I begin by creating the Tanjore painting board. I use a block of wood and envelope it in a cotton cloth adhered to it using home-made tamarind-arabic gum glue.

The next step is to create my sketch. For this example, I sketched a drawing of the goddess Lakshmi. Then I placed carbon paper under the sketch and traced over it to transfer it onto the dried canvas.

In this third step of the process, I go through and lay out my gems where I want to attach them to visualize how the set-up will be. Then I apply a dot of chukka kallu (chalk powder mixture) paste to attach the stones to the canvas. I use a tweezer to pick up and place the minuscule stones in their positions. Finally, I go in with the chukka kallu paste again, applying the paste around the stones as well as in strips to secure the stones in their position.