Category: Uncategorized

Dear friends,

It’s been a few years. I’ve been busy with work and family, and unfortunately neglected this website. But beginning today, I am back and plan to begin blogging regularly.

African and ethnic beads have always been a passion of mine, and for that reason I remain committed to this blog. Even to this day there are very few sites committed to the topic, and so I feel all the more encouragement to keep this one going.

If there is anything in specific you’d like me to write about, please let me know.

Regards 🙂

Tribal jewelry can be difficult to emulate with ‘Western’ beads. Somehow, they just don’t have that same primitive beauty and rusticity you get from beads that have been made by hand. Admittedly, I’ve often overlooked African wood beads in favor of stone and clay varieties, simply because I’ve never appreciated their aesthetic value. But, after a little experimentation, I’ve been inspired. Cheap, lightweight and strikingly beautiful, here are three varieties of African wood beads you can pick up for under ten dollars.

Rosewood Beads

African Rosewood is a beautiful timber characterized by its deep reddish-brown color and dark veining. Being a relatively hard wood, it’s both heavy and durable, making it a popular choice for prayer rosaries and healing bracelets. Genuine African Rosewood has a strong, slightly sweet smell said to relieve nervous tension and migraines. The warm hues of dark rosewood beads work particularly well with brass and copper beads from Ghana.

Kenya Palm Wood Beads

As the name might suggest, Kenya Palm Wood looks markedly similar to the wood of the coconut palm – a light base flecked with darker stripes of color. Kenya Palm Wood Beads are typically darker than most other types of palm wood; the darker hue being more akin to mahogany. Traditionally these beads are often strung with raw Tagua nuts, which are now a common substitute to animal ivory among many tribes.

Olive Wood Beads

With their beautiful dark rings and fine grain, Olive Wood Beads are the perfect focal bead for bohemian jewelry projects. These exquisite wooden beads – which look a little like walnuts – hail from the holy town of Bethlehem, where artisans have been producing them for centuries for Christian rosaries. Olive wood is a hardy, honey-blond wood with a fine grain and smooth finish, making the beads particularly ideal for necklaces and earrings. Olive wood beads are a beautiful accent to recycled glass beads in muted colors, such as sea green and pale blue.

I’m a huge fan of Batik Bone Beads from Ghana. With their two-tone coloration and beautiful hand-painted designs, they can really add to the authenticity of a tribally inspired necklace. Unfortunately, many people are put off using these beads in their jewelry creations owing to misconceptions about the kind of bone used, and how it is sourced. So, I thought I’d use this opportunity to dispel a few myths, and tell you a bit more about where they come from.

1. Bone Beads Are Made From Hunted Animals

Despite legislation prohibiting poaching in many parts of Africa, there are some areas where the illegal hunting of certain species is still a huge problem. However, illegal poaching is more prevalent in places like Kenya – not Ghana. The vast majority of the Krobo and Ashante populations in Ghana are animist in faith, therefore don’t believe in the hunting of animals for personal gain.

2. Animals Are Purposely Killed to Make Bone Beads

As mentioned above, both the Krobo and Ashante tribes are animist in faith, and many also believe that their ancestors are present in all living things. For this reason, they don’t kill animals for sport or pleasure. The cattle bone used to make Bone Beads is sourced from cows and buffalo once they are deceased, so no animals suffer at any stage.

3. Bone Beads Are Made From Man-Made Substitutes

The international bead market is saturated with imitations and replicas from China and India, however, these countries are significantly more advanced (compared to Africa) in terms of the technology needed to produce synthetic beads from plastic, acrylic and porcelain. To this end, when you buy Batik Bone Beads from a genuine African source, you can pretty much guarantee you’re getting the real deal!