One of people’s biggest obsessions is beaded jewelry namely a waist bead. A lot of beaded bracelets and necklace are handmade/homemade or straight from motherland. Many believe that a waist bead makes their style unique. As we know, there are specific and distinct reasons why many people wear beads, especially around the waist. A waist bead can be visible as a symbol of femininity, celebration, or aristocracy or hidden as a way of self-care or confidence or intimate appeal. There are many reasons why a waist bead is and is still an intricate aspect of African culture.

Below are 4 Facts About a Waist Bead

A waist Bead is a Symbol of Femininity and Sensuality

Some like to call them ‘colourful strands of femininity’. They’re handmade strands usually made by women for women of any and all body types and sizes. For some women, they would wear their beads under their clothes-which only allowed their lover to see them as a meaning of sanctity and purity between the two. For some, the beads are a means of seduction to provoke desire. Sometimes, wives would use the rattling of the beads to communicate their fertility.

A Waist Bead is a Symbol of Growth

Waist beads were a rite of passage for some culture. Mothers would ornament their daughters with beads during their first menstruation as a ceremonial rite of passage into womanhood. Each time new waist beads were inherited, it symbolized a healthy life, growth, and maturity.

A Waist bead As Measurement and Body Shaping

Both traditionally and in modern times, women will wear waist beads to get/keep their bodies intact. It is said that the beads shape your body and keep the waist small and hips accentuated. It was and still used as a measurement tool. The beads do not stretch, so if/when the waist beads start to feel a little tight, it’s a sign that there was some weight gain, and vice versa.

The Formation of a Waist Bead

In a traditional sense, the person making your waist bead is usually a highly spiritual person. The beads, shell, stones and other things that may go on your waist are picked and placed with the intention of something or somethings very specific. The beads a woman wears for her husband will be vastly different from the ones a young girl wears into her transition into woman. The trend of waist beads has become very modernized and ornamental, but traditionally, the potency and power of a woman’s beads as it relates to spirituality and development were very specific and intentional.