We’re  baa-ack! How we love traveling, and how we love coming home to our friends, our cozy house, and our beautiful store – to say nothing of fabulous Spring in Northern California! Thanks to the crew for keeping the lights on and the gallery happening while we were out adventuring.

We began with eight weeks in Bali, visiting our favorite suppliers as well as finding some great new ones. We went to the island of Sumba and caught the Pasola festival, where they ride madly around a big field bareback on these great little horses, throwing sharp wooden spears at each other. That’s how they make blood sacrifice for the sake of the harvest!Chance got some great pictures you can see in the store.

Then we spent two weeks in Thailand making some new connections with jewelers, as well as meeting up with our usual suppliers.

Now we’re home and here comes the other great part: unpacking the crates and boxes we shipped to Nomad’s World. Each one reminds us of where we were, with whom, the weather, the food, when we bought these wonderful things. Smiles all around as we dust them off and find the perfect spot in the Gallery for each item to await the perfect person to take it home, or give it to someone they love.

This time we have a really nice selection of carved furniture made in Bali from recycled teak: chairs, tables, benches, and beautiful Moroccan style lamps and teak and stone statues to go with them. For the patio, check out these amazing teak root benches, in wonderful, sensuous shapes. We also brought home some really unique planters and sculptures made from stacked river pebbles and slate. You have to see them to believe them!

For the table we’ve selected a new array of hand-blown glassware and wooden bowls and platters made from sustainably grown tropical hardwoods. There are also some very cool stacked glass lamps and sculptures, as well as new sets of flatware from Thailand.

Just for fun, we had our people make some board games in lovely hardwoods and bought a bunch of musical instruments in Bali: shakers, rattles, whistles, flutes and drums in all sizes.

Chance is hanging a whole new show of his recent photographs taken in California, Bali and Saudi Arabia. He’s got a new faux mat process and the photos are laminated with UV resistant, low glare material, and then framed.  Exciting pictures of people doing out there things, macros of flowers, seascapes – see them on the walls at Nomad’s World – take them home!

And our silversmiths in Bali and Thailand have outdone themselves with a glittering array of silver and South Pacific abalone earrings, bracelets, rings and necklaces. The Thai craftspeople have new techniques of “wrinkled” and sand-blasted silver that gives stunning dimension to their very creative designs. From Bali we brought pretty and whimsical brass jewelry and other pieces made with  always-lovely shells.

We even stretched our budget to bring home some great stuff that will help you stretch your budget, too. Come check out our selection of $8 items (buy three, get one free!) like recycled glass bracelets, shell bracelets and necklaces, wooden and resin bracelets, other whimsical jewelry, headbands, bangles – just lots of great, colorful things for giving and having.

So, see you in Nomad’s World real soon!

Modified: May 6, 2010 at 4:46 pm

Rita and Chance are off to Asia to adventure again! They’ll be lazing on silvery beaches, of course, but also shopping like mad to bring new things to Nomad’s World and ultimately to you.

In Bali they’ll visit their artisan friends and families and sending home new silver jewelry from Koman, bone carvings from Surya, and wonderful pillows from Ibu Jero and her village workers.

Then to Thailand, to engage in some world class shopping at the famed Chiang Mai markets. There, artisans from all over southeast Asia offer their handiwork to an international mob of happy shoppers.

They’ll be back in April, to enjoy the beautiful Northern California spring and also to pry open all the shipping crates that have arrived in their absence – and bring a new flock of beautiful, useful, exotic things to Nomad’s World.

Back home, Jessica, Colleen and DeAnn will be taking care of Nomad’s World Gallery – drop by anytme!

A safe and memorable journey to Chance and Rita! Rita has hinted that perhaps we will learn of their adventures as they travel…watch this space!

Modified: January 21, 2010 at 10:15 am

Hi friends of Nomad’s World! As we travel to Southeast Asia to learn about and acquire new and interesting unique, hand-crafted wares from local artists we’ll be updating our progress, musing on our travels and sharing stories from the cultures in which we will be immersed. This blog spot will be our outlet-in-travel. Check back often!

– Rita and Chance

Modified: January 21, 2010 at 10:13 am