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Coir handicrafts include table and floor mats, hand-knitted in exquisite designs. Bell metal vessels made by moosaris is another traditional craft of the state, though the range of products now includes demands of tourists, like temple lamps, jewel boxes.

A spciality of Thiruvananthapuram is Arammula, a metal mirror made by mixing herbs with molten metal to give it a reflective surface.

Kasavu Mundu and Kasavu Neryathu, are extremely light pure cotton handlooms edged with golden thread. The golden edging is sometimes touched with contrasting bright colours. They are worn as traditional saris or used as dress material.

A Malayalee (Keralite) woman wearing the mundu and neryathu, with her long black oiled hair tied loosely and strung with a garland of Jasmine, is the very picture of elegance. She hardly uses any facial make-up other than the bindi on the forehead and kajal on her eyes, not to mention the gold ornaments which are her passion. The combination is unique to this land and gives an attractive but natural look. The men wear the mundu around the loin and the neryathu around the shoulders.

Pepper
In Kerala pepper is cultivated in a mixed crop environment. In Wayanad, pepper is planted amongst coffee plantations, and cultivated on a large scale. Pepper is also a main item in most kitchen gardens of Kerala.

The spice-scented shores of Kerala have beckoned traders from time immemorial, and its allure continues to hold sway even today. The spices trade still dominates the commercial transactions of the State. India, the world's largest exporter of spices, realises three fourths of its total output from the rich plantations of Kerala.

Cashewnuts
A popular dry nut of God's Own Country, cashewnut kernels are either eaten raw or roasted and salted. For centuries a commercial export item of Kerala, cashewnuts are traditionally used for seasoning the sweet delicacies of the land's cuisine. It is said that cashewnuts were brought here by Portuguese traders.

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