Hi there, I am Kalina – owner and designer at KAYA Jewelry with a Heart. The idea about Kaya Jewelry took shape back in 2012 when I started following my curiosity for jewelry making and sustainable fashion.

Born and raised in Sofia, Bulgaria, I have explored different creative paths since childhood – drawing, watercolor painting, clay working and beading. After moving to the USA I continued my interest in art by taking up acrylic and watercolor painting classes. In 2011 I took up an unexpected project of fixing a pearl necklace, and soon fell in love with the beauty of gemstones and jewelry making. The idea of KAYA Jewelry with a Heart came to life.

Kaya Jewelry with a Heart reflects my passion for creating something beautiful and giving back to the community. After reading “Start something that matters” by Blake Mycoskie, I was inspired by TOM’S business model and knew that I needed to have a meaningful purpose behind my own business. Since my very first campaign in 2012 when I sold my handmade jewelry to raise money for a family in need, a percentage of KAYA’s profit goes to various humanitarian projects. In 2015 I launched The Water Drop Collection – a collection of versatile jewelry pieces dedicated exclusively to charity:water.

I love creating minimalist, versatile, “all year round beach resort” vibe pieces. I often feel influenced by eastern culture’s aesthetics, as well as modern west coast style. Each piece of jewelry you will find here is infused with love and positive energy and is created to bring you joy and complete an effortless look.  

The concept of sustainability and meaningful shopping runs throughout the very core of our small business.

We carefully choose  our suppliers to make sure our materials are ethically sourced as well as the companies we buy from are committed to benefiting our community and their employees.

Most of our silver beads and findings for example, are handcrafted by the Thai Karen Hill Tribes – the largest nomadic tribe in Thailand, which survives on silversmithing for generations. Buying jewelry with Karen Hill Tribes silver helps preserve the timeless culture, art, religion, and language of the Karen people, and helps provide a stable economy for them that is based on beauty, instead of illicit drug crops.

Meaningful shopping also reflects our social commitment – a portion of our profit is always dedicated to support a cause, whether it is contributing to non-profit organizations like charity:water or helping out causes who touched our heart.

As a maker and as a consumer I support the Buy Local Movement, purchasing from companies that are committed to honest business practices, offering high quality goods that are “made slow”, value building strong relationships with customers, as well as are socially responsible and donate some of their profit to support causes.

Kaya Jewelry for a Cause

Kaya Jewelry with a Heart combines two things we are passionate about – creating something beautiful and giving back.

Since the very beginning, we have been dedicating a percentage of the profit to humanitarian projects that our customers and we support – such as KIVA, Association for India’s development , TakePart and Just Label It – to name a few.

In 2015 we created The Waterdrop Collection to raise money entirely for charity:water – a non-profit organization that brings clean and safe drinking water to people in developing nations. 100% of the proceeds from the sales of The Water Drop Collection benefit charity:water.

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Jewelry Care

Thank you for choosing Kaya Jewelry – we hope you enjoy your unique piece of jewelry! Please follow these simple guidelines to make sure your jewelry retains its beauty.