New designs from artisan Patu

With our recent trip to Tahiti, we hooked up with several premier artisans. Patu, an accomplished Marquesan style tattooist and carver, loves to create new designs, he's more than willing. He already is in great demand and creates our popular carved Tahitian black pearls for us already. After showing us his most recent work, we knew we were going to add more of his work to our offerings.

We're introducing three new pieces that Patu created. The Tuianu necklace, Menemene necklace, and the 'Oeha necklace. All three feature intricate carvings balanced out with the ever present Tahitian black pearl.

The Tuianu necklace, a favorite style in Tahiti creates interest not only from the tattoo carvings but also the classic shape and criss-cross weaving of black satin rope tying a pair of hanging black pearls. Each piece, of course, is unique, not only because of the carvings and black pearls, but also because of the varying hues of the shell itself. If you want to make a fashion statement with an accessory, this is a great way to do so.

Patu pays special attention to the designs he carves on the Menemene necklace. Using what he has learned from growing up surrounded by carvers and artisan, he combines both new and old styles. The classic shaped round shell is definitely a focal point, but don't forget the black pearl.

'Oeha simply means rectangle. But the carvings and design of this necklace is anything but simple. Traditional Marquesan carvings are hand carved into the mother of pearl shell. A separate shell piece is attached below and a black pearl follows. The vertical look is stylish and slimming.

As our budget for artisans gets larger, look for more great and creative works on our website - Black Pearl Designs.

Carved Tahitian Black Pearls

Many Tahitian black pearls have unique attributes that carvers have found to be perfect for their art. Many have imperfections and "personality" that make their individuality shine. Tahitian carver, Patu has created these works of art especially for us here at Black Pearl Designs. The baroque pearls come in a variety of merging colors making for a certain uniqueness of each carved pearl. Patu assesses each black pearl individually and creates his designs to fit the personality of the pearl.

The designs vary from traditional Tahitian and Marquesan motifs to modern interpretations of Tahitian tiares, tikis and honu. We offer the pearls as individual pieces of artwork. For those wanting to mount individually to their tastes, this is the perfect solution. All you have to do is take it to your favorite jeweler to be set just the way you want. We encourage creativity.

Last year we saw some unique designs (I wish we had a camera when we found them). There was a drop design with 2 carved pearls strung together one above the other and the third being an uncarved traditional black pearl. The design drew your attention to the perfect smooth pearl but immediately brought attention to the unique carvings in the pearls above it. It was finished off with an intricate coconut sennit woven necklace.

Another design showcased a simple yet interesting asymmetrical balance. It was an open necklace design where it did not have a traditional clasp. Rather it had one part of the design on either end and placing those ends together around the neck and placing together to complete the focus of the design in the traditional front. It followed the current trend of placing an iconic round shaped polished mother of pearl shell piece with the center cut out. This open area allowed for the other end to slip through the middle hole with 2 individually mounted pearls that hung on 2 different lengths. This trend is illustrated by renowned Tahitian jewelry designer Anne Laure (see photo).

We're excited to offer these carved Tahitian black pearls and are working to develop more options and designs. Watch as we expand this unique and artistic line of jewelry.

Exclusive Offer for Black Pearl Designs readers and subscribers

When is reading a reward? Well, most times it is. After all, knowledge is power. And here's a new reward for keeping in touch with us here at Black Pearl Designs. For a limited time, get 5% off your next purchase of $50 or more at our online store. Just shop around at our various unique sections. Sections that include hard-to-find coconut woven jewelry featuring Tahitian black pearls and exclusive pareos like our 100% cotton Mahana Pareo, are just a couple examples of cultural finds that you'll rarely see outside of Tahiti.

This is an exciting feature for us to offer coupons. Until recently it wasn't an option, but Yahoo! (our online store back office support) finally made it available as part of our expanding operations. Yahoo! Small Business has enabled our secure checkout system and security of our customers' information since the beginning. It's been a great and strong partnership.

So, take advantage of this exclusive offer just for our readers. Enter the coupon code: TEHANI2050 when you checkout and you'll receive 5% off your order of $50 or more. It's that easy. But don't wait. The offer expires Sept. 30, 2007.

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