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Tuesday, September 12, 2017

Jhumka

First of all I hope all of you who or whose family or friends have been caught in the cross hairs of either Hurricane Harvey or Hurricane Irma, please know you are in my thoughts. My heart goes out to you and I hope you are all safe.
And I am not sure this is the right place to say this but for all of us who are safe and haven’t been affected by these terrible disasters, I hope we can unite and give help or donate to one of the many charities. As well as for help to the many many displaced people across the World.

As some of you might know my husband and I were fortunate to be able to live in Nepal and India for almost 1 year (10 years ago). I love both countries: the people, the colours, the food, the culture, the nature and of course the jewellery. One day I hope to travel these countries again.

One of the wonderful earring styles I came across is Jhumka/Jhumki: earrings in a shape of a bell from which dangles drop. Every region has its own distinct design. Gold, silver, with or without enamel, with or without (semi) precious stones.

Credit
What I have been able to find on the Internet is that Jhumka started their journey as part of the southern Indian traditional temple jewellery – earrings made to adorn the deities in the temples.
They were originally made in pure gold and studded with rubies, diamonds and emeralds, their shapes mimicking the domes of the palaces and temples that hosted these deities.

I also found a similar style used during the Qajar dynasty (Persia) and I found pictures of similar style earrings in Yemen.

And apparently the word Jhumki exists in Arabic and means earring. 
 


This is my take on Jhumka earrings. I used filigree bead caps and made dangles with seed and Czech glass beads as well as Swarovsky crystal. I so enjoyed making these, so I couldn't stop and made four pairs. Next time I am going to paint the bead caps to mimic the enamel in some designs.

I hope you like these.










Thank you so much for visiting and I hope to see you again next month. As you know we at Earrings Everyday love to read your comments so please, don’t be shy and leave one. It doesn’t have to be in English :)

Thanks for looking!
 Janine
Esfera Jewelry

20 comments:

  1. Oh my these bring back memories. I'm South Asian so Jhumkas are all around me. You've done a beautiful job recreating them ❤️❤️❤️

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    1. Thank you Suhana. I love the jewellery found in India, Pakistan and Nepal. It too brings back happy memories of my time spend there. Hopefully one day I can travel these countries again.

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  2. Oh my, these are fantastic. Using the bead caps in this new way is so clever!

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  3. Ingenious Janine! Certainly going to have a go at these xx

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    1. Thank you Lindsay. They are great fun to make :)

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  4. So colorful and full of whimsy, luv these earrings.

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    1. Thank you Gloria. Your comment is very much appreciated.

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  5. Wow! Janine these are beautiful! Love the bell shape and the variety of colours and shapes in the design. Fabulous

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    1. Thank you Sue :) I love creating with those tiny beads.

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  6. Great interpretation of jhumkas with bead caps. Yes, I believe the jhumki (later known as Jimki in the south of India) could have been an Arabic word used by the Marakannars. The Original Indian name is Karnaphul (sanskrit) or Kaan phool (Hindi)literally meaning ear flower. It originally was in the shape of a downward facing lotus. The little dangles in the end could have been Persian/Yemeni additions to the form.

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    1. Thank you so much Divya! I have searched a lot on google but couldn't find more info. This is very interesting and now that I have this additional info I can research some more.

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  7. Hello Miss Janine! I love learning about history and other cultures. This is a great design and I like how you updated it and used the materials of today. I also love hearing about your travels since I don't have a passport of my own and can only live through your explorations! Enjoy the day! Erin

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    1. Thank you Miss Erin :) I am happy you like the updated design. And with the additional information from Divya I am going to explore this design a bit more.

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  8. Janine, thanks so much for the information about Jhumka earrings--I've always admired the style but never really knew much about that type of earring. I love what you've made! They're gorgeous! You could make earrings in an almost endless number of colors and sizes, really, depending on what type of beads and bead caps you use. Ingenious and very, very beautiful. Brava! xoxo

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    1. Thank you Meridy :) And I am happy Divya contributed more to the history in her comment. And you are so right, the possibilities are endless with this style.

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  9. How beautiful! I had never heard of these, and I'm very glad you wrote about this. Gorgeous idea and designs!

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