Wearing Jade: My Journey through History, Love and Legacy

"There are heirlooms and then there's jade." – Bliss

Growing up in Hawaii surrounded by my Chinese family, jade was ubiquitous. I wore a jade bracelet as a little girl and watched my aunties treasure their jade pieces. Yet 10 years into my jewelry design career, I had yet to work with this stone that framed my childhood.

Everything changed when my father passed away. Jade became a bridge to my Chinese heritage and my connection to his memory. My father discovered his creative side later in life—ceramics and painting—creating pieces full of his humor and spirit. Shortly after losing him, I became pregnant. Suddenly I was caught in the middle of this intense cycle of life’s beginnings and endings. I needed to create something that captured this profound moment, and jade—the Chinese symbol of life, wisdom, and protection—was the perfect medium.

In 2018 I created The LIFE Collection, which I dedicated to my father, with jade and crystal quartz as its focus.

Now with the launch of my new collection AS WE ARE, my work with jade continues. From Mayan heritage lavender jade to learning the Japanese art of Kintsugi, there is much to explore…

A Stone That Spans Civilizations

Jade's story stretches across cultures and millennia. The Olmecs and Mayans revered it as divine—a symbol of eternity and a bridge between earth and sky. In ancient China, jade or "yu" was more precious than gold, with "Imperial Jade" reserved solely for the emperor.

To families like mine, jade represents a living connection to our ancestors and future generations. We pass it down through generations, each piece carrying the essence of those who wore it before—creating an unbroken lineage of love.

From Cradle to Legacy

In Chinese tradition, babies are given jade to wear as a guardian—a promise of protection. As the child grows, these bracelets become physical links to family and tradition.

My aunties taught me that jade absorbs our experiences and becomes part of our story. Some childhood bracelets become too small and are stored away, holding precious memories. Others seem to grow with us, their color deepening with years of wear. Each begins a lifetime conversation between person and stone that can span generations.

This is jade's magic—it lives with us, from tiny baby bracelets to bangles that warm to our skin over decades, absorbing our stories, joys, and tears.

The LIFE Collection: Design Autobiography

In 2018, after a year of design and research, I created a collection as a tribute to my father, Edson Lau. Serendipitously, the launch of the collection coincided with my daughter's birth. I called it LIFE.

Using Black Jade from Australia, I connected my Chinese-American heritage to my design aesthetic. The LIFE Collection’s autobiographical pieces include the BREVITY PENDANT NECKLACE in a goblet shape—symbolizing a full cup made of protective BLACK JADE cut with a knife edge to create a shape that's both simple and graceful.

I love jade for its "bodyguard" status—a protective, healing stone. The Black Jade pieces became tokens of my father's energy. I created these pieces not just for myself, but for anyone longing to maintain connection with loved ones lost.

My journey then led me to Lavender Mayan Jade, prized in ancient Maya culture as a symbol of eternity.

"AS WE ARE": Heritage Meets the Future

My newest collection draws inspiration from Anaïs Nin’s words: “We don’t see things as they are, we see them as we are.” This collection celebrates living authentically, with jade as its protective centerpiece.

I wanted to find a space where heritage and future converge. “AS WE ARE” redefines the boundaries of jade jewelry with two powerful stones: Black Jade and Mayan Heritage Lavender Jade in movable pieces that travel the body.

Each piece honors my Chinese and American ancestors through ethically mined and cut jadeite. The Black Jade connects us to our roots and our ancestors’ strength, while the Lavender Jade represents our aspirations and the acceptance of our complex selves. Together, they remind us we are amalgamations of past, present, and future.

My VANTAGE CURIO PENDANT, worn over my heart, became my way of reshaping my relationship with my father. It reminds me that love and connection don’t end—they transform.

Ethical Creation

The jade in my collections comes from mines that honor both the land and its people. I believe in knowing each stone’s origin—who mined it, who shaped it—ensuring every step honors both human rights and the earth.

The Australian Black Jade we selected in 2018 came from heritage material mined thirty years ago and surface-mined rocks found non-invasively.

The AS WE ARE collection is also created with some heritage jade, mined over 20 years ago. Our black Mayan jade is mined in Morales, Guatemala, in alluvial deposits through a woman-owned operation. The stones are then cut in-region, supporting local craftspeople and their ancestral jade carving practices in Chiapas, Mexico.

Responsible sourcing is a crucial part of my work. When we choose to create responsibly, we’re not just making something beautiful—we’re shaping a better world.

Kintsugi – Beauty in Repair

Jade truly lives with us from birth onward, passed through families, carrying imprints of those before us. But when jade breaks, it doesn’t lose its beauty. You repair it, remake it. It’s unlike any other precious stone.

Centuries-old repair techniques like kintsugi make it whole again while honoring its scars—a perfect metaphor for life’s journey. Kintsugi involves restoring broken items to a more beautiful state using lacquer and gold or silver, ensuring they are cherished for the future.

I recently learned kintsugi specifically to restore my late auntie’s bracelet, worn for 40 years until her final day. Now it awaits its next chapter—its story enriched rather than ended by breaking.

Wear Your Story

Jade doesn’t simply adorn us—it becomes our partner, witness to our experiences, and holder of our stories. It journeys with us through love, loss, rebirth, and beyond.

When my father passed, jade became a way for me to reshape my relationship with him—to understand that love and connection do not end, they only transform.

To wear jade is to carry a story. Come discover one of our jade pieces and start a story of your own.