wooden signs

Hovering on whirring wings, a whimsical hummingbird seeks out the sweet nectar of flowers. Zeny and Reyna transform found pieces of copal wood into a delightful alebrije. These fanciful sculptures are a traditional folk art in Oaxaca, once based on twenty totems but today representing all kinds of animals. They take their name from a Calo gypsy word for "something difficult, tangled, confusing or fantastic."

Because each alebrije is individually created work of folk art, shapes will vary slightly. Small parts are separated for shipping to protect from breakage.

No matter what the song says, this lion cannot sleep until he gets a good home. He is an alebrije, an animal carving painted in bright colors and wild designs. The big jungle cat is created and signed by artists Gerardo and Teresa Ojeda of Oaxaca, Mexico. The tail detaches for safe shipping.

Mark time throughout the holiday season and beyond with this pretty perpetual calendar from Togog Suyasa. Carved by hand from albesia wood and topped with a smiling angel, the calendar features blocks with all of the months and numbers 0-9 so you can display the day's date. The angel wears a starry lilac gown and hair made from natural pandanus fiber.

This adorable key fob is hand crafted by Claudio Ojeda in Mexico. The panda alebrije is carved from copal wood and painted in black and white and myriad patterns and shapes in pink and purple. The wood figurine adorns a stainless steel key ring. The artisan signs his pieces with the initials "T.C.", which represent his initial "C" preceded by his mother Teresita's initial "T". Claudio learned the art of crafting alebrijes from his mother.

The folk art tradition of alebrijes dates back to the 1930's in Mexico City. A man named Pedro Linares was taken ill, and in his fevered dreams he saw a strange land populated with curious creatures--a donkey with wings, a rooster with bull's horns, and a lion with the head of a dog. The beasts all shouted "alebrije! alebrije!". Upon his recovery, Linares began recreating the fantastical creatures he had seen in his dream. The art form gained popularity, and alebrijes are now made of wood as well as papier mache.

The Akan civilization believed that each child came from God, and so each baby was born with a special blessing. This traditional belief initiated the Ghanaian day naming system, which gives a unique name to a child born on a particular day of the week, signaling their spiritual traits. Motivated by this custom, artist Emmanuel Atiemoh Yeboah puts his talent into practice and creates this cotton batik wall art, whose stars, moon details and traditional motifs in red, purple and black hues represent the souls born on Sunday, the day of those who connect with the universe.

The Akan civilization believed that each child came from God, and so each baby was born with a special blessing. This traditional belief initiated the Ghanaian day naming system, which gives a unique name to a child born on a particular day of the week, signaling their spiritual traits. Motivated by this custom, artist Emmanuel Atiemoh Yeboah puts his talent into practice and creates this cotton batik wall art, whose stars, moon details and traditional motifs in pink, purple and red hues represent the souls born on Saturday, the day of those with a special connection with the divine.