Jujube Wood Fortune Bag Carved Charm

Jujube grows slowly. It is common in northern yards, the trunk twisting as it goes, and big clear billets are rare. The wood is hard, the grain fine, the colour on the red side, and planing it releases a faint sweetness; the sawdust on your hands is pale brown. It suits small pieces exactly. Anything larger means joining stock, and joined stock opens a seam after one winter and one summer. New jujube runs yellow and only turns red after a few years of sitting; those in a hurry dye it, and dyed red looks dead.

A fortune bag is a drawstring sack: narrow at the top, round below, a cord tied at the mouth. Carving starts with the mass and then tightens the folds at the mouth, and the folds should overlap, one over the next, at an even depth before they read as cloth. The body of the bag is left smooth — that is the space kept for the grain — and some people cannot resist cutting coins all over it, which is vulgar: the grain of a good piece of wood gets buried. The cord at the mouth is carved, not real, and it should be cut with the weight of something hanging.

Jujube grain is not showy; polishing to a thousand grit is enough, and past that it takes a hard shine like plastic. Wax beats oil: wax sits on the surface and does not smother the wood dark, while too much oil dulls it and muddles the grain. In the damp south wooden pieces mould, so keep a packet of desiccant in the cupboard and air them after the plum rains. Jujube pores are fine, and once waxed the grain is nearly closed, which is why it is easier to keep than other hardwoods.

A hanging charm gets used in more places than a pendant. On a rear-view mirror it will hit the glass on a bad road, so the cord wants to be short; on a bag it rubs against the zip pull; on keys it knocks against them daily and the corners round off within a year. To keep the shape, hang it where it does not move much, or simply stand it on a desk on a small base, which wears better than being swung about. Cotton or waxed cord both work; nylon slips, the knot works loose, and you lose it along the way.

The fortune bag means what it says: holds blessings, holds money, holds it full. No explanation is needed when you give one. In northern custom jujube is the auspicious wood — dates and peanuts go into the corner of a wedding quilt for the pun on “early birth”. Younger people mostly do not know that layer, and saying it out loud makes a good opening. More buyers keep these than give them away, mostly for the feel of it, warm in the hand. A bag paired with a gourd or with coins is common; a single bag on its own is cleaner.