Space Gypsies and the Bead Markets of Earth

As I mentioned earlier, when Space Gypsies visit the Bead Markets of Earth, they park their caravans on the dark side of the moon, where it's hard to get a fix on their exact location.  They are a hardy race, but the depredations of the wars have left them wary. You can count on them to visit Earth regularly for the best beads in the known Universe. They are especially fond of Africa and Central Asia, where ancient beads seem simply to spring from the soil. The other thing about the SGs is that they are oblivious to commercial branding or inherent "value," so they pick what they like, and combine colors freely, since they don't believe that colors can clash. These elusive folk have a way of thinking for themselves and following their own roads. Unpredictability is a good thing.

Here's a 44-inch-long lariat fastened with a curious gray mother of pearl button, long enough to serve the owner in many ways, as a bracelet wrap, a long necklace, a hip wrap for firelight dancing, or even wrapped about a turban. You can see it's quite the magpie's hoard of many beads:  painted Indonesian pottery, hand made rose petal and lavender beads, Masai pink Cheyenne trade beads, glimmers of fresh water pearl, natural seeds, labradorite, garnet, tiny faceted oxblood seed beads, and others. It's a fascinating treasure to entertain the eye.

 
And of course what SG is without a goodly selection of very long beaded earrings?  There are never too many, even if they do crowd one's helmet during extra vehicular activities.

I was able to pin one of them down long enough to obtain these lovelies, soon to be available in my Etsy store.  The first selection is a fine example of the SG penchant for combining salvage with antiquities; you may recognize some of the previously purposed metal, perhaps not.  The second selection displays antique mercury glass bugle beads and rare Japanese lacquer beads on steel, suspending mourning jet glass half moons.  Both evoke unknown planets and remote orbits, but the SGs will never reveal where they have been or where they are going.  However, if you want to meet one of these interstellar travelers, I suggest parking yourself in a suq near a bead merchant and keeping a sharp eye out for shoppers who look unaccustomed to gravity.  There's a certain sway in the walk.