Leave it to me to find drool-worthy accessories in the heart of the Amazon rain forest.

I decided to venture into the Oriente, the fertile region of Ecuador fed by Amazon River subsidiaries, to escape the excesses of commercialism for a few days. I hoped to spend time alone, hiking, rafting, and reconnecting with nature. I planned to read, to write, and to retreat in the purest sense of the word.

That, of course, was a fantasy. For some inexplicable reason, my 10-buck guesthouse in Tena picked up a strong nearby Wi-Fi signal, so instead I spent my downtime blogging, Gchatting, and clicking through Facebook, as always. So much for isolation.

But I digress. Back to jungle shopping.

I lacked the time, funds, and — let’s face it — desire to really rough it, so rather than embark on a multi-day adventure deep into the Amazon, I decided to take a day trip into the secondary rain forest near Tena. My tour featured trekking in the morning and canyoning in the afternoon. At midday, we stopped by an indigenous village on the banks of the Rio Napo, where we met the elderly couple that had established the settlement. To raise funds for the children of the village to attend school in town, the couple was selling handcrafted jewelry to visiting tourists. I couldn’t resist taking a look.

All of the pieces on display were created using all-natural materials from the surrounding rain forest. Women in the village had strung seeds and nuts along cord woven from natural fibers to create colorful necklaces, bracelets, and earrings. Many of the pieces featured pionias, a small red-and-black seed extremely popular in South American beadwork; acai, a small round seed from the fruit famed for its antioxidant powers; and tagua, a heavy nut that, when scrubbed and buffed, resembles ivory.

One piece in particular caught my eye: a pair of delicate earrings fashioned from the wings of the Euchroma gigantea, a large jewel beetle. Many Amazon tribes use these wings, with their beautiful iridescent sheen, in decorative ornaments to indicate wealth and well-being. The earrings were beautiful, and proceeds from the sale went to the education of a little girl named Maria. I had no choice but to buy them. That’s my justification for shopping, and I’m sticking to it.