Turquoise Multi-Strand Wood Bead Necklace

• Multi-strand layered design
• Small hand-strung wood beads
• Wood hook closure
• Lightweight despite the volume

Each bead is cut, sanded and dyed from natural wood by hand, so slight variations in color, grain and shape occur from piece to piece.

Multi-strand bead necklaces are a familiar Indian format for costume jewelry, where volume is built up from many small repeated units rather than one large piece. Wood suits this approach: light enough to wear in layers, easy to dye in saturated color, and inexpensive enough to justify the sheer count of beads.

Varying the strand lengths gives the piece its drape. The layers fall against each other instead of sitting flat, so the necklace moves with the body rather than reading as a stiff collar. The turquoise dye is a modern color choice on a traditional stringing base.

Each necklace starts as raw wood cut into small, uniform beads, sanded smooth, then dyed in batches. Once dry, the beads are hand-strung strand by strand onto multiple cords, gathered, knotted, and finished with a hand-fitted wood hook.

• Technique: Hand-strung wood beadwork

Wipe clean with a soft, dry cloth. Store flat away from moisture, heat and direct sunlight to protect the dyed finish.