Betel Nut, Pearl + Blue Lace Agate Hoopies

 
18k gold filled huggie hoops with betel nut, medium baroque pearl, and blue lace agate.
 
Betel nut is the seed of the fruit of the areca palm. Betel nut is an important commodity in many social customs, religious practices and cultural rituals in the Asia-Pacific. The seed is separated from the outer layer of the fruit and may be used fresh, dried, boiled, baked, roasted or cured.
 
The is commonly used as a stimulant & known as Asia’s oldest addiction. Arcea nut is wrapped in betel leaves and coated in slaked lime before being chewed as a mild stimulant similar to caffeine and tobacco.
 
In Tagalog, betel nut-chewing is colloquially known as buyo, bunga, hitso, or nga nga (“to chew”). In Ilocano, it is known as bua, maman or mama.
Many parts of it are used by various artisans and can be used in crafting boxes, jewelry & other wares
 
Pearls are the only gems born from a living creature in by way of a conscious, self nurturing process. They are representative of powerful feminine energy and the ability to create a new life within it.  The south sea pearl is the national gem of the Philippines and a sacred symbol. The Pearl of Lao Tzu (1934), The Palawan Princess (2009), and The Pearl of Puerto Princesa (2016) are three of the world’s largest natural pearls all discovered in the Philippines. With its home in the sea and even freshwater,  pearls can have great purpose in moon rituals and energy channeling and symbolize our own inner wisdom.