It’s complicated, obviously (refer to “STRING”). Try both, but at your own risk. Also try neither. Try things. Live – life is short. (Also refer “KITE”)

Not us, according to the Buckfever Underground.  Great Band, great music. Check them out.

Each lure or artefact is unique. Feedback and suggestions are incorporated in subsequent designs – including size, shape, colour, weight, action, etc. Successful and popular patterns may be similar, especially for custom lures, but will never be the same. Our lures are wabi.

A lot. We strive to produce beautiful, durable lures designed to catch fish. In the description of each product, typical target species of fish will be recommended, but lures should be effective for a variety of saltwater and freshwater species. Please submit photos of your catches to socials@wabilures.co.za.

Preferably both. Our lures are made to be beautiful and to catch fish. Natural wood grains and textures are respected beyond any paint-job, but will be coated to ensure colour stability and durability. Generally painted lures are made from high buoyancy wood and polyurethane casting resin. This makes weighting and secure of hardware more controllable and practical for regular use.

Dr. Seuss – One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish (1960).

“Did you ever fly a kite in bed?

Did you ever walk with ten cats on your head?

Did you ever milk this kind of cow?

Well, we can do it

We know how.

If you never did, you should.

These things are fun

And fun is good.”

This is a good response, or at least one version of the response given by Chief Seahtl of the Susquamish people (taken from csun.edu – Northridge University). Other versions exist and are usually referred to as “Chief Seattle’s Response”, “Chief Seattle’s Speech” or “Chief Seattle’s Letter”. All versions are beautiful and worthy of contemplation:

“The President in Washington sends word that he wishes to buy our land. But how can you buy or sell the sky? the land? The idea is strange to us. If we do not own the freshness of the air and the sparkle of the water, how can you buy them?

Every part of the earth is sacred to my people. Every shining pine needle, every sandy shore, every mist in the dark woods, every meadow, every humming insect. All are holy in the memory and experience of my people.

We know the sap which courses through the trees as we know the blood that courses through our veins. We are part of the earth and it is part of us. The perfumed flowers are our sisters. The bear, the deer, the great eagle, these are our brothers. The rocky crests, the dew in the meadow, the body heat of the pony, and man all belong to the same family.

The shining water that moves in the streams and rivers is not just water, but the blood of our ancestors. If we sell you our land, you must remember that it is sacred. Each glossy reflection in the clear waters of the lakes tells of events and memories in the life of my people. The water’s murmur is the voice of my father’s father.

The rivers are our brothers. They quench our thirst. They carry our canoes and feed our children. So you must give the rivers the kindness that you would give any brother.

If we sell you our land, remember that the air is precious to us, that the air shares its spirit with all the life that it supports. The wind that gave our grandfather his first breath also received his last sigh. The wind also gives our children the spirit of life. So if we sell our land, you must keep it apart and sacred, as a place where man can go to taste the wind that is sweetened by the meadow flowers.

Will you teach your children what we have taught our children? That the earth is our mother? What befalls the earth befalls all the sons of the earth.

This we know: the earth does not belong to man, man belongs to the earth. All things are connected like the blood that unites us all. Man did not weave the web of life, he is merely a strand in it. Whatever he does to the web, he does to himself.

One thing we know: our God is also your God. The earth is precious to him and to harm the earth is to heap contempt on its creator.

Your destiny is a mystery to us. What will happen when the buffalo are all slaughtered? The wild horses tamed? What will happen when the secret corners of the forest are heavy with the scent of many men and the view of the ripe hills is blotted with talking wires? Where will the thicket be? Gone! Where will the eagle be? Gone! And what is to say goodbye to the swift pony and then hunt? The end of living and the beginning of survival.

When the last red man has vanished with this wilderness, and his memory is only the shadow of a cloud moving across the prairie, will these shores and forests still be here? Will there be any of the spirit of my people left?

We love this earth as a newborn loves its mother’s heartbeat. So, if we sell you our land, love it as we have loved it. Care for it, as we have cared for it. Hold in your mind the memory of the land as it is when you receive it. Preserve the land for all children, and love it, as God loves us.

As we are part of the land, you too are part of the land. This earth is precious to us. It is also precious to you.

One thing we know – there is only one God. No man, be he Red man or White man, can be apart. We ARE all brothers after all.”

Unless you are allergic to pineapple, try both. See what works for you. Stick to your preference – life is short. If you insist on trying pizza with pineapple on, but happen to be allergic to any of the ingredients, do so at your own risk and take the necessary precautions (epipen, etc.). Life is short.

No returns, no refunds. Each lure is handmade, unique and wabi. Each is made with attention to detail to be beautiful and durable is used for its intended purpose. All products are highly affordable with a very small profit margin. Feedback is highly appreciated and constructive suggestions are incorporated into each following lure made.

Currently South African sales only, until payment, export and shipping logistics are sorted out.

Under heavy construction. Shipping and import duties are crazy expensive and complicate matters. We are new and working hard at ironing things out. Bulk orders might be more cost-effective when international sales orders are up and running.

We now accept EFT and credit card payments.

It’s complicated, obviously. But approximately this long (indicates).

It depends – African or European?

No, but almost. If you don’t stop asking, I’m going to turn this thing around and head back.

Wabi lures produce a bunch of lure-like things or lure-shaped, handmade beautiful artefacts. Some have daily use, for example, key-holders, baby rattles and mobiles. Other shapes are just beautiful and made to be so, especially designed to appreciate the beauty of wood in pleasing shapes. These could be appreciated as such or used to make mobiles, as Christmas tree ornaments, as tactile or meditative object, etc.

Shortly: Imperfection. Wabi is concept of aesthetics used in Japanese art appreciation. It is often used in conjunction with Sabi, which denotes patina from use. Something is wabi when it has a small measure of imperfection or asymmetry which is often associated with something that is hand-made and unique (a drip of glazing in a hand-made teapot is often cited as example). Rather than detract from the object’s beauty, this “fingerprint of human touch” adds to the beauty through authenticity. Sabi, on the other hand, testifies to the use of the object, and also adds to its beauty. On a roof, it would be the growth of lichen or moss. On someone’s skin, it would be scars, birthmarks or moles. On a lure, it would be teeth marks or hook rash.