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Tagua Multi-Colored Slice Necklaces- Hand-Dyed-Peru

Tagua Multi-Colored Slice Necklaces- Hand-Dyed-Peru

Regular price $21.00 USD
Regular price Sale price $21.00 USD
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Our Tagua Multi-Colored Slices and beads are dyed with a natural dye and then drilled and strung to make these unique necklaces. They are bright and bold to make you stand out in a crowd. They are also adjustable so you can wear them at any length. People will ask what they are made from, where they come from, and who made them. You can read more about Tagua in the story below.

  • Necklace Measure - 20'' long x 1-1/2'' wide
  • Adjustable
  • Hand-Dyed with Natural Dye
  • Matching earrings sold separately

Tagua, also known as vegetable ivory, is a seed from an endangered palm tree that is found in tropical rainforests located along the Pacific coast of South America. Apart from being a renewable and natural resource, tagua shares many similar traits as elephant ivory, hence its name vegetable ivory. Colombia is second only to Ecuador in the production and exporting of tagua nuts.Β Β 

Handmade in Peru and fair trade imported from Peru.

Β We encourage you to help save rainforests by considering a Tagua nut purchase. Please read our extended description below, under "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

Joyeria Semilla Artisan Story -Columbia- CaΓ±a Flecha


MG:Artisan-Zenu-1_240x152Joyeria Semilla meaning Seed Jewelry is a small fair-trade workshop in the Andean town of Villa de Leyva, Colombia. Girasol Taborda, a local artisan and social entrepreneur, started the workshop in the mid-1990s.

Joyeria Semilla’s objective is three-folds; to create new jobs, revive Colombia's handicrafts sector and to motivate locals to better manage their natural resources. The organization works primarily with socially and economically disadvantaged youths, single mothers and people with disabilities in the area. The company offers free training in product design, technical training and marketing to new members. Joyeria Semilla has trained them in the craft of jewelry-making.

Β  Β MG:Artisan-Zenu-2_240x255

CaΓ±a Flecha or β€œGynerium Sagittatum” is a locally found palm tree in the regions of the Caribbean coast. The leaves from this plant are used for making jewelry, woven hats, bags and baskets. The ZenΓΊ Indians were and their descendants inherited the tradition of picking veins of the green palm leaf for weaving. These veins were made into woven hats and other products for their personal use.

The ZenΓΊ culture is said to have existed between 200BC to1600AD. With the arrival of the colonizers in the 16th century, the indigenous community declined of unknown reasons. Today a very small population remains that claims the inheritance of the almost extinct ZenΓΊ tribe. Known for their skills in the construction of major waterworks, canals and irrigation system along with being skilled goldsmiths, examples of their accomplished craftsmanship are found in various museums around the world. Their larger means of subsistence were hunting, farming, fishing and trading.

CaΓ±a Flecha is found in abundance in the region, and hence makes for a sustainable and naturally available raw material for these products. Every bit of the plant is utilized – from using in building walls and roofs in houses to food for cattle and medicinal purposes. It is from the central vein of the leaf that the fibers for weaving are obtained. After the hard surface is peeled off, the fibers are left in the sun to dry and undergo a natural tinting process; these fibers are barely about 1 millimeter in thickness and hence call for a lot of skill and patience to weave with. The dried fibers are then processed for natural coloration - some are boiled with lemon to whiten them and some are treated with mud and boiled with plantain leaves to blacken them. The designs are based on ancient motifs and mathematical representations, which are inspired by the early ZenΓΊ culture.

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