Materials and Manufacturing Process
The manufacturing process takes place in the comfort of the artisan's home or small shop. No factories or assembly lines are involved in the creation of these pieces of jewelry which can be seen in the quality and durability of our products. Depending on the model (design and size), arduous and meticulous work that can range from hours to days to weeks is put into these accessories. The skill is innate in them. Women learn the process of manufacturing these accessories starting at a young age. Today even men in the family of the different ethnic groups make the accessories.
All accessories are unique and exclusively handmade using synthetic, Czech (glass) beads (also called “mullo”/chaquira”, "Cristal", "Mostacilla" in Spanish), seeds ("entse", "cumbia" and "carikri", "nupi", "San Pedro"), hemp and nylon threads and in some cases even feathers. These materials can be used separately or as a combination of two or more.
Necklaces are perhaps one of the oldest accessories in the history of humanity, although they have been considered objects exclusively for female use, in ancient times men also wore them to represent their culture. The necklaces that stretch over your chest area (also called “huallcas” in Spanish) are multicolored and are based in the rainbow colors. None of the colors are repeated because it all depends on the crafter’s imagination. Generally, necklaces made out of natural seeds captivate foreigners, while synthetic beads (“mullos”) are appreciated by Ecuadorians.