OWP
Hand-Carved Tagua Nut Christmas Ornaments - Vegetable Ivory- Ecuador
Hand-Carved Tagua Nut Christmas Ornaments - Vegetable Ivory- Ecuador
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These Tagua Nut Ornament Slices are not just delicate but natural and unique. Tagua nut is a rainforest nut known as vegetable ivory for its likeness to animal ivory. These are seeds that grow in pods called cabezas, from the tagua nut palm tree. Tagua's smooth, hard texture is an ideal medium for carving jewelry, boxes, and other figurines or using the seed slices as beads for necklaces, bracelets, and other craft projects.
Naya Nayon, an Ecuador-based NGO, counters poverty and deforestation by creating new jobs that depend on conservation and responsible forest management. The organization works with 23 local artisans, mostly working in home-based workshops to create several, beautiful objects from tagua nuts. These nuts grow year-round in Ecuador and can be harvested without causing any harm to the rainforest.
- Average Measurement of each ornament - 1 3/8" high x 1 5/8" wide x 1/8" thick
- Come with a delicate gold cord for hanging.
We encourage you to help save rainforests by considering a Tagua nut purchase. Please read our extended description below by clicking "About the Artisans" for more information on how tagua nut carvings are made, and how they have helped save thousands of acres of rainforest and wildlife habitat.
About the Artisans
About the Artisans
Chichicastenango, Guatemala, has become one of the most important heritage centers in Guatemala during the past 10 years, due to its predominant indigenous Maya Quiche population and their traditional textile products. Yet, despite increased tourism and a renewed interest in traditional Mayan crafts, work opportunities remain few for the indigenous population, many of whom are uneducated and otherwise unemployable.
Enter De Colores Art, a local business that levels the playing field for villagers by offering free training to anyone who demonstrates the initiative to learn a trade. The company employs 30 women and 18 men to knit and embroider textile products, with the option of working at home using materials provided by the company. De Colores recognizes the culture of its Mayan employees, and as such allows flexible hours and gives time off for sowing and harvest days.
De Colores also invests in community education projects by funding two local schools in the neighboring towns of Chujupen y Pachoj, and by providing scholarships to qualifying students.
In addition to stimulating the local economy by creating new jobs, De Colores makes a conscious effort to use recycled materials whenever possible. The reason for this is twofold: to preserve Mayan culture, as recycled textiles showcase traditional knitting patterns that aren’t often seen in newer textiles, and to reduce scraps and waste.
Communities collaborate in the production process, as men work on the biggest textiles and women do the embroidery, crochet and macramé seen in smaller pieces. In some cases, in order to be competitive, sewing machines are used to assemble the finished product, although all the components are handmade and hand embroidered from cotton, wool and/or silk.
