In northern Mozambique, rural artisans salvage scraps of mpingo wood and convert them into lustrous black wood beads. Mpingo is the wood of choice for the world's finest woodwind instruments, and it turns and carves beautifully. Small creations like beads utilize bits of wood left over from re-sawing or that artisans find washed up in riverbeds.

Available in two lengths with either 13 or 17 beads, these long necklaces can be worn hanging long and low, or looped once or twice as the situation demands. The lovely Minati, a key player in the advancement of Mozambique's handicraft sector, modeled the longest necklace during Leslie's design trip in February 2009.