By HmongTales Staff
(Yuba City, California) With polymer clay in her hands, Mai Youa carefully molds and designs each piece of her handcrafted jewelry in her office. This step is crucial because making a mistake could mean starting over again. This is the beginning of many other steps and hours before completing her handcrafted earrings.
Mai Youa Moua (Maiv Zuag Muas), a wife and mother, stumbled upon handcrafted earring making during the covid pandemic in 2020. Before she got into handcrafting, she was passionate about Hmong, Chinese, and lyrical choreographed dancing for many years. Not only did Mai Youa choreograph these dances, but she also sewed costumes for them. So when she finally stopped, she wanted to expand her passion into something else.
She’d spent countless hours researching, experimenting, learning, and improving her process before finally perfecting the art. “I found that polymer clay is so versatile that it allows me to create unique pieces in any shape, color, and size; this is like my choreographing days! This keeps my creativity going and is such a relaxing art!” Mai Youa stated.
After mastering the craft, Mai Youa officially registered as a small business owner in 2021. Since then, her work has been featured in pop-up markets all around Sacramento. In addition, Mai Youa displayed her Hmong-inspired earrings in the gift section at the Sutter County Museum in Yuba City.
When asked what she has in store for the future, Mai Youa stated that she is expanding her handmade crafts. In addition, she will soon launch other clay-inspired jewelry, such as necklaces, bracelets, and rings.
Are you interested in Mai Youa’s work? Visit her Instagram by clicking here. Her merchandise is available for purchase by clicking here.
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