Keeping It Real is Hotter Than Ever in Jewelry

Many of our jewelry styles are made of simple, natural materials.

Natural Appeal

Basic materials are the attraction in simple jewelry

Since the days when man first started wearing bling, naturally occurring materials of various values have been used in jewelry making. Today, precious stones and fine metals are certainly prized components of quality jewelry, but recent trends in fashion suggest an increasing fascination with more basic elements used in jewelry designs like leather, wood, inexpensive natural stones, bone, shells, seeds and string.

There are many reasons for the drawing power of these materials, but since they are what we use to make our products, we like to think the allure is similar to the cultural appeal of a tropical island. Jewelry constructed with natural materials like leather, cotton, hemp, seeds, barks and common metals make them unique, exotic and very attractive.

Just as enticing as a warm tropic destination, jewelry of basic natural materials go with everything in current style. It can be anything you want it to be and appropriate for who you are, no matter the occasion. There really are no rules with natural, simple material jewelry, but there are numerous benefits, not the least of which can be a reminder or personal symbol of respect and connection to the kingdom of nature.

The current popularity of jewelry from basic and natural materials goes way beyond trend, just as anyone who wears it will tell you. For many, a heightened visual appeal comes from the natural quality, pleasing colors and textures, expected endurance and uncomplicated designs that are characteristic of our top-selling styles. For others, it is the earthy look and feeling that is ideal for the urban jungles or stomping grounds of our life.

Just as a single palm tree standing alone can be stunning, a group of palms growing together on an oasis can be a handsome display of nature’s wonder and compatibility. So in a visual parallel, it is understandable why mixing more than one piece of natural material jewelry, even if the pieces are hot when worn individually, is an awesome look that is uniquely the wearer’s design. 

Wearing several pieces of natural, simple material jewelry at the same time is an effective way to customize the assembly for your individual style.  Keep in mind that not all natural materials look good together and the distraction of a single piece can ruin the whole look. So while a leather bracelet might not look too great when worn with a chain encrusted with diamonds, bracelets made of wooden beads, shells, seeds, hemp, and cotton are perfect partners with leather. The more basic the materials, the more likely they are to look good and make you feel good wearing the appealing combinations you create.

Visit palmleather.com to see our latest natural material jewelry designs.

The Allure of Black

Black as a leading fashion color has come and gone like many trends but in recent times, black is as strong a color statement in menswear as ever. So what is it about black that makes it first choice for many apparel items? No doubt that it is a pure and sexy color, especially when worn as part of an all black look or to accentuate another hot color. It is also a color that in most cases, is very flattering regardless of hair or eye color. It has a way of making most guys look better, even more fit. Yet with all the good things that black has to offer, there is more to the domination of black in mens clothes and accessories than sex appeal and self flattery.

Black is a powerful color because it is hue-less. It does not emit or reflect light and is labeled achromatic. Perhaps that is why it is a color associated with power and sophistication in western culture, especially in fashion where it seems anything black is considered a wardrobe basic.

Like the dark of night, black has a certain mystique to it; even a kind of “bad boy” image for those who wear it. When all white can be inappropriate at times (like at night), as a go with everything color, black never fails, even when worn alone. It is the top selling color in boots, shoes and belts for men because of its dressy uniformity and versatility. In mens leather jewelry like necklaces, bracelets and earrings, black is consistently the top selling color at Palm Leather.

A big part of our design philosophy is to create products that make our customers look and feel good. We want every purchase to reward with quality and style so we stay on top of trends that will serve our customers. While fashion changes constantly, we strive for timeless designs that offer both style and value. In that mix, we include an expanding line of hot accessories that are solid black; swag this not likely to go out of your personal favor for some time to come.

For some guys who are not convinced that black is a staple color, do yourself a favor and start noticing what people are wearing in clothes and jewelry to school, to the clubs or even to formal affairs. For the most part, black dominates in apparel and gear. Keep that in mind next time you are shopping for yourself or for a gift; black is an excellent color choice that you won’t regret and one that will make you look and feel great.

Related Merchandise:

Black Leather Band Bracelet

Black Leather Wrap Bracelet

Black Leather Necklace

Men's Necklaces: Why Length Matters

27" Leather and Pendant Necklace

When shopping for a mens necklace online or for a gift, the length is an important consideration. Just as important as the design and materials, the style of a mens necklace and how it will be worn factor into the selection of a good length based on where it will drape on your chest. 

Necklace lengths that are right for an individual’s style are determined by how you will usually wear them. If you regularly wear your necklaces on a bare chest, over a T-shirt or tank top, even underneath a shirt, consider the best choice of necklace length for your personal look.

It is typical for length descriptions of mens necklaces to be approximate, since measurements can be rounded off. Some manufacturers measure the necklace without the closures, so consider that the lengths given may not be precise. How a necklace will drape has an affect on the overall appearance of a necklace when worn, but since material weights and pendant weights will influence each one differently, model depictions may also be inaccurate. To add to the confusion, shirt sizes are not a good way determine a good necklace length since a neck measurement is taken above where a necklace will lay. Body structure and muscle mass also effect how and where a necklace hangs on a chest.

One of the easiest ways to measure where a necklace might fall on your chest or what length you want to look for is to place a washer on a string and knot it where you want your necklaces to fall when it is around your neck. Take it off, cut the string in one location and measure the distance from one cut to the other. Do the reverse if you are considering a necklace and know the length measurement.

Length Comparison

To provide a general picture of length draping, the photograph from PalmLeather.com shows the most common lengths in the marketplace, when placed on a mens torso with a shirt size 'Medium' and a 15-151/2” neck size. The addition of weight such as from a pendant would likely cause each necklace to lower slightly in the center, but unless it is heavy, the droop is more of a "centering" on the chest. Additionally, the type of necklace material will influence the drape of a necklace. For example, a chain necklace will lay differently than a leather necklace. The photograph illustrates approximate necklace draping using rubber cording (buno); a popular necklace material.

Some necklaces are adjustable, providing some variance in length. This is especially true of cotton or leather designs that may offer extra length for wearing or removal with an adjustment option. Ball type chain necklaces are easily shortened to a desired length although most look better when worn at longer lengths.

For some guys who wear more than one necklace at a time, different lengths might not matter unless you want them all the same or for one to stand out from the rest. In any case, with the huge popularity of mens necklaces and a wide selection available, there is likely a length just right for every personal style.

Timeless Wine Gifts

Tasteful and Enduring

A bottle of wine is a wonderful gift for any occasion. Wine is popular, trendy and chic, not to mention very flavorful. A wine gift represents a personal selection for someone to commemorate an event. It could be an acknowledgement of your appreciation or to mark a celebration of accomplishment. A good bottle of wine might even be the perfect gift to warm-up to the in-laws. Whatever the importance, wine is an appropriate offering and a symbol of our cultural protocol.

If you have ever given wine as a gift, chances are you have met with what a challenge it can be to find an appropriate package for gifting wine. Decorated paper bags are the usual selection, but who wants to give an expensive bottle of wine in a paper bag (or worse; mylar).  So called “wine gift bags” made out of fabric are typically very basic in construction (i.e., boring) and often made with remnant materials. Color choices of these wine bags that are readily available in the marketplace can also be a frustration, not to mention the accompanying flimsy construction that does not present a bottle of wine very well.

Wine Valise Colors at Palm Leather

A practical solution is the Wine Valise offered by Palm Leather. Handcrafted from full grain cowhide in the USA, the valise is durable and attractive. Use it for wine gifting, wine transport or simply as a stand-alone piece of art on a wine bar. As a functional piece of art, the simple design won’t go out of style.

A moveable handle allows easy placement of a standard size wine bottle and provides an easy and dashing way to carry your favorite vintage to a restaurant for that special meal. The antiqued finishes in Black Oak and Vintage Tuscany compliment either a white or red wine and the tones are suited for the finest decor.

Rather than machine stitching often seen on flask-like wine cases, the Wine Valise offered by Palm Leather features hand-laced seams with real leather, giving it a sturdy, artisan type of look. The lacing at the bottom also serves to add stability to the handsome form with a material that won’t scratch furniture.

Customize The Gift

An easy way to make the gift even more personal is to wrap your bottle of wine in a piece of tissue paper that color-coordinates with a card, ribbon, bow or any other attachment to the valise, before placing it inside. If you are giving the valise as a gift without any wine, use the colored tissue paper as a void-fill and trim it with ribbon, string or raffia. For a certain Season, let your creativity run wild with various materials that will add your special touch at a particular holiday or time of year.

Wine Gifting Tips

• Don’t chill the wine before you give it. It presents itself more elegantly when at room temperature. If chilling is required, do it just before serving.
• Consider Dessert Wines. On the romantic side and always a welcome gift, even for those with huge wine collections. 
• Think wine pairing. If your wine gift will be opened “on arrival” try to pair your selection with the food that will also be served.

When you contemplate all that goes into a quality bottle of wine, you better understand why it is a significant and tasteful gift. Just as we appreciate why we give it, we can also be mindful of how we give it with the timeless wine valise from Palm Leather.

Men's Leather Bracelets

Palm Leather offers black leather bracelets for any look

Soft and Seductive

Fashion trends often change like the Trade Winds and staying on top of them can leave some guys years behind what is hot right now. Men’s bracelets are seen as the latest wave of accessories for the in-look and as times change, unlike other here today and gone tomorrow trends, they promise to be here for some time to come.

Guys are used to wrist fashion with watch styles and their materials constantly changing. The practical reason for watches that made them part of a standard wardrobe is slowly going away. Telling time, once a function of clocks on a wall and watches on a wrist has recently drifted to cell phones and other portable devices that provide reliability and accuracy.

So it should come as no surprise that as watches become less a part of everyday dressing, men are replacing their time pieces with bracelets; signature jewelry that makes a statement. Unlike the metal chain bracelets that came and went in the seventies, the best selling bracelets for men today are fashioned from leather.

Nothing says quality quite like leather. Leather is a great material for bracelets for the same reasons men select it for belts, wallets, jackets and footwear. It is durable, but unlike metal, it softens with age and without any negative distraction in appearance, worn leather is very attractive and desirable. 

When selecting a leather bracelet, an important consideration is color. Black is the top-selling color, partly because is the standard go with-everything choice. Brown is a very close second especially for bracelets that exhibit the natural shades of leather. For a personal choice, think about what you wear most; brown or black shoes. Although there are no rules when it comes to personal style, your look will be more handsome if you don’t mix leather colors at the same time. So while you may like brown and have much it, a brown bracelet looks best when worn with other shades of brown or tan leather. The same with black; wear it alone or mix it with other shades of black or gray leather.

Sizing is something else to consider. Many bracelets are designed to be adjustable so they will range in measurement from about 7 to 9 inches. Adjustable types allow you to set how close the band comes to your wrist and to allow removal of the bracelet. Stationary bracelets typically have a clasp mechanism to open and close the bracelet.

A large appeal of leather bracelets is the individuality of each piece, given the irregular nature of the material. Handcrafting also adds individuality to a leather bracelet, so even the same styles will vary slightly. To add to the personal accessory, in a sort of natural customization, the leather in a bracelet will change as it is worn, both in shape and in coloration. Finally, many styles of leather bracelets allow the addition of personal charms or pieces of jewelry art.

Care for leather bracelets is essentially the same as for any other leather apparel item. Use cleaning or conditioning products designed for leather and always avoid water, the enemy of leather. Like most jewelry, it is important to remove a leather bracelet before bathing or swimming and keep it away from prolonged moisture or wet conditions. If it does get wet, let it dry naturally with minimal handling so it does not change its shape.

Leather bracelets are a great way to strike a clean and current look for both casual and formal attire. As men’s leather bracelets gain in popularity, even the less fashion conscious are discovering the attraction. Besides looking good, they are sleek, soft and unlike their metal predecessors from decades ago, can be very seductive.


For more information about leather bracelets for men, visit PalmLeather.com
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Ivory That Grows In A Tree

An elephant enjoys the fiber from a palm frond

Ecological Fashion from Palm Ivory

From the palms of the jungles of South America, a marvelous alternative to cutting down rain forests also grows as replacement for elephant ivory. This ecological gem, known as vegetable ivory or palm ivory, is a classic symbol of working with the fruits of nature in harmony with the environment to save a threatened species, not even native to where the Palm Ivory grows.

The hard endosperm of the palm nuts from the Genus Phytelephas closely resemble elephant ivory. Shaped like an avocado or teardrop, nuts are typically 1” wide and 1.5” long. When dried in the sun for 4 to 6 months, the nut is sliced, dyed, drilled and polished by tumbling in water and jungle stones. The nut is carved for use in beads, buttons, figurines and jewelry.  With spectacular jewel-like qualities and from colors that are obtained when dyed, the Tagua or Corozo, as they are also known, are becoming popular for their beauty and as meaningful fashion items that make a statement about ecology.

Wax Palms tower over a Columbian Valley

The few species of the Palm Ivory in South America grow in their native countries of Ecuador, Columbia and Brazil. P. Macrocarpa is native to Brazil and the chief source of Palm Ivory for International markets. The kernels are harvested from the ground and prepared by removing the outer husk. The nut shrinks as it hardens to an ivory color and feel. Slicing, carving and water-tumbling are traditional methods used to prepare the natural product of exquisite and unique magnificence.

Palm Ivory Pendant

For more than 140 years, the Ivory Palm has been used as an Ivory substitute without much fanfare. In consideration of earth’s resources and the plight of elephants worldwide, the significance of the Palm Ivory is growing. As an eco-friendly product that renewable and sustainable, the nuts from one tree equal the Ivory from one elephant. Use of the Palm Ivory nut and education about it helps to protect the elephant and supports the employment of the many people of the rain forests.

Scientific records indicate that the indigenous people started giving the Palm Ivory nut to carry around their necks long ago, believing that the person who wore it was protected by the love of friends and family. If this belief is true, it is one more benefit from the wondrous Palm Ivory.

More Information

The International Elephant Foundation (IEF) supports conservation, education and research of the world’s elephants with a commitment to affect positive change through the facilitation of elephant conservation and sound scientific investigation resulting in the protection of elephants for future generations. For more information about how you can help in elephant conservation, please visit http://www.elephantconservation.org/

For examples of handcrafted jewelry from the Palm Ivory nut, visit palmleather.com