My Tribal Obsession
It all started with Navajo silver jewelry. On one of my tag along trips with my "traveling for work" ex to Arizona, I fell in love. No, not with the handsome guy hanging around the hotel pool. Beautiful native made silver jewelry was everywhere, of course, and my obsession was born. The first pieces I found were a cuff bracelet and coordinating earrings in a mountain and mesa design that I still adore for its boldness and simplicity. Every subsequent trip to the southwest or to Mexico was sure to include another addition to my collection of silver jewelry pieces.
Turquoise and Venetian Beaded Bracelet
From native American southwest tribal, my interests expanded to include Tibetan and most of all African beaded jewelry. The brilliant colors, the primitive imperfect qualities of the handmade beads. For example, the Krobo beads from Ghana that are made from recycled glass and then hand painted in patterns. Also, a wide selection of African metal beads from Ghana or Ethiopia, some of which are cast but most are not and have a wide tolerance of shape and size within a strand. And like the native Americans, the African use of European made seed beads is equally fascinating.
The Tibetan beads lend a totally different, but still tribal vibe as you can see in the earrings pictured above. As different as they are, they can still be easily blended with other styles of tribal beads. Each style has its own appeal, and used with one another they become even more spectacular! Take a look in my webstore here on Indiemade, or in my Etsy shop ChrysalisToo.
Gloria Ewing
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