Hura crepitans, known in english as sandbox tree or possumwood, is known in Venezuela as Javillo or Cachito (little horn). It is a thorny big tree that grows in the river banks of our towns. Ironically, after many years without contemplating such an impressive tree, I have noticed that they are spread all over Caracas.
They grow dangerously tall among buildings and electric wires, their untamable roots breaking through sidewalks and pavement.
Here you can see some of the trees along Baralt Avenue.
One day, I heard a bunch of parrots making a fuss on top of one of the trees and ran into one of the fruits. They are shaped like tangerines and contained the "shells" that protect the seeds.
When dry, these shells split and each side constitute the raw material for a beautiful handcraft.
I did not know if the green capsule I had found could be used for the handcraft I had in mind. Luckily, it dried perfectly.
And here I had, the little "horns" that we used to craft when we were little, turning them into shiny pendants.
I did not have any wood-carving tools, so I had to improvise with a small kitchen knife. The great thing about this handcraft is that it only requires sandpaper and some varnish.
This is how they look after sanding
And this is how they look with some varnish. They can be worked some more. Some people even fry them in vegetable oil and they will turn pitch black.
I added a little "stone" and it is almost done. I still have to find a way to drill a hole and add a cord or some kind of chain.
I can't express how exciting it was for me to work on this after so many years. Childhoos memories came back to me and I could not resist sharing this with some chidlghood friends who were as surprised as I was to see these pretty jewel hidden in the cement jungle of Caracas.
Wow. We are guessing this is similar to those pendants we see on people's necks on screen.
A typical movie where a hero is being trained in a local place and he has a pendant of this nature around his neck.
Sometimes meant for protection, other times to keep a loved one close to their hearts.
It is really nice to know where such pendants came from if it is the same one.
We are moved to think it's similar since you mentioned that most people often fry them in vegetable oils and turn them pitch black.
If it's not the same, we stand to be corrected.
However, this was a lovely pendant.
We are glad to know you were able to relive your childhood memories when you indulged in this craft.
It's a beautiful pendant. Well done.
It sure is. I have one of my daughters a couple of pieces for her to work on them and she is delighted. She found the experience "relaxing and therapeutic". I could not agree more. Working something pretty out of a seemingly useless part of a plant is quite an experience.
Thanks for your support.
Preciosa transformación. Bendiciones 😘..
Gracias!
Qué hermosa transformación, no conocía como se ve en la naturaleza. Los colores son realmente hermosos, con tantas posibilidades para utilizar. Excelente idea, proceso y el producto final @hlezama
Muchas gracias. Ciertamente estos "cachitos" tiene muchas posibilidades para manualidades y accesorios.
You dont need special tools, because nature already give you perfect shape! I never found that fruits. Such a unique fruit.
You are right about that. It never ceases to amaze me.
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So creative. Making wonders from natural fruit. Nice one.
Thanks for stopping by
That is soooooo cool, making them into something that can be useful is just amazing. Also love the result.
Thanks. I'll post an update when some more are ready to be worn. 😁
It looks very nice.😀
This is interesting. How come, the finished work looks like margin if they told me what the use for the production of this I would not believe. Weldone
Thanks. It is certainly an amazing transformación and so easy to achieve.
What a fun craft! Of course, I have never seen those trees or their fruits, so it's especially interesting to see your photos.
Thanks. Even people who has always had these trees around ignore this can be done with the capsule. When i was picking it up and examining it to make sure it was usable, people passed by and looked at me as if I was picking up poop to eat or something 🤭
Hola amigo, te diré algo! me hiciste recordar mi niñez, y eso fué hace mucho jajajaja...
Cuando íbamos al colegio, siempre recogíamos cachitos y hembras y varones competiamos a ver cual quedaba más bonito y escogíamos de diferentes tamaños.
Lo lijabamos y pulíamos que parecían barnizados, es más te diré que con un fósforo lo pasabamos en partes y quemábamos un poco, después lijabamos y pulíamos tanto con un pañito de algodón que parecían de carey y le hacíamos el orificio y le poníamos un cordón o cadenita y también usamos como llaveros.
Bueno y de verdad agradecida por traer buenos y bellos recuerdos a mi mente.
Saludos.
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