Designing jewelry for men is a challenging endeavor. The reason is because men do not buy or wear much jewelry. They look attractive in jewelry so we suspect it’s a cultural phenomenon, and we want to change that. Below is an elegant ebony and coral bead necklace . Each ebony bead has a face cut on both sides in a Tiki motif, so if they turn you still see a face. The red coral beads are plain round beads, and the clasp is the same Tiki in 18 karat yellow gold with coral lips. We love detail and that is what makes our pieces stand out.

We really like the German made Nittel System. It is a versatile clasp that makes it easy to interchange necklaces and clasps to fit your mood and style. You become a designer in your own right by how you arrange your clasps and beads.

The gold clasp, which is heavier than the ebony wood, tends to roll to the front of the necklace which is a plus because the clasp is interesting and beautiful. We have also experimented cutting the Tiki face in Turquoise as you can see below.

Even though machine cut, each bead has to be monitored to avoid breaking cutters or damaging material.

This video is choppy but it shows how machining requires it’s own set of skills. The tool path is critical to avoid destroying the material you are cutting and damaging the expensive cutting equipment. We need to envision the pathway the tool will travel across the material to make sure it’s not heading for a crash, much like staying on the right side of the road to avoid an accident when driving a car.

Santa Barbara men and those men who are visiting in their relaxed, casual wear look great in jewelry. Just like for all of us, self-adornment makes a statement that says ”I like who I am and I like how I feel”.