Kemp Aaram in Leather

The festive season is midway through in India. Though Navaratri, the festival of 9 nights is over, Diwali, Karthigai and ofcourse Christmas is yet to come. Festival season calls for festive dressing. That means clothes in vibrant colours with matching jewellery that comprises of stones set in metal. However, not everyone wants to wear expensive fine jewellery or even their look alike jewellery with glass or rhinestones set in base metal. To those who want to experiment, I present jewellery made of an alternative material but in traditional style. I present a Kemp Aaram in Leather.

Haar/Haaram/Aaram

A haar (Hindi), haaram or aaram (Tamil) is a generic name of any long traditional Indian necklace. It could be multiple strands of seed beads looped together with a pendant or a stiff necklace adorned with beads, gemstones, and intricate patterns. It is worn on special occasions, such as weddings and festivals. Different regions in India have their own distinct styles of haars. Various forms of haar have been worn in India since the ancient times such as the Palakhara and Raanihaar.

For example, in Western and North India, you may find the Polki or Kundan haars (in gold) set with uncut gemstones or their synthesised counterparts. In hill regions, you will find silver haars. In South India, you may find one in temple jewellery style or an aaram set with faceted gemstones. However, increasingly uncut gemstones in kundan setting are increasingly used to make aarams for the South Indian market. Learn more about types of traditional Indian jewellery here. There are also other modern interpretations of the haar that cater to contemporary fashion trends such as this Kemp Aaram in Leather.

Kemp stones

Kemp stone or Kempu is a type of synthetic or imitation gemstone in red colour. It is commonly used in traditional South Indian jewellery, as an affordable alternative to rubies. The pinkish red of kemp is believed to bring good luck and protection to the wearer. However, at times, the word kemp is only used to denote the colour of the gemstone and not its material. Read more about kemp here.

Kemp Aaram in Leather

In 2021, I worked on the Jewelry in Narratives project. I used parchment leather to create narrative necklaces using the techniques of Tholu Bommalata (leather puppetry) in that project. Therefore, when I was looking to create a alternative necklace inspired by the rich gemstone studded aarams, I used parchment leather as my base. My reference for my Kemp Aaram in Leather is this kemp necklace that was sold by Sthree Creatives.

While Tholu bommalata art does not use shading, I used colour shading to stimulate the look of gemstones. Finally, I strung the painted component using cotton cord and dokra beads.

While I understand that a leather necklace and a kemp necklace are different as chalk and cheese, I think that there is a world where they can both meet. I hope you like my interpretation and I look forward to creating more such variations.

I hope you found it interesting
Cheers