Product Description

Hand woven handbag made from pandanus thurstoni. For centuries, pandanus has been growing in Fiji. The pandanus species have been used for various purposes ranging from baskets, bags, fans, mats to thatching of Fijian traditional shelters. Harvest Mature leaves are cut, spines removed, coiled inside out, then boiled; normally on a sunny day. The leaves are then spread out for drying for 2 days. Straightening Process After 2 days of drying, the leaves are now white. They are smoothed by gently scraping both sides using a fresh water shell (anondon cycneus). The leaves are then stripped to prepare for weaving. To dye leaves black, the white leaves are boiled with native plants, dried out, then stripped for weaving. The hand bag is displayed against a "kuta" mat. "Kuta" is a reed mat made from swamp grass that is pulled up, lengthened, then sundried.