You know when you’re in this wobbly, difficult pose in your yoga class, feeling you’re going to lose balance in a few seconds?
But then you focus your vision on one tiny point in front of you to calm your mind and – switch! - you’ve entered a whole new mental state of stillness and mindfulness that channels your focus inwards. It is in this state of mind that it is possible for your body to achieve more than it did when you had all the thoughts roaming in your head.
Think about it – all this new-found concentration came from focusing on that little still point in front of you. But what if you could draw that point yourself, straight on your yoga mat? What if, instead of just a small point, you’d have the freedom to draw anything that would inspire you during your practice – perhaps a quote, a mantra symbol, a mandala or a positive affirmation?
In their mind-clearing and focus-deepening power drawing and yoga are intertwined, and now there’s a mat out there to combine both of them. So here are a few reasons why you should draw straight on your yoga mat:
1. Drawing helps you deal with stress. And so does yoga!
There are studies that show that just idly doodling is one of the best ways to clear your mind, even if you are not a skilled artist. Drawing is a great way to battle stress and offers you a chance to disconnect from all the mind-clutter we all experience these days. It offers you an opportunity to engage with the present moment and channel your focus on yourself - much like yoga does! Take a piece of paper out and aimlessly draw lines, circles, angles – anything you feel like – with a pen. See how you feel after 10 seconds. Then get back to this text and read on!
Drawing made on a DIYogi yoga mat
2. Drawing on your yoga mat helps you focus even more while you practice
During yoga, most of your visual space is taken up by your yoga mat – just think of what you see during those plank poses, warrior 3's, standing splits and crow poses. With each practice you get to know your yoga mat even more and you get to love every little one of its creases and micro patterns, even the small defects or scratches. If you personalise your yoga mat yourself by drawing or writing on it you control what’s in your sight during practice and you make sure that what you see is what you like and what gets you inspired. What would speak to you more during practice? Mandalas to calm your mind? An intention that you’ve written down so that you see it all the time when you practice? A quote to keep you inspired?
Colouring into a white Mandala yoga mat using markers
3. You can draw on your yoga mat as a form of active meditation
Drawing helps deepen your focus on the present moment, thus helping induce a state of meditation. So you can view the time you take to draw on your DIYogi mat as an opportunity for active meditation; plus you’ll soon see that drawing on your mat will turn into a mini yoga workout in itself!
Turning the Mandala of a purple yoga mat into a peacock!
4. You can have a beautifully decorated yoga mat without compromising on its quality
You don’t have to DIY decorate an old yoga mat and then get frustrated over how slippery it is - using the stencils provided with the DIYogi mat you’ll be sure to get a beautiful mat even if you’re not an artist, allowing you to draw directly on a top quality mat.
The DIYogi mat is as high quality as it could be given current knowledge of what makes the best yoga mats out there – it has a natural rubber layer that sticks it to the floor, an antimicrobial cotton middle layer for comfy cushioning and joint protection and an eco Polyurethane top layer for outstanding grip and moist absorption, making it ideal for both regular and hot yoga. No glue has been used in binding the layers together, so you know it’s fully non-toxic and thoroughly planet friendly. For more info on how to choose your yoga mat - click here.
5. There are too many basic mats in the world!
Looking around a yoga studio there are simply too many people who don’t realise that the body-sized rectangle they’re practicing on is in fact a blank canvas waiting to be decorated. Sure, there’s always the option of buying a mat with an interesting design, but making your own drawings definitely accounts for a 100% bespoke yoga experience. Not to mention you would definitely stand out!
6. You can make your own alignment lines or progress milestones
In line with the yoga paradigm, we believe everybody and every body is different, and while standardised alignment lines have accounted for immense progress in the yoga mats world, we’d like to give you the opportunity to draw your own alignment lines directly on the mat according to your unique body characteristics and needs. Plus – you can integrate them into a cool drawing to make sure that your mat doesn’t look too ‘technical’.
7. It’s a good gift for a yoga lover
It can be a thank you gift to your yoga teacher, like a mat that all the students can sign. Or it could be the yoga mat version of a guest book at a retreat or workshop, or a thoughtful gift to your yoga-loving friend or partner. The world has waited enough for a mat you can customize on the spot!
If you’re an artist, contact DIYogi on this website to ask about our pricing for buying multiple mats – you can then draw or write on them and sell them.
8. Everyone will ask where you got that mat from!
And you’ll say – I made it myself! Just maybe loop us in if you post your pictures on Instagram by using the hashtag #diyogi – so that other Yogis like you can get inspired from your work :)
Love,
DIYogi
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