Ivory Spike Dangle Earrings with Brass Caps

• Hand-carved bone shaft
• Forged brass cap
• Pencil-point silhouette
• Matte handmade finish
• Lightweight ear hook

Each spike is shaped and sanded by hand, so the taper, grain and brass cap vary slightly from pair to pair.

The pencil-point spike is a long-standing form in East African bone carving, where straight-grained material is shaped into clean, tapered lines rather than curved or rounded ones. Cutting a spike this slim and even by hand takes a practiced eye — the carver sands down from a thicker blank while keeping the point centered and symmetrical.

Pairing pale bone with a brass cap and fitting is common in Kenyan metal and bone work, where brass is valued for its warmth and workability. The cap does double duty: it finishes the raw edge of the bone cleanly and gives the carver a second material to work in contrast, so the piece reads as a considered pairing rather than a single material dressed up.

The result is a spare, architectural shape rather than a decorative one — the kind of graphic line that comes from carving toward a form, not adding embellishment to it.

• Technique: Kenyan bone-carving and brass-working

Wipe the bone gently with a soft dry cloth and keep the brass dry to help preserve its warm patina.