craftgrrl | Frustrated... resource rant, and question. (Reply)

I've been told to try carving Tagua Nuts for a long time now, because they are uniform in texture/grain (very very little grain too) and color. Making them excellent for my 3D carvings... so I order a pound of them from a website. A pound of them means I was shipped 8 large ones.

All 8 nuts are hollow! I am so angry and frustrated and disappointed. >:( I know sometimes they can be a gamble, but ALL EIGHT?! Damn. :( I can't use any of them. I've stared and stared and scratched my head and I can think of no way to use this junk. Maybe little rings and beads to thread onto a necklace as spacers, I don't know. I hate that kind of carving though, I like more difficult challenges than that. I've sure I'll figure something out, but I had ideas for SOLID nuts already so I am just very sore over being mailed hollow nuts. I know the seller can't help it, even more so since they are a huge business.

So, by chance, anyone know a tagua nut seller who would cut the ends off the nuts and only sell me the ones that are not hollow? I was so looking forward to carving a 3D impossible objects (an object trapped inside a cage of similar or different shape... see icon) out of them and I only really need about 1" square out of it so cutting the ends off is fine, I can use the ends to make little beads when I get bored.

And does anyone else have any thoughts on resources (woods, nuts, whatever) for carving that are very hard and sturdy? Uniformity in color doesn't need to be a requirement, though it seems to me that not being uniform in color also means not being uniform in grain/strength?