Wood: As source of life

In ancient times, according to a traditional Chinese thought, wood indicates the birth of new life, growth and springtime, sensuality and fertility. Wood has been used for ages for many purposes. Some of its important uses are for fuel (to provide warmth and cook food), to make tools and weapons, sculptures (statues), shelters, and boats.

Nowadays, with modern advancements, we make use of wood in many more ways -to build domestic housing, to make cutlery (toothpicks, chopsticks, spoons, etc.), to make lumber and timber (for furniture and construction), and to produce paper out of its fiber and sap.

Wood has also been used to adorn the body, from ages past, for its distinct “tribal” aesthetic. Interestingly, who would now discount the fact that this historic use of wood even in royal jewelry has passed on influences to our present fashion culture? Yes, even contemporary jewelry designers make use of wood beads and components in creating distinctly elegant, trendy, and competitive jewelry pieces. As a result, this has created a new industry employing a skilled labor force to patiently and meticulously handcraft each obscure piece of wood into beads and components of different shapes, forms, and sizes. (Beads can even be made into as small as 3 millimeters in diameter.) Thus, wood becomes a source of life for these bead-makers as it provides them with creative ways of earning a living. To note, trees are not purposely cut down for this. The wood used to create these beads and other jewelry components come from furniture-makers’  scrap pieces and by-products.

So then, we must not forget to make efforts at replenishing this natural resource for future generations to enjoy.

Amazing Bone Beads

It really amazed me to find, for the first time, beads made from animal bones. Specifically, I learned how these are made of cow and carabao (Philippine water buffalo) waste bones. Some would think that all butchers’ scraps (bones scraped of all meat) can just end up as garbage, but wait! Not in the Philippines though. People here are very creative, always innovating, recycling those “unthinkably” useful trashes to transform them into crafts, for profits. I am proud to be one of them.

Now, you might be curious as to how it is done –transforming bones to beads.
In the Philippines, you will find quite a few artisans especially skilled at this craft.

It takes several procedures to produce this type of beads though. To sum it up here…

• First, cleaning the bone thoroughly, to make sure that all the dirt are washed out (also called bleaching);
• Next, defining the beads into different shapes -this includes cutting, carving, etching, grinding to smooth the surfaces;
• Finally, burning or staining or tea dyeing.

These processes can take awhile. But, all these done properly, will make for very well handcrafted beads.

One unique store, Beads and Pieces, carry a wide selection of these very interesting, intricately handmade bone beads. They are available in different sizes, shapes, and colors.

Designer’s Fix: Tips on Overcoming the Creative Block

Ever faced a creative block? Like it or not, artists wrestle with these inescapable dry spells from time to time -times when you want to create, need to create, have to create, and you just can’t. For some, these frustrating episodes seem to stick around longer.

Jewelry designers, likewise, struggle through such long, futile hours unable to find the “inspiration” and ideas just seem to hide away in the dark. But, don’t push that panic button just yet. Here are some tips to help you get up and creating   in no time:

Explore “new” materials and techniques that are not familiar to you. If you are a gemstones-and-crsytals designer, why not try the “organic and natural“? Here are a few examples of these materials:

• Horn -Go tribal with style! These natural charms can replace amber and black onyx aesthetically. Horn beads are dense, with translucent shades of golden brown and red. Horn can also be polished into an impressive jet black. (Source: Philippine water buffalo or “carabao” horns)
• Bone -Reinvent glamour with an ethnic touch. Bone beads come in natural beige and tea-dyed colors -mimicking the luxury of ivory. (Source: beef waste bones from Indonesia, and the Philippines)
• Seashells -Nothing quite comes close to the natural beauty of shells (the hard, rigid outer layer of marine mollusks) with its wide variety of colors, texture, and “crystalline forms” (nacre). The natural hardness of shells (made of calcium carbonate) makes for countless possibilities in design. (Source: Philippine seas)
• Wood -Always loved vintage jewelry? Do wonders with these exotic wood varieties -ebony, bayong, palmwood, rose wood, redwood, nangka, robles, and a lot more. Wood beads are often dyed or painted to achieve a desired color, while retaining its rustic appeal. (Source: Philippine tropical forests)
• Seeds & Nuts -You’ll be spellbound with these rare, exotic selections of “organic” finds. Even in their natural, crude forms, these wild forest seeds and nuts can pep up the plainest design you’ve ever imagined. (Source: Philippines)

     The list can go on and on….

Discover more ways of polishing your personal styles and techniques. Oftentimes, a unique concept just gets delimited by a designer’s own “old-line” approach on developing an idea. For example: Use horn toggles and locks (when metal locks are unavailable or do not “fit”) on a multi-layered necklace and render it with a more vintage appeal.

Vary a jewelry’s focal point by “substituting” common materials with unique pieces.  Make a typical jewelry form more interesting with unique (unusual) pendants and components. Repetition of usual materials tend to bore a designer’s novel ideas.

Collect images of nature’s delightful creatures and mimic their “forms” into a jewelry collection. This may not sound like a new idea, but how often have you seen a “wildflower-themed” jewelry collection? Go ahead, make your own now! 

Associate various “emotions” on rather boring color schemes. Each piece of art conveys an artist’s emotion quite subtly. So, why not create an “ecstatic” jewelry collection, for example, to celebrate Easter sunday?

As Edward de Bono tells us, “Creativity involves breaking out of established patterns in order to look at things in a different way.” So, be unconventional and feel those creative juices flowing in once again.

Jewelry from the tropics

          As one of the best-known tropical countries, the Philippine islands abound with lush tropical greeneries (coconut palm trees lining the seashores), pristine beaches, and bountiful seas (with one of the world’s richest marine life). This proves to be rich natural sources of exotic shells (mollusks).

It’s no wonder how a thriving fashion accessories industry (also called costume jewelry) in some of its island-regions (Cebu is known for this industry) has inspired native artisans’ ingenuity -creating the finest quality of beautiful, unique, and fashionable jewelry pieces.
          That is what makes Philippine-made handicrafts, –including beads made from exotic shells and coconut “shells”; stand out among others, and bringing the beauty of this tropical paradise to you.

Discovering Horn

          If it would be your first time to visit Cebu in the Philippines, you would really notice many interesting things about this island-province. Aside from its historical beginnings and the smiling locals that you would pass by along the city streets, it is also home to rich natural resources that these people have put to good use. To mention a few, they have those beautifully made souvenir and novelty items. Well, I personally love the fashion accessories most. Agreeably so, Cebu is known for its fashion accessories made of horn beads and shells. To be honest though, I was quite surprised that such ”unusual” raw materials like the Philippine water buffalo’s horns (antlers) can be made into different crafts and accessories. (This “black-skinned” mammal is locally known as “carabao”. They are commonly domesticated for plowing rice fields, also raised for meat.) Because when you look at it, what would really interest you is how these crude carabao horns can be transformed into intricately carved beads. It got me thinking just how many water buffalos were needed to create unique carvings :-). Following my curiosity, I was hooked on finding out just how these things are actually made. I can only imagine  how much hard work, skills, and strength (these horns are really dense and difficult to carve!) to transform them into beautiful beads. Then, I was privileged to visit one such production site for this process. I noticed how the processing area was stacked up with these raw materials (horns) and different machines along with all possible tools they can use to cut up, carve, etch, dye, and polish the horn beads. Everything was done in a systematically. Each bead was laboriously “processed” and polished. Then, these beads were finished in black, golden brown, and rich translucent shades. From this experience, I learned many things. There are much more of such materials (we often disregard) from our natural resources that can be made into new crafts.