And that’s when a God appeared before him instructing him to scare away the beast using the color red and fireworks.

The villagers then understood that the Nian was afraid of the color red. When the New Year was about to come, the villagers would wear red clothes, hang red lanterns, and red spring scrolls on windows and doors. People also used firecrackers to frighten away the Nian. As luck would have it, the God’s instruction worked well and the country was saved from the brutalities of the wicked beast! From then on, Nian never came to the village again. The Nian was eventually captured by HongjunLaozu, an ancient Taoist monk. The Nian became HongjunLaozu's mount.
So there you have it folks, the inspirational and righteous story that led to the celebration of Chinese New Year. This tale reiterates the fact that no matter how strong evil is, righteousness and virtue always triumph over evil and wrong!
Interestingly, the year 2016 is the year of the monkey and for all those born under this Chinese sign, this year has a lot to offer you. We’ve attached a picture that enables you to check our Chinese birth sign based on your birth year. For all you, ‘monkey’ people out there, we give you a Hi-5!
Officially, Chinese New Year is celebrated on Chuyi (?? /choo-ee/) the very first day of the New Year, and Chuxi (?? /choo-sshee/), the last day of the previous year, Chinese New Year's Eve.


TRADITIONS AND FESTIVITIES
Traditionally, though celebrations can start much earlier than Chinese New Year's Eve. Some people start to celebrate from three weeks before itself. This date is called Laba (?? /laa-baa/), the eighth day of the twelfth Chinese month, while other pupils celebrate prior to one week of the main event— the 23rd of the twelfth month.
Now, let’s come to the fun part – the festivities. As we’ve mentioned above, the festival of New Year spans for a complete fortnight (15 days). Each day has its own set of special rituals and traditions that add to the authenticity and yes, the fun element of this festival.

Let’s go a step further and get a breakdown of rituals and traditions followed on each day during this festive season:

Day 1: 
The first day is marked with the welcoming of Gods and deities of the heavens and the Earth, which happens officially at midnight. This is followed by the traditional practice to light fireworks, burn bamboo sticks and firecrackers, and to make as much of a din as possible to chase off the evil spirits as encapsulated by Nian, the evil beast.
Many groups of people, especially Buddhists, abstain from the consumption of meat on the New Year’s Day because this is believed to extend longevity of the practicing pupils. According to some other traditions, the lighting of fire is considered as a bad omen, therefore most of the food is prepared on the previous day that should be relished on the D-day.

More importantly, the first day of the New Year is signified to be the day where you need to celebrate the respect you have for your elders, teachers and family members. It is about honoring the elders of the family and visiting the senior members of one’s family tree.

Day 2:
The second day of the Chinese New Year, known as "beginning of the year” is signified with the tradition of married daughters visiting their parents, relatives and close friends.
Further, some theories say that this day is the birthday of all dogs, so many people celebrate it by treating dogs to special delights. Furthermore, the second day is the Birthday of Che Kung, a deity worshipped in Hong Kong, worshippers go to Che Kung Temples to pray for his blessings.

Day 15:
The fifteenth day of the New Year is celebrated as "Yuanxiao Festival" or the Lantern Festival. It is basically of feasting of some yummy food like Rice dumplings and a sweet glutinous rice ball brewed in a soup.

People in groups walk the street with lighted candles, thus signifying the name of the festival – The Lantern festival.

Now, here’s something a little mushy since we’re fast approaching the Valentine’s Day. In countries like China, Malaysia and Singapore, this day is celebrated by individuals seeking for a romantic partner. Yes, it is something very close to our Valentine’s Day. As per the tradition, single women write their name on mandarins and oranges and throw them in rivers. While single men find the oranges and eat them, the taste and flavor of the orange becomes the deciding factor here. Like for example: if the orange turns out to be sour, the relationship is thought to lead to a bad relationship; while if the orange turns to be sweet, it signifies a happy and contented relationship.

So, here we go with the uniqueness and exuberance of this delightful festival that has everyone in its grip. Gone are the days when it was famous only in a few South-East Asian countries; today the entire world celebrates and looks forward to the Chinese New Year for its amazing sense of tradition, ritual and feasting that embraces human emotions and celebrates the gift of elders, love, humanity and life! Cheers!!!

Best Brains wishes all of you a Very Happy and Prosperous Chinese New Year!!!

Yes, so we're half way through the month of January, and so this gives us the liability to start making plans for the upcoming month - February. Now, do not tell me that we're pretty early, oh come on, being-in-time (and not 'on-time') never really hurt anyone; and most importantly, procrastination is a killer, but not being proactive. So keeping up with that thought, here's our planning for the upcoming event of Groundhog's Day. Oh no, no; we're not talking about the movie. We're talking about the very traditional feast of the same name. In fact, your Billy Murray-and-Andie Mc Dowell-starring super hit flick is based on the events of this very same festival day celebration. And honestly, this Hollywood movie did a great amount of goodwill in spreading and popularizing this tradition of Groundhog Day.

So, why not get some information about Groundhog Day? After all, it pays to be learned and well-informed, right?

Okay, so we begin this erudite journey (Guys, did you notice, how many times I use the word 'erudite' in our Big Brains posts? Well, you do notice? Wow! Seems like you're really memorizing and learning things pretty well through our Best Brains medium. That is wonderful!). So, now first, let’s discuss this – what does Groundhog Day really mean? What is its significance?

Groundhog Day, as the name suggests, relates to the common underground-living animal we know of the same name. Every year on the 2nd of February, as per most communities following this tradition, Groundhog Day is celebrated with great pomp and show. At an age, where the weather man is also considered pretty old-fashioned, thanks to the advent of super technology, here we have this lovely feast that celebrates nature in all its simplicity and ethnicity. Yes, that is the true beauty of this day.

The Origins:

Historically, Groundhog Day is celebrated to mark a very important tradition. Groundhog Day began around 1887 in Punxsutawney. However, its roots go back hundreds and even thousands of years. The feast has origins in the ancient Celtic festival of Imbolc, which was held on Feb. 1 or 2, halfway between the Winter Solstice (the solstice at midwinter, at the time of the shortest day of the year) and the Spring Equinox (the time when the sun crosses the plane of the earth's equator, making night and day of approximately equal length all over the earth and occurring about March 21). Imbolc was a festival for the coming spring and often featured primitive meteorology in an attempt to predict or control how quickly spring arrived.

Originally, Candlemas Day was celebrated as part of the traditional holiday that involved lighting candles and marked the mid-season duration. This age-old ritual belonged to the Christian culture and took place in Europe. With time, Germans brought it to America and now this festival became the Groundhog Day! Seriously folks, the world is really a small place, isn’t it?

Reportedly, ancient Europeans used hedgehog in their celebrations, but when the Germans brought this festival to Pennsylvania, they switched to groundhog because they thought that it would be the most ‘intelligent’ and ‘sensible’ creature to complete this task.

The Folklore

So what does groundhog really do in this endeavor? Well, honestly, he is the hero of the whole festival. It is so because when the groundhog comes out of his burrow and if he casts his shadow, then he predicts that Spring is delayed by another six weeks; on the flip side, if he finds it cloudy, then he predicts that Spring is around the corner. Therefore, Mr. Phil – the chief groundhog who summons this event – is the major weatherman or weather predictor for the folklore. He is indeed the world’s most famous and sort-after groundhog.

The Authenticity of the weather predictions:

Even though Mr. Phil goes all out on Feb 2nd each year to give away his weather predictions, his forecasts have been only 39% accurate. So is this entire pompous celebration revolving around the groundhog’s prognosis (guys, time to reach out for your dictionary) merely a fuss? We cannot really raise eyebrows because the chief officials have a different story to tell. The Groundhog officials claim that the animal’s predictions have always been 100% authentic. Umm… really?

The Magic of ‘Elixir of Life’

According to insiders, Phil the groundhog is prophesying the outcomes of spring for the past 125 odd years. And he is able to survive each passing year and make his weather forecasts because of the Elixir of Life. This magic potion does its part in bestowing immortality to the groundhog. The official site of Groundhog Day reads, “Phil takes one sip every summer at the Groundhog Picnic.” It further adds that the drink’s magical properties keep him alive for seven more years at a time. Now, that is great, really great!

So, my little buddies, this is the utterly fascinating story behind the annual Groundhog Day celebrations. Do catch up this year if you stay in and around Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. Come and celebrate the 130th year of Groundhog Day at Gobbler's Knob, Tuesday, February 2nd, 2016.

Otherwise, in case you stay far away then make sure to watch the whole action on TV and be part of this magnificent and historic festivity!

Regardless of anything, it is a celebration of tradition that marries a hell lot of fun!

Long live Phil, long live Groundhog Day!

Hello, all you lovely kids out there, we hope that you're having a fantastic time in January. Those of you who need a little inspiration on the same, do make sure to read the previous article on ways to enjoy the month of January. Well, today, we have something special for you. Yes, we do have something. Now tell us what is something significant coming up in the next few days? No, Valentine Day's is not on our mind, umm… we’re not talking about the Women’s Day too; it’s very far away! So, what do we intend to discuss? Well, today we’re going to speak about a global icon who has been an inspiration to millions, a role model and by far, one of the best speakers in the American History! Yes, you are right, he is Martin Luther King Jr. He is the one man who changed the way America seems, forever; he made such extraordinary reforms that laid foundations to make the great country America, we all know today!

Martin Luther was born in a family of Baptists and clergymen and was raised in a comfortable environment. Of course, he was nowhere very wealthy, but he did so many marvelous things that resonate the fact that money cannot buy everything, or better still, you do not require money to bring about a lasting change. We need to know and understand that great leaders do not live only in the house of the wealthy, but they also breed in the homes of the modest and also the lesser fortunate sections.

Martin was influenced by Jesus Christ at an early age, and he decided to adopt Christ’s teachings as a way of life. Martin firmly believed in Jesus Christ’s idea of ‘loving your neighbor as yourself.’ He was born in an age where African Americans were in an indigent condition. Those times reverberated the atrocities and sufferings Black Americans faced due to being ‘colored.’ Racial abuse was the social order of the day.

Undoubtedly, it takes an immense amount of perseverance to lead out a war against injustice especially if you’re the weak class, but Martin Luther did that triumphing over all the negatives that surrounded him. He was sent to prison several times, was beaten up, threatened to death and was treated downright inhumanly, but he never lost hope and went on battling because he knew that he was right!

But his greatness doesn’t end just there. He detested (time to get your dictionaries out, sweets) violence and injustice, and so gave up violent means to achieve justice. To bring out references from history, Martin Luther’s Civil Rights revolution happened just a little after the Second World War’s massacre. And needless to say, World War-II did see a lot of mass destruction. King having had vowed never to take up brutal or cruel ways to accomplish his noble goals. Therefore, he went on Civil Rights movements using non-violence and civil disobedience acts based on core Christian beliefs.

And rightfully, he did succeed! He succeeded in freeing a nation where misfortunate classes of the society were handcuffed with the humiliating practice of slavery. He managed to teach a nation the values of nonviolence, including unconditional love, tolerance, forgiveness and reconciliation, something that are so desperately-needed to unify the country of America. Little friends, Martin Luther King, was only in his 30s when he led revolutions and battled against all odds to become an international force to reckon. The worldwide leader is said to derive the teachings of non-violence and peace by the great Indian freedom fighter and Father of Indian Nation, Mahatma Gandhi (Did anyone of you watch the movie Gandhi? Yes, exactly, it’s his story). Mahatma Gandhi was a man of simple principles and morals and that enlightened King (as Martin Luther King is fondly addressed) and he sincerely embraced those virtues.

In the year 1951, he was awarded the Nobel Prize for his outstanding work that changed the face of an entire country. In fact, he was essentially lauded for his non-violent means to turn his far-fetched dreams into a reality. His speech, ‘I saw a Dream’ is one of the most iconic speeches ever in the modern history of man.

Now, let’s come to discussing a day that celebrates the greatness of this thorough extraordinaire! This day is significant because it commemorates the splendid contribution of the greatest champions of justice, peace and reconciliation. We call it the Martin Luther King’s Day; it is used as a special way to honor the birth anniversary of this exemplary frontrunner.

The Martin Luther King’s Day is not just for the African Americans, but it is for People, the people who constitute you, me and everyone around us; it’s a day to celebrate humaneness; it is a day to celebrate equality and insuppressible love for your people, and humanity, in general. King was born in America, but each year, nearly 100 different countries celebrate this international hero’s birthday with great pomp and show. These things only give ample support to the fact that Martin Luther King was a man of impeccable character, possessing an intrepid sense of attitude.

There is so much to learn from King that it might take over a lifetime to even come close to half of his immaculate personal attributes. But yes, we can try, we can always try and become the best versions of ourselves. Martin’s incredibly eventful life reiterates that we do not need to be born in an over-the-top rich family or be blessed with flawless beauty. But what we need is a character and inner strength. Many people on this planet fail to accomplish their goals because they lack perseverance and will power. They may hold great ideas of change and prosperity, but they remain unsuccessful because they fear to raise their voice against the evil and most importantly, they fear to dream saying that dreams don’t come true. In Martin Luther King’s excellent speech on Human Equality and his wish to see America as colorblind to people’s complexion resonates how simple means in life can achieve extraordinary things!

We urge all of you to stand and take an initiative to be part of the change and yes, be aware of the fact that Change starts with YOU! Thus, dream, think, stand up, run, work hard and no one, yes, practically no one, could ever possibly stop you from reaching the presumed unobtainable! God has blessed each one of us with an indefinite amount of talent and strength. If there’s any right time to achieve your ambitions, then it’s now, it’s here. Just go out folks, you’re about to unleash the astonishing power in you!

On this very special day, we at Best Brains, go all out to educate people about the iron-will of a mere man, who set out to change the history of a country and make it one of the biggest democracies across the entire globe!

We’d render a couple of lines to this very noble soul and say: In your selfless services we lay our salutations, no one can ever possibly defy that you will always be one of the best sources of inspiration and human expressions! 

Hola! So we're in the New Year 2016! Fabulous! I'm sure you'd loads of fun with some wonderful activities and events in the past few days, or even better, having them still going on. So, kids, what all is new this New Year? Yes, new year, new beginnings, new resolutions, new experiences; yes, everything is new! There is a whole lot to look forward to in this month. As we all know, it is also one of the coldest months of the calendar, being just the second month of the winter season. With the onset of January, you know that winter has you in its grip and you need to plan your activities keeping the weather in mind. But hey, January must not be only about shrugs and sweaters and jackets, or for that matter, even gloomy and dull days staying indoors. January heralds the beginning of a new year, so would you like to begin the year in such a boring and lethargic way? I can hear a unanimous no from your side. Good! So, let’s put some life and soul in this mistaken to be the bland season!

I hope you guys are all geared up to have an eventful January. Can I get a ‘yes?’ Nah, I do not hear anything. Louder, please? Wow! Now, I hear something. Great! Yes, we’re about to begin. But wait, ain’t we forgetting something? Yes, you’re right, we have to keep up with the tradition of getting ourselves erudite about the history and significance of the subject in the talk (Seems like you are really doing your lessons well in the memorizing section of the Best Brains tutorials and remembering things very well; kudos!).

Here's the gyaan about the month: January is the first month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars. Now, tell me, where did you last read about the Julian and the Gregorian calendars in our blogs? Yes, the New Year's eve article. We strongly recommend you to refer it once again for brushing up your knowledge on this subject. Moving on, January is one of the seven months with a length of 31 days. It is one of the coldest months in the Northern Hemisphere. And interestingly, one of the warmest months in the Southern Hemisphere. Well, that's geography for you!

Historically, January (in Latin, Ianuarius) is named after Janus, the god of beginnings and transitions; the name has its beginnings in Roman mythology, coming from the Latin word for door (Ianua) since January is the door to the year.

Coming to its traditional significance, January was not really a month until late 713 BC. It was only after the semi-mythical successor of Romulus, King Numa Pompilius's supposed addition to the Roman calendar with the months of January and February that this month came into existence. Of course, this event didn’t go unnoticed because it led to another eventful spectator that of the Roman calendar to equalizing a standard lunar year (354 days).

So, that was the historical segment of this month. Now, let's head to the fun part and get down with some mind-boggling activities you must look forward to, this January. Simply because the sun is not shining in all its glory, doesn't really mean that you hit hibernation all the way till Spring! So, my dear kids, gear up to take the whole advantage of these winter seasons, you have no idea how much the children down south yearn for snow and all its related feastings! 

Here's how you can make January a memorable season:

Learn to Sew

Well, let’s start the list by ‘eating a frog.’ Now do you know what it means? No? Then rush and find that out on the web. Okay, let’s make things simpler for you and tell you the meaning right here. Basically, Eating the Frog refers to doing a difficult task. So, if someone asks you to eat the frog, then it simply means that you must do a relatively tough thing.

What can be better this winter than learning about ways to beat it? Exactly! That’s why we recommend that you start learning to sew. It’s such a beneficial hobby that you will never stop thanking yourself for having picked up this skill.

So pick up that needle and a string of thread along with a piece of cloth and let your hands do the talking. Also, you may start learning to knit too! Yes, it does require some good amount of hard work before you can master it. But not to worry, just browse the internet or take some tutorials from your mom or any adult who is skilled at it. And soon enough, you can stitch your own clothes. Wow! You may go on to become a fashion designer, too. Now, that must keep your eyes twinkling!

Warm up a Campfire

In winters, nothing can be more comforting than cuddling with a warm blanket beside a live campfire. So learn to prepare a campfire and bask in its enticing warmth.
Also, pack up some snacks and scary tales for your company, and you’ll have a cracking time, quite literally.

Make a Collage of the pictures of your Family Tree

Do you know all of your aunts, uncles, their kids, your grandparents’ siblings, your mother’s far-away-living bespectacled cousin? Well, we think you do not. So we propose that you sit down with your parents, or better still with your grandparents and learn about your family tree. This works in many ways: you learn about the history and lineage of your family, you get to spend some quality time with your grandparents, and you also spend your time doing a very fruitful thing.

Well, now that you are well-informed about your family’s ancestry after this educative session with your grannies, then go and collect their pictures. Get creative, get innovative and make a great collage of your family tree. You can relate people using arrows, markers etc. You’re the artist here, so go all out to present your pedigree in the best way possible! After all, aren’t you very proud to be a part of it? Yes? Then, prove it here, mate!

Host a Hot-Chocolate Party

Winters are the perfect time to enjoy a cup of that mouth-watering hot chocolate. So since the season is in full swing, then why not enjoy those amazing sessions of drinking hot chocolate.
You can even call up your friends, cousins, neighbors, in fact almost anyone out there for a party at your home. We believe that it’s always a good idea to share the goodness, and what better than sharing the delight of hot drinks with everyone around. Adds to your good Karma too, we swear.

Have a Movie Marathon

Now, we totally get this – sometimes it’s really very dull outside and you find the greatest pleasure in just staying indoors, with little or no work altogether. So, in such cases, what would you do for entertainment? Watch Movies? Yes, that’s it! Go on a marathon of watching movies. There might be several films which you’d have missed due to some reason or the other. This is the time to fill in the gap and go on binge-watching movies.

Do remember to make your friends, siblings and friends join in this endeavor and enjoy the fun together. And yes, do not forget to keep loads of popcorn beside you while watching flicks. Although, we’d highly recommend you to make some yummy and healthy salads and sandwiches with mom to relish the wholesome nutrition with wholesome entertainment. That’s a fab idea, isn’t it? Yes, we know!

Direct a Stop-Motion Movie

Okay, so you’ve dreamt of being the next Steven Spielberg? Super cool! We wish the very best in this endeavor. Also, we think you must start working towards your dream right from now. Of course, it’s always better to start early.

So, get all your toys out, frames, dolls or anything that is worth being a character in your movie. Take a good camera and start clicking pictures of each of these objects. Now transport the pictures to a movie-maker and keep the duration of each picture to a second or so. Add voice-over and some good graphics if you want. Voila! Our Golden Jubilee marking movie is ready. Kudos, future Spielberg! We suggest you be ready with your award acceptance speech!

Be the Best Do-gooder around

Well, it certainly helps to be a good person. Yes, many sitcoms, movies, and other social media platforms say that it’s cool to be rude or arrogant. But the truth is being good is the best trait you can have in life. Ask your elders and they will speak volumes on this.
Visit your community hall and lend your hand in small chores, or distribute your old toys among lesser fortunate children. You can do as little as helping an old man or woman cross the road if you’re old enough to cross it by yourself. Least you can do is to help mom with the household chores and earn brownie points. On a lighter note, you can even visualize that cherished toy you wanted on Christmas already!

But regardless of anything, just be kind, helpful and sweet; and if not your parents, at least, God will certainly take notice of your good deeds and bless you with everything you ever wanted!

Visit a Museum:

Alright, we understand that you cannot really spend too much time playing outdoors (unless and until it’s a winter sport, of course), but that doesn’t mean that you look for excuses to not leave your cozy home at any cost.

You can most certainly visit a Museum on a winter evening. As the lights glow and the evening sets in, the museum looks enchanting with its awestriking collections, souvenirs, and memoirs. This is the perfect season to go and visit a museum because on most other days, you always look for other things to do. So now, no escaping.
Visiting museums and galleries makes you educated and knowledgeable about several things and as you know, everyone loves smart and well-informed kids.

And not just for the sake of knowledge, you can have a great time learning new things, histories, people, and places. Otherwise, you can simply gaze at the amazing collections there. We bet you will love the experience. By the way, even Ben Stiller had an awesome time on A Night at the Museum! <Wink>

Start an Airband

Now all you bathroom singers out there who just love singing, this might be your tryst with fame. Just play some of your favorite tracks and lip-sync them. You may also use proxy music instruments just to get the feel.
And yes, you may also choreograph some funky moves and act to suit the mood of the song. So, unleash the Rockstar in you, and get going! Cheers to the future Justin Biebers and Selena Gómezes. And in case, you are looking for a music band, then seek some inspiration from Band of Boys or even the Pussy Cat Dolls. Ooh la la…

Watch the Northern Lights

If you’re in the Northern Hemisphere and have missed the Northern Lights then, friend, you’ve missed on something indispensable! Seriously!
The Northern Lights (AKA Aurora Borealis) refers to the collisions between the electrically charged particles of the sun and the earth’s atmosphere. The result is the flash of dazzling lights that is so mesmerizing that they leave you awestruck and amazed!
To enjoy the Northern Lights, head to a high altitude location at around midnight on a clear night with some essentials like tent, mattresses, blankets, food, drinks and voila! You’ll have a spectacular outing without much effort as you let your eyes gaze at the mystic beauty that fills your heart with unparalleled admiration and enchantment!

So we hope that you have lesser excuses to stay at home now in the month January. Make the best use of these winter days and outshine them with your zeal and inner exuberance! Is anyone still shying away from winter? Our advice – Read this article yet again!

Hello, guys! How are your New Year plans going? I hope you're having an exemplary time with mama-papa and all your friends, siblings, cousins and everyone around. It's certain that you will have a ball with loads of gifts and feasts coming your way.

It's always a good idea to begin the New Year on a positive note. That's given! Therefore, why not express your love and gratitude to your loved ones in a very beautiful way? We think that it's great to present gifts for their endeavor! Isn't it? after all, gifts symbolize your love and care for people. So, let's get down to some serious work; nah, it's not serious at all. In fact, you'll have a whole lot of fun while making these simple pieces of joy.

Here's how we get started in making some classic memoirs on our own, AKA, Do-It-Yourself gifts. Now, let us give you a breather: You don't need to work tirelessly on a day before the New Year celebrations, neither do you need to shell out much of your hard-earned pocket-money. Now that is a win-win situation, right? True!

Well, as you would have known us well by now, you'd realize that we don't really post some information without giving you reasons for its viability. So keeping up with that tradition, we'd now briefly discuss why Do-It-Yourself gifts add that unique touch and pack a delightful punch (wow! That rhymes, too!) all the time. Here are the key parameters that make them a great gifting option:

• They require little or no money
• They add a special touch to each gift
• They are unique and personalized to individual tastes and interests
• They are super easy to make 
• They can be passed on as priceless memoirs

So, what are we waiting for, let's get started:

Citrus based Sugar-Salt Scrub

Things you'd need:

1/2 cup sugar (white or brown sugar - preferably organic produce)
1/2 cup oil (use olive oil or coconut oil - both of them infuse great amount of moisture into the skin and replenish some skin nutrients too)
2 tsp of salt (rock salt would be great, otherwise, you may use table salt as well)
zest of lemon (cut a lemon into two halves and use its zest - you may also try its juice)
aromatic oils (use almond oil, argon oil, sunflower oil, hibiscus oil - practically, any aromatic oil that you find at home!)

Method: 
Step:1 Take a bowl and add all the ingredients together one by one.
Step:2 Mix them all thoroughly.
Voila! Your delectable Citrus Sugar Salt scrub is ready. Remember: do not eat it! :D

Recycled Water Bottle Lanterns

Now, gifts symbolize emotions and nature, don't they? For example, roses epitomize love and beauty, lanterns objectify light and the eradication of darkness. So, how about gifting a lantern? We think it's a great idea!

Well, recycled water bottle lantern will put to test your art & craft talents. So, brace yourself. Also, we'd advise you to take the help of elders while making these lanterns, especially in cases of handling scissors/knives. Alright, now that you're ready, let's get started!

Things you'd need:
* Plastic clear bottles
* White Paper: You'd try Neenah Exact Index Cardstock
* LED Light candles: Use LED tea light candles or LED Warm White Fairy Lights for better lighting
* Scissors/knives
* Glue

Method:
Step:1 Cut out beautiful designs into the cardstock using a knife or scissors. Please ask some adult to do that for you.
Step:2 Cut the top nozzle portion of the water bottle and insert the LED candle into it.
Step:3 Now, using a glue, paste the cardstock around the plastic bottle.
That's it - your recycled water bottle lantern is now ready to be gifted!
What's more: Since it is made using waste plastic water bottles, you may as well present it as a environment-friendly project too. Amazing idea, isn't it! We know!

7 Days of Love and Sweetness

Guys hurry up, find your grandparents' pill boxes, quick. Find harder. Found it? Great! If not, you may make use of your old paint palette or egg case. Hmm.. So now put them to some good use by making a creative sweet box.

Things you'd need:
*candies, sweet meats; in short, everything sweet and compact
*Pill box/paint palette
*Colored Paper
*Marker/Sketch Pen
*Paints

Method:
Step:1 Paint the pill box with rich hues.
Step:2 Gather candies, toffees, chocolates, biscuits crumble etc and fill each case of the pill box/paint pallet with them.
Step: 3 Write a small message of a piece of paper and place it delicately in each storage space of the box.
Step: 4 Mark each day with a different day of the week.
You're done!

Scrabble Art Wall

We're sure you enjoy Scrabbles, okay maybe you just don't! That's okay! Not everyone loves framing words. But you must be having several letter tiles of scrabble all around the house. So go and hunt them. When you've sufficient enough, you're going to impress everyone - We promise.

Things you'd need:
*Scrabble Tiles
*Cardstock for frame, else you even use an old wall frame
*Optional: colorful ribbons, or antique pieces of jewelry
*Most important: Good Vocabulary - we hope you're taking your English lessons well at Best Brains. Because it really helps you to bolster your English vocabulary.

Method: 
Step:1 Take the cardstock and cut it into a frame of desirable length.
Step:2 Stick the ostentatious decorations like old and broken jewelry pieces, ribbons, buttons, stones etc.
Step:3 Now, put your scrabble playing skills to test and create some heart-felt and meaningful words out of the letter tiles.
You're now a Creative Scrabble Master. Kudos on the new title!

Gardens in Glass

Won't you like a piece of greenery as a gift this New Year? Well, we think that unless you hate or fear plants (by the way, fear of nature in general is referred to as Biophobia!), anyone would love a lovely, fresh garden at their home or work place. These days, Terrarium is a great commodity, also known as Garden in glass.
This can be a little hectic, but we promise that you'll be more than happy with your result. Moreover, if you love gardening then you're going to simply love this!

Things you'd need:
*Glass Globe or Fish aquarium
*Garden soil
*Twigs, weeds, tiny plants, leaves - basically, anything that you can find in the garden. But we suggest you use plants that don't grow rapidly and remain small all their lives: succulents, fern, ivy or moss
*Activated charcoal ( to filter water and keep your adorable plants happy and smiling. You may find activated charcoal even online at Amazon or at a buy 1, get 2 free offer at doctorvitaminstore.com)

Method:
Step 1: Spread a layer of rocks on the bottom of your container. Make it about 3cm thick.
Step 2: Add a layer of charcoal.
Step 3: This optional, but you can add a layer of colored sands. This will make your mini terrarium more pleasing to the eye.
Step 4: It’s time to spread the soil. Use enough of it so that you can make a “hole” where you will place your plants’ root ball.
Step 5: Plant your greens. Carefully tease the roots as you remove your plants from their little pots. Remove some of the soil — this will allow them to fit comfortably in their new home. If they need some pruning do it before you put them in the terrarium. Now you can arrange you landscape. Place the largest plants first and then add the smaller ones around them. You can add small rocks or miniature animal figures for more fun.

So here we go guys with some really cool and impressive DIY gifts for your favorite people. We're sure that you'll have a whole lot of fun while making them and we assure you that your loved ones will be even happier to receive them from you!

Here's wishing an Exemplary New Year 2016! Best Brains wishes to see you at the pinnacle of Success, Health, and Happiness!