Hi, I’m Olya — the hands (and slightly obsessive eye) behind oolinn.
A few years ago, after having a custom ring made from old pieces I owned, I caught myself thinking: why can’t I do this myself? It felt like the same kind of work I’d always loved — just smaller projects, different tools.
So in 2019, I signed up for jewelry classes in San Francisco, and that’s where everything began.
While learning, I wanted to understand jewelry from every angle. I worked in galleries doing sales and custom projects — basically a translator between artists and clients. I photographed jewelry for local brands and later moved into marketing. I’ve seen the whole process, from the bench to the display window.
My work keeps evolving. I’m drawn to silver and gold for their honest, timeless feel; to diamonds and sapphires for their strength; and to tourmalines for their quiet, shifting colors. I love simplicity with personality — pieces that feel effortless but still have something to say. ✨
Some pieces begin before you even realize what they’re becoming.
While working on the O’Clock project, I was exploring clock hand shapes for the pendant, testing proportions in paper, metal, and wax to understand what felt right. Even though I eventually chose a very simple direction for the pendant, some of those earlier shapes stayed with me.
From the snake pieces I’ve done before, I’ve always been drawn to movement and structure in form. One of the clock hand shapes felt like it connected both worlds.
I made this first ring by hand as a prototype, a way to understand the form in scale and volume. Then the piece was refined, cast, and molded….
It became an anchor, the moment everything quietly aligned toward In Time, a collection about being shaped, held, and hugged by time.
As a continuation of The Clock project, I’m beginning to shape “In Time”—a new collection inspired by clock hands, quiet moments, and the ways we choose to mark time.
Here are a few glimpses of what’s in the making: wax models still taking form, ideas becoming silver and gold, and one finished ring as a first look at what’s to come.
More pieces are on the way.
Come see me at Fort Mason on May 22nd, 5–10 PM and experience “In Time” in person.
Fort Mason Night Market by @westcoastcraft
in collaboration with @offthegridsf
May 22 · 5–10pm
Fort Mason Center
Craft, food, live music, and makers.
I’ll be there, plus something new I haven’t shared yet.
Come say hi.
working on these two
turning stones into small clocks
still deciding what time they should hold.
The black tourmaline will be a pendant and the other stone which name I always forget will be a ring ✨
