Balinese Bamboo Motif Sterling Silver Heart Charm Bracelet, "Bamboo Heart"

"I'm from a village in Klungkung, Bali, and when I was still a child, my life was extremely hard. There was no electricity, no gas, no water, and no television. We used firewood for cooking and for lighting we used traditional lamp in the night. Luckily we had the old radio to keep up with the news.

"My mother and my sisters walked about 3 kms to fetch a gallon of water while my father and I would go looking for firewood two times a week. Once, when he was at work, I made small wooden beads with a small knife that I brought and I strung them into a bracelet. My father was very proud when he saw my bracelet, it wasn't perfect but the jewelry idea was there.

"My parents changed my life by sending me to a high school even though they never received formal education pressed by harsh living conditions. I studied at a technical high school in Denpasar, 40 km from our home so, I walked around 6 kms everyday to the school.

"Unfortunately when I was 18, my Mom passed away.

"I got the school fee from my sister, auntie and sometimes from my father. I'd only eat rice with salt so the money they gave me was enough for me to live far from home. Despite all of this, I got the best rank in class and I got a scholarship from the government.

"Not long after I graduated from technical high school, I worked with a famous jewelry designer in Bali where I learned about gold and silver designs. I worked there for 21 years and handled quality, even did final inspections for China and Thailand.

"After a long time working there I wanted to explore my dream and talent, so I started creating jewelry on my own. Now I can give my son a motorcycle to get to school.

"It started when my neighbor asked me to make a ring with his local stone. I created a traditional design which I combined with western or modern methods. The result was very nice and he was very happy with it. And then I started to build a workshop.

"There are three people who help me, and I coordinate them based on their skills. We use pliers, burs, grinding diamond, grinding silicone, hanging dynamo, polishing machine, buffing wheels, etc. I use leather, wood, stainless steel sheet, semi precious stone and silver.

Some are easy to get, we purchase the material from the supplier. We also prepare our own, for example we have to cut stainless steel to make a spring. I make sure my products are special to my customers by focusing on the quality and unique design.

"I found about Novica from a friend and from internet also. By joining Novica I hope they can help me by promoting my products. Based on my own personal experience, I have a dream to help unfortunate people improve their lives by hiring disabled people to be craftspeople. But I cannot do it by I myself. I need your help to realize this dream."