The material used for the products on this site are mainly made by an evergreen called golden grass, cattle’s horn, seeds, stones, bone, wood and shells. The manufacturers are small communities of families who harvest, dry and treat the raw materials in order to preserve its quality and then hand craft each product individually.
Golden Grass is a typical product of the region known as Jalapao in the north of Brazil. Being a native plant of the paths, a typical plant that grows between the months of April and June, it can only be harvested from September to November, following the rigorous standards and laws of the state of Tocantins. It should be carefully cut to leave behind the seeds located on the top of the flower in order to let it regrow.
It was in a place called Mumbuca that the practice of golden grass started. First, influenced by the indians and then the first black in the region. Mumbuca is a community of former slaves, the remaining quilombos, and they embodied the tradition of handcrafted products with Golden Grass.
Golden Grass is a source of income for many families of artisans scattered throughout the region of Jalapao. They sew the grass into unique crafts with the help of another plant called the Buriti, which provides the silk thread used in sewing the product. The silk removed from the Buriti tree is taken from the top of its leaves and then it is shredded and treated to be used as a thread. The removal of the youngest leaves of the plant, known as “the eye of the buiriti”, is done in a well-organized management program that allows the craftsmen do their work without compromising the environment.
The preservation of this natural resource is extremely important because that's where the golden grass artisans get their raw materials and consequently their livelihood. But the greatest challenge for the artisans is to extract the plant in a controlled and sustainable way to avoid risking the disappearance of the plant from the region of the Jalapao. To help them, many organizations (public and private) are investing in technology and science in order to preserve the eco system at the same time it provides an income to these families.
Many of the Eco friendly jewelry here presented are made by combining Golden Grass with other materials like golden thread, ornamental stones, natural seeds and other organic materials. You will be able to see them in different products like necklaces, rings, bracelets, bags, hatas and household items.
The Eco friendly jewelry made with cattle’s horn is from the Pantanal region in Brazil. The Pantanal wetland has a beautiful variety of fauna and flora and the region is characterized by the presence of huge cattle ranches. In this universe, it is the Pantaneiro (who handles the cattle) that helps building the Pantanal culture by using the diverse rural crafts in his work and this craft is beautifully explored in the handmade jewelry using materials like the cattle’s horn, leather and cotton thread.
The Eco friendly jewelry produced in the Pantanal, brings fashion to the exuberance of its material: the cattle’s horn. By creating their own design and incorporating the Pantanal culture, the artisans produce unique pieces, as unique as the Pantanal’s nature.
The cattle’s horn can have different shades. It can vary from black to earthy tones, from beige to white. The molding process is handmade and does not use any chemicals. It is cut and through heat is turned into a flat plate. After that, the mold with the desired horn part is cut, sanded and polished to be worked into different design pieces. Other materials used in the assembly of the Eco Jewelry is cotton yarn, leather, satin ribbons, chains and accessories in stainless steel, clad in gold and silver, gravel and polished stones, pearls and silver.
Some of the bracelets may be irregular and contain small natural cracks because they are cut at the base of the horn (natural form). The same may happen with the rings, because they are cut from the tip of the horn (which is massive), it can contain natural fissures. It all adds to the uniqueness of the Eco Friendly jewelry. They look alike, but they are not the same, they will all have some unique aspects of the material being used.
Seeds And Stones
The Eco friendly jewelry is made by using natural resources gathered through selective collection made by communities of the Amazon and other parts of Brazil.
The basic raw material used in the products are seeds left on the ground, natural fibers and scraps of wood, bone, horn and shells. The materials are drawn from nature by respecting a sustainable harvesting, therefore not causing any environmental destruction. Other materials used are coconut shells, bones, horns and the trunk of peach palm. The shells are provided by colonies of fishermen.
Most materials go through a process of dehumidification and sanding, requiring, in some cases to be shaped and cut. Seeds need immunization to prevent the reproduction of parasites before the process of drilling and polishing. Treatment is done manually, and in the selection, all defective material is eliminated.
The philosophy behind an Eco friendly jewelry is that everything has a value, everything can be transformed into unique and sophisticated Eco Jewelry and nothing goes to waste. By polishing the rough material and combining textures and colors into distinctive pieces, the craftsman and women create a style that reflects their own feeling.