wooden jewelry

While glittery costume jewelry will someday be my downfall, sometimes I choose to embrace my hippie side. Or more likely, I like to contrast a fancy dress with more simplistic but still bold jewelry so I don't feel ridiculously overdressed during the day. On those days, I love wearing jewelry made from natural materials. Wood is a material I will never master, so I'll have to keep collecting from other artisans. I have built up a bit of a collection myself and prefer (like with most things) to buy from individual crafters or fair-trade coops. Or to buy/ be given vintage pieces. Here is a sampling of my personal collection:


The first is a pair of handmade earrings I purchased at the Ithaca Farmer's Market. I can't remember the name of the man who made them, but I love their shape and the marbling of the wood. The bracelets I found at my grandmothers. She thinks they were my great-aunt's. She had spent a lot of time in Mexico. They have a bit of wearing so I typically wear them mixed up with a large gold bangle. The last photograph is a necklace I made with a large wood and gold vintage belt buckle. Look for it listed in my store later- this is the first time I've gotten around to photographing it!

My other favorite peice of wooden jewelry is a bracelet made of large flat wooden beads with pieces of mother of pearl inlaid, but the MOP kept photographing weird so I haven't posted pictures. Both are items my mother purchased at a fair trade store. (I don't know why I couldn't get a good photograph, and the images above looked much better before I tried to post them... advice?)

Here's a few pieces I wouldn't mind adding to my collection:

These bracelets from Nkuku are absolute showstoppers. Luckily for me and sadly for you, dear readers, these bracelets are out of stock.

Nkuku is a certified 100% fair trade shop (World Fair Trade Organization and the British Association for Fair Trade Shops.) "All our products are inspired by the traditional skills of artisans throughout Africa and India. The name ‘Nkuku’ was borrowed from a village in Zambia. We combine contemporary designs with age-old techniques, natural materials and sustainable methods of production to ensure each product is truly exceptional."


Sourcing of wood can be an issue so I love these recycled wood earrings found on Etsy by inbloomdesigns, who has a whole section on recycled and repurposed wood jewelry. I especially love the story on these- made from the wood from a clementine box!