Since childhood, I’ve always enjoyed immersing myself in creative activities, from Chinese calligraphy to knitting. But my path to jewelry making came after I realized that the world of finance was not for me. A trip to a gem market in the Philippines with it’s labyrinth of aisles and colorful dripping strands of gemstones gave me the initial inspiration to create jewelry. Not long after that, I started designing necklaces with select semi precious stones and selling my pieces to colleagues and friends in New York. Having found my passion, I eventually left the banking world and trained at the Jewelry Arts Institute in New York City. There, I learned classical metal smithing techniques that now serve as a framework of my designs and collection.

My designs are inspired by patterns found in nature and architecture.  I let the process of cutting, forming & carving the metal or wax inform the final look of the product. Most of the time, it is a piece that resembles my original idea, and other times the results are surprisingly different. I also love experimenting with different techniques, and the jewelry you see in the shop is a reflection of this.  Being born a Gemini makes my designs a bit unpredictable, which I find results in unique but very wearable pieces of jewelry–never boring.

I work out of a studio in the Mission district of San Francisco and I also spend some months of the year in Truckee, CA. Both the city and the mountains are a constant source of inspiration for my designs.

For those who want to see my jewelry in person, please stop by:
Story – 202 Clement St. (bet. 3rd & 4th Ave), San Francisco, CA
Bespoke – 10130 Donner Pass Rd., Truckee, CA

You can also visit and “Like”  my Facebook page – Vina Shih Jewelry, and follow me on Instagram – Vina Shih, to get up to date product news and promos. Thanks for stopping by!
You can contact me at: [email protected]