Hello to all the friends of this community! 😄
This is the first time I write here, and what really motivated me to do it was nostalgia.
Let me tell you...
It turns out that for many years my husband and I have been working on designs for cigar humidors for premium brands here in Cuba.
Together with a team made up of a cabinetmaker and a sculptor, we take part in the International Habanos Festivals held every year in Cuba.
Below you can see a picture of the manufacturing process, my husband on the right (designer) and on the left the artist who makes it come true.
In the other picture the humidor already finished and exhibited at the auction, the person who appears in the picture taking a picture of the furniture, is one of the world's biggest Habano influencers, who always participates in the events.
The thing is that in every event we went to, and as part of the activity, they hand out several items as samples of the product, which end up becoming high-demand items for world-renowned collectors.
Neither my husband nor I smoke (no, not even a cigar!), so we are not interested in keeping the exclusive cigars that are given out to sample along with a wide selection of drinks and fine dining, and many ends up as gifts. But, in the case of ashtrays, we do always keep them.
Each one you see here means a year.
The nervousness of submitting the designs to bidding and praying that at least one is selected and then almost crying with joy (and concern) when they tell you that three of the 5 or 6 pieces of furniture that are presented for auction, are yours.
A year full of effort so that the furniture we have to present has the quality required.
Constant visits to the manufacturing workshop. Searching for solutions to certain circumstances that arise from being on an island where to say supplies is almost a utopia.
Cohiba is the most famous cigar brand in the world. Unfortunately, on one occasion a person at home thought the ashtrays were for smoking...and yes, I know they are for that 🙃...but NOT mine!😫
So that's where the damage to the brand comes from, which was nothing more and nothing less than the 50th Anniversary. But anyway...😕
..and maybe you wonder why the nostalgia?
Well, because the Covid 19 marked a before and after in so many ways. Among those things was that the festivals were stopped for 3 years.
The 2023 and 2024 festivals were held, but we did not present our own designs, due to lack of time and various logistical issues. 😕
Montecristo is one of my favorite brands. Maybe, because of the whole story of it being named after Dumas' book, it gets to me.
So yes, I miss all that adrenaline that is generated waiting to know if you were selected and then see how it takes shape, something that came mainly from my husband's mind, although being a team, many details and ideas come from me too, so I feel it is also mine.
Romeo and Juliet! In these humidors we always splurge a little bit of madness. Because that's what passion is all about.
Each of the ashtrays that you see in the photos belong to the most famous cigar brands in the world. We are missing Hoyo de Monterrey and H.Upmann, because the festivals are dedicated to the main brands, but not always consecutively, hence we have two Partagás for example.
Partagás, so serious and distinguished. The favorite of many. It is the third most important brand, preceded only by Cohiba and Montecristo, in that order.
I hope that soon we will be able to conclude at least the main brands, because this year we feel like trying again, and it is even likely that we will participate with some other group of artists who also have a long history in these events. So maybe in a couple of years we will be able to conclude the collection.
Greetings to all, and it was a pleasure to connect with you through memories and our collections.
All photos were taken by me
Link en la imagen
