With Christmas three weeks away, perhaps it’s time to think about trimming the tree. Over the next few days I’ll share with you some of my in-store ornaments—new finds and old favorites.
Shown above, little angels carved of tagua nuts. Also called “vegetable ivory,” tagua nuts grow on a variety of palm tree found in Central and South America. The ornaments above come from a fair trade workshop in Ecuador. The material is remarkably like ivory—even aging (visually) the same way animal ivory does. Besides for Christmas ornaments, tagua nuts are collected, dried and carved into a range of decorative and useful objects: sculptures, knobs, buttons—even parts for Scottish bagpipes! They are a wonderful, sustainable commodity which has helped many Latin American villages to survive—without cutting-down their rain forests. They also provide an ethical alternative to elephant ivory.
The ornaments above are hand-turned and carved. Besides these angels ($35), I also have hummingbirds, owls and a gorilla. Please come into the shop to see them and the rest of our Holiday ornaments.
For the Holiday season, LEO Design is open daily from Noon ’til 10:00 pm.