Kilauea-based Noble House Trading Co. deals in culture, in stone and in stories. Purveyors of hand-crafted goods from around the world, owners Dave Namesnik and his wife, Angel, seek out jade and bone jewelry — and just about anything else
Kilauea-based Noble House Trading Co. deals in culture, in stone and in stories.
Purveyors of hand-crafted goods from around the world, owners Dave Namesnik and his wife, Angel, seek out jade and bone jewelry — and just about anything else that tells a tale.
But the business’ bread and butter is in carvings and pendants.
Working primarily with a group of 30 to 35 mostly Maori artists from New Zealand, the Namesniks receive one-of-a-kind pieces from the other side of the world and sell them at festivals, exhibits and a few stores on-island.
A recent shipment of carved jade from New Zealand reveals the versatility of the stone and the skill of the craft. Ranging from translucent pale green to opaque, almost black hues, the far-away carvers bring form to raw stone.
Some pendants have varying textures, from matte to smooth, while others illustrate their maker’s mastery with cuts of hairline precision.
According to www.gemstone.org, jade comes in two varieties: nephrite and jadeite, which have a “discreet yet rather greasy luster.”
Jade is found in a range of shades, from white, gray, black, yellow, orange and violet tones.
Black jade, though, is not really black, Namesnik explained. If held to a bright enough light, shades and flecks of green betray the stone’s true color.
For thousands of years the gem has been valued for its purifying qualities and as a symbol of good luck. Many cultures have held jade in high regard, including the Chinese; ancient Egypt; the Mayas, Aztecs and Olmecs of Central America; as well as New Zealand’s Maoris, states the Web site.
While most of the items in the recent collection are jade pieces, the New Zealand artists also make jewelry from bone, Pacific pearl and red agate.
Namesnik said the symbols often reflected in the Maori carvings, such as hooks, are shared by ancient cultures tens of thousands of miles away, as well as closer to home throughout Polynesia.
For Angel Namesnik, the joy in the job is seeing the craftsmanship of the pieces.
“They really do amazing work,” she said of the artists.
Namesnik, however, is not shy to admit that he’s not an artist himself.
“I have zero talent (for carving), but I have really good taste,” he said.
The couple hope to travel to New Zealand at the end of the year. But in this digital age, meeting face-to-face has not been a necessity for trade.
“(The Internet) connects the world, it’s real-time and you get to travel without leaving the island,” Namesnik said of the business, which operates online as well.
The couple’s long-term goal is not only to take Noble House statewide but to unite the artisans themselves by forming a carvers guild called Pacific Ring of Fire. A gathering is in the works for next summer on O‘ahu.
Locally, Noble House, named after the book of the same name by James Clavell, provides jewelry for Havaiki Oceanic and Tribal Art in the Hanalei Center, Island Hemp & Cotton in Kapa‘a and Christian Rizzo Fine Art & Framing gallery in Po‘ipu.
This spring, the couple will have a booth at the Merrie Monarch hula festival on the Big Island. In addition, there are tentative plans to open a shop in Kapa‘a.
For more information, visit www.noblehousetradingcompany.com or call 294-2744.
