Interviews with Asuka Saito

I studied the knowledge and skills in gems and jewelry and received my diplomas/certificates from Cultured Pearl Association of America (CPAA), Revere Academy of Jewelry Arts, and Gemological Institute of America (GIA).

I have been in the jewelry industry for over 10 years. I have won 9 international and national awards since 2015. Also, my works were displayed in design exhibitions and shown on about 30 occasions all over the world. Additionally, my designs and interviews have been reported over 40 times in major national and international media. I had been a critical designer of a piece of prize jewelry for the Northern California Cherry Blossom Festival (NCCBF) Queen program held by one of California’s most prominent celebrations of Asian traditions and the biggest on the West coast for 6 years.

First of all, I have wanted to express my idea, values, and imagination in design by using colors since I was little, and I decided to follow my inspiration to become a jewelry designer when I found there was 'jewelry design' in the design field.

After that, I chose to start my jewelry business and chose to go to school all because I followed my vision to play a part in tackling social issues by delivering beautiful, high-quality, and conscience jewelry pieces.

The thing that motivates me to design is loving design. It is really fun to see the work finished when I start to design from zero. Also, I love to see people smile at my design. Another thing that motivates me to design is the hope that my design might be able to make a difference even a bit for whomever and/or whatever.

The most exciting design process is the journey of design with expecting the finished project. I feel love, respect, joy, hate, and sometimes fear when I design a project.

My goal as a jewelry designer is to make sustainable social change and tackle social issues by delivering beautiful, high-quality, conscience, and fair-priced jewelry pieces made with sustainable manufacturing practices and ethically sourced materials to people. Creating jewelry that you feel good about wearing. This is what I promise to deliver via my original jewelry brand.

In my future plan, my next step is to make traditional technology and techniques correspond beyond cultures more with current lifestyles. To rethink the concept of tradition and gender norms regarding jewelry that classify as "feminine" or "masculine" in time for today is also one of the challenges for the future.

For me, design is how we communicate what an object does, or its function, through its shape or form. Good design improves the quality of life.

My inspirations are mostly from nature and architecture. I respect Kengo Kuma, a Japanese architect, his design is inspired by the light and the nature of the site of the building and he is also influenced by the natural environment, which he strives to harmonize with architecture and the human body through his work. I also love some jewelry that Prabal Gurung did for Tasaki. His designs are of exquisite quality and innovative and so beautiful.

Japan, where I was born and grew up, has a wide range of art styles and media along with a myriad of other types of works of art. It has a long history, ranging from the beginnings of human habitation in Japan, sometime in the 10th millennium BC, to the present. So my design is influenced by traditional art and techniques, and I make jewelry using Japanese traditional techniques for a new look, unique and beautiful piece of jewelry.

I currently live in San Francisco, California, the USA. A beautiful region filled with iconic landmarks, startups, and trendsetting residents, San Francisco has long followed the beat of its own drum.

Morphed and molded by its communities, the California metro area has been the heart of the bohemian lifestyle, the epicenter of the LGBTQ rights movement, and the launching point of the technology era.

I believe the culture affects my design I did rethink the concept of tradition and gender norms about jewelry that classify as "feminine" or "masculine" in time for today. So I started to design jewelry for anyone who loves jewelry, male, female, or gender nonbinary.

My business philosophy is to create jewelry that you feel good about wearing. This is what I promise to deliver via my original jewelry brand. My goal is to make sustainable social change and tackle social issues by delivering beautiful, high-quality, conscience, and fair-priced jewelry pieces made with sustainable manufacturing practices and ethically sourced materials to people.

I studied the knowledge, standards, and skills in gems and jewelry at the Gemological Institute of America (G.I.A) and obtained qualifications as a jewelry professional from them, and also developed making jewelry skills at Revere Academy of Jewelry Arts and City College of San Francisco.

The thing that motivates me to design is loving design. It is really fun to see the work finished when I start to design from zero. Also, I love to see people smile at my design.

I chose to start my jewelry business and chose to go to school all because I wanted to be a jewelry designer to follow my vision to play a part in tackling social issues by delivering beautiful, high-quality, and conscience jewelry pieces.

Combined with modern and thoughtful designs, meticulous details, and a strict quality standard, my design is made for all the modern people who value not only beauty but also its environmental and social impact.

I think good designs are things that enrich people's lives in the true sense of the word or have the potential to do so. A good design not only has its beauty but also makes the world better.

I would design some jewelry for my family members. That was one of my dreams and the dream has already come true. Besides the design of jewelry, I would like to design a decorated cake if I had the time. I love cake decorating, and would love to see everybody happy when they see the cake I designed.

My inspirations are mostly from nature and architecture. I respect Kengo Kuma, a Japanese architect, his design is inspired by the light and the nature of the site of the building and he is also influenced by the natural environment, which he strives to harmonize with architecture and the human body through his work.

I love some jewelry that Prabal Gurung did for Tasaki. His designs are of exquisite quality and innovative and so beautiful.

Keep learning and keep practicing their own skills.

For me, design is how we communicate what an object does, or its function, through its shape or form. A good design not only has its beauty but also makes the world better.

My husband.

My goal as a jewelry designer is to make sustainable social change and tackle the social issues by delivering beautiful, high-quality, conscience, and fair-priced jewelry pieces made with sustainable manufacturing practices and ethically sourced materials to people. Creating jewelry that you feel good about wearing. This is what I promise to deliver via my original jewelry brand.

I remember that I was good with my hands and liked creating something, loved colors, and had a luxuriant imagination when I was a kid. At some point, I wanted to express my idea, values, and imagination in design.

I received my diplomas/certificates from the Cultured Pearl Association of America (CPAA), City College of San Francisco, Revere Academy of Jewelry Arts, and Gemological Institute of America (GIA).

First of all, I have wanted to express my idea, values, and imagination in design by using colors since I was little, and I decided to follow my inspiration to become a jewelry designer when I found there was 'jewelry design' in the design field.

After that, I chose to start my jewelry business and chose to go to school all because I followed my vision to play a part in tackling social issues by delivering beautiful, high-quality, and conscience jewelry pieces.

The thing that motivates me to design is loving design. It is really fun to see the work finished when I start to design from zero. Also, I love to see people smile at my design. Another thing that motivates me to design is the hope that my design might be able to make a difference even a bit for whomever and/or whatever.

My jewelry brand, three x seven Jewelry founded in 2020 is a San Francisco-based sustainable jewelry brand sold globally online that uses materials with low environmental impact and systems that contribute to society.

At three x seven Jewelry, its mission is to make sustainable social change and tackle social issues by delivering beautiful, high-quality, conscience, and fair-priced jewelry pieces made with sustainable manufacturing practices and ethically sourced material to our customers.

Combined with modern and thoughtful designs, meticulous details, and a strict quality standard, my design is made for all the modern people who value not only beauty but also its environmental and social impact.

"Design" is how we communicate what an object does, or its function, through its shape or form. Good design improves the quality of life. Good design makes people smile, excited, sad, nervous, and enjoy a richness of novelty.

I like designing jewelry pieces that help play a part in tackling social issues as a result of using sustainable manufacturing practices and ethically sourced materials.

When amazing ideas come up in my mind.

I consider how the design work to enrich people's lives in the true sense of the word or has the potential to do so. I believe that a good design not only has its beauty but also makes the world better.

Be responsible and considerate of the messages we communicate through designs. Be conscious of the material and technology we implemented and their impact on the environment.　One of the most important responsibilities of a designer for society and the environment is to design that improves the quality of life. It is not just about the aesthetic improvement of our environment – it is as much about the improved quality of life, equality of opportunity, and economic growth.

I get a lot of inspiration from everywhere when I walk outside see nature, the organic shapes, and colors of flowers, leaves, and trees, talk to other artists about their creativity and have a dream while asleep. The inspirations for design realization come from approaches to find questions, through observation of the people and the community's behaviors and needs.

My jewelry design is contemporary-ish jewelry, not just a symbol of wealth but also wearable art, inspired by forms and colors found in nature. Combined with modern and thoughtful designs, meticulous details, and a strict quality standard, my jewelry is made for all the modern people who value not only beauty but also its environmental and social impact.

Japan, where I was born and grew up, has a wide range of art styles and media along with a myriad of other types of works of art. It has a long history, ranging from the beginnings of human habitation in Japan, sometime in the 10th millennium BC, to the present. So my design is influenced by traditional art and techniques, and I make jewelry using Japanese traditional techniques for a new look, unique and beautiful piece of jewelry.

I currently live in San Francisco, California, the USA. A beautiful region filled with iconic landmarks, startups, and trendsetting residents, San Francisco has long followed the beat of its own drum.

Morphed and molded by its communities, the California metro area has been the heart of the bohemian lifestyle, the epicenter of the LGBTQ rights movement, and the launching point of the technology era.

I believe the culture affects my design. I did rethink the concept of tradition and gender norms about jewelry that classify as "feminine" or "masculine" in time for today. So I started to design jewelry for anyone who loves jewelry, male, female, or gender nonbinary.

My goal as a jewelry designer is to make sustainable social change and tackle social issues by delivering beautiful, high-quality, conscience, and fair-priced jewelry pieces made with sustainable manufacturing practices and ethically sourced materials to people. Creating jewelry that you feel good about wearing. This is what I promise to deliver via my original jewelry brand. In my future plan, my next step is to make traditional technology and techniques correspond beyond cultures more with current lifestyles. To rethink the concept of tradition and gender norms regarding jewelry that classify as "feminine" or "masculine" in time for today is also one of the challenges for the future.

Sometimes by myself, sometimes as a team.