In 2003 Zina Ann Kao introduced her eponymous jewelry line designed for the music and movement of everyday life. Together with her partner Wayne Wonchoba, they handcraft jewelry from very special beads and precious metals, creating styles modern and fresh, feminine and gutsy, wearable every day.

Very special gems and beads are highlighted in their creations. Look for the unusual: a clover shaped garnet, a faceted moonstone leaf, a citrine hexagon. Precious metals provide more than the usual supporting role: twists and turns create links, hand-formed loops carry teardrops, tassels flow with silver. Zina and Wayne come to jewelry design from unusual backgrounds.

With advanced science and engineering degrees from MIT and UC Berkeley*, focusing on calculations and code, not facets and findings, would seem more likely for the duo. But beyond the letters and numbers of their degrees lies a couple devoted to experiencing the music and movement of everyday life.

As technical people working in a creative field, they design pieces expressing the most interesting contradictions of life - delicacy without fragility, structure without rigidity, movement with a playful purpose. Wayne, a sailing instructor, looks for elements of nature in each design: forms, colors, combinations. Zina, a blackbelt and former karate instructor, looks to create impact while seeking balance and harmony.

Wayne and Zina are happiest when creating and embracing the variety in their lives; they hope their jewelry expresses the everyday music and movement of their customers lives!