RYE BROOK, N.Y.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jewelry veteran and Chief Trunkationista, Heidi Schuster Helfst, is creating a new web venture featuring amazing hand-crafted jewelry and accessories from artisans and cultures from across the globe. She is turning her passion for jewelry and world adventure travel into a full-time endeavor.
Trunkation’s mission is to celebrate and preserve the world’s amazing indigenous cultures by purchasing one-of-a-kind, hand-crafted, artisan jewelry and accessories and sharing stories through her blog, photography and video. Mrs. Schuster Helfst commented, “There’s an incredible void in today’s jewelry and accessories marketplace. So much of what we see in retail is mass-produced, cheap and impersonal. We’re here to change that.”
Prior to creating Trunkation, Mrs. Schuster Helfst was Director of Marketing & Communications at world-renowned jewelry designer, Robert Lee Morris; and has worked directly with jewelry icons such as David Yurman and John Hardy over the past ten years.
More recently, she has traversed the globe and visited countries including India, Nepal, Niger, Tanzania, Bhutan, Argentina, Ghana, Peru and Thailand in search of adventure and exotic hand-crafted “wearable art,” as she calls her products, that are 100% authentic and each with a unique story of time-tested. Speaking with these amazing jewelry artisans, she quickly realized, and heard directly, how her purchases could make a difference in helping indigenous cultures, tribes and villages thrive and maintain their unique cultural identities.
A recent trip to Tanzania allowed her to witness Maasai artisans creating amazing Maasai necklaces and cuffs. The tribe was grateful for her purchases - as it will provide them with needed funds to develop a dependable source of clean water for their village – today and for future generations.
A few extraordinary products she carries on her website include one-of-a-kind silver jewelry from the Tuareg people of Niger, amazing bead bracelets and necklaces, colorful African tribal necklaces and cuffs, Nepalese hand-carved silver, Lapis prayer beads from Bhutan and industrial link necklaces from Argentina.
The website, www.trunkation.com currently features over 75 pieces of wearable art jewelry from seven countries. Trunkation guests will enjoy learning about the artisans and the thrill of the hunt for the perfect artisan jewelry pieces.