AT an age when many women begin to slow down, Vilorina Tokasa Levu chooses to be financially independent.
At 74, Tokasa, as she is commonly known to family and friends, still makes handcrafted jewelleries – believing that one should be self-reliant even at an old age.
She has been making earrings, necklaces and bracelets since 2013, a simple skill she quickly picked up while visiting Dubai on one of her many trips abroad.
Today, jewellery making is something that keeps her mind sharp and helps her earn a few dollars.
She once taught at the former Fiji Crippled Children’s Society but after settling down she made the important decision to leave teaching and focus on her children’s wellbeing.
She has five children who are happily married with successful jobs and families of their own.
Over the years Tokasa has developed great knowledge in jewellery making and she has also acquired skills in embroidery, flower arrangement, gardening and selling pot plants.
Her weeks are structured around production. One week she concentrates solely on necklaces; the next, on earrings; and another on bracelets. At times, she shifts her focus to flower arrangements or pot plants, which she sells to her customers.
If an embroidery order came in, especially one with a short deadline, she sets everything aside and focuses entirely on completing it. Pillowcase embroidery is among her regular requests.
On good days, she can earn $200 or more from jewellery sales alone.
She pays close attention to customer preferences.
“Buyers know what they are looking for and recognise quality,” Tokasa said.
One issue she feels strongly about is pricing.
Material costs, transport fares to purchase supplies, travel expenses to selling venues and even meal costs while working all factor into her pricing.
“Selling earrings for $1 or $2 undervalues the time, effort and financial investment required to produce them. Materials are not free, and neither is the labour,” she said.
Tokasa said in Australian markets, similar items were sold at significantly higher prices.
She hopes women artisans locally can agree on fair pricing, at least $5 per pair of earrings – to reflect the real cost of production and the skill involved.
Her message to other women is simple, the items displayed in jewellery shops are not beyond their reach.
“With the willingness to learn and practice, women can create pieces that are just as beautiful and sometimes even better,” she said.
“Many women, especially those over 70, often find themselves without a stable source of income later in life. She believes it is important to develop a skill that can provide financial support at an old age.”
Tokasa believes it is important to develop a skill that can provide security and dignity in old age.
But for her, the journey is about more than jewellery.
It is about proving that purpose does not retire.
With every bead threaded and every flower shaped by hand, she is not just creating adornments — she is crafting security and a great future.
Vilorina Tokasa Levu works on an earring piece. Picture: ANA MADIGIBULI
