Jewelry designer Weijia (Vga) Cai on maturing over time

How did you first get into making jewelry?

I took a casting class in 2020, right before Covid, when I was between jobs. Afterward, I experimented on myself in my apartment. It started as a hobby, and then I got the job I’d applied for, but at night, I would do this for fun. I learned by experimenting and watching videos. Gradually, I formed my own way of making things. It went viral around 2024, and I quit my job and started making jewelry full-time.

What was the job that you were trying to get?

I was in fashion design. I worked at Proenza [Schouler] from 2020 to 2024.

What was the video that blew up? What was going viral like?

The one where I’m smashing a vodka bottle and making jewelry with the glass.

I had a thousand followers at the time, and I posted the video and was slowly getting views. I was so excited when I reached 10k… Then it started blowing up. It became one million views. I made another video with a soju glass, and that one went even more viral. It got three million views. From those two videos, I gained 40,000 or 50,000 followers in three months.

Had you been getting orders in the years before those videos?

I didn’t have a website until 2023. I wasn’t selling my work because the product I was making was not really practical or marketable. I got the website six months or a year before the video. And that website wasn’t really a sellable, workable website. After the viral video, a ton of people started asking if I was selling the jewelry I made in that video. That’s when I put more effort into the website. In the first day after I opened orders, I got a flow of orders coming in. That’s when I thought, “Maybe I could do this full-time.”

I know a little bit about how wax casting works, but can you elaborate on what that process is like and what appeals to you about that?

The main method is to take a block of wax and then use a flex shaft to sculpt the wax into a shape. You make a mold out of wax, and then you put it in a kiln. With high temperature, the wax will melt away, and then you pour hot metal into that mold. The wax shape is taken over by the silver.

I learned to cast myself. But all the equipment for wax casting is heavy duty, high temperature, high voltage. In a New York apartment, it’s not possible. I wish I had a full studio, but right now it’s not possible. And in New York, it’s easy to find someone to do the casting. The Diamond District has so many casting studios that can help make my process easier.

I know what your style is like now, but was it always consistent? Has it changed since you started?

It changed a lot. In the beginning, it was raw material—super heavy, almost brutalist. My standards are higher now. I’ve kept looking for the style I’m most drawn to, and over time my work became a lot lighter and more organic, more fluid and delicate. I’ve added more femininity to the work as well. It’s a more mature version of what I used to do. Now I’m adding more elements like pearls, lace, gemstones… I think I’m connecting with myself and my identity, back then versus now.

I love the lace rings. You can see the evolution of your style in the rings of yours that I own.

I was young, only 25. I had crazy blonde bleach-dyed hair. I was rebellious and loud. Now I’ve calmed down and become quieter. I look inward and just want to become better.

I know occasionally you’ve posted pictures of how you used to market things. They’re these bizarre photos. What was the vision there?

Back then, I didn’t have a brand. I didn’t have an actual business. My Instagram was only for friends. So I just used my humor and didn’t take anything too seriously. Just having fun with everything. Now it’s a lot more intentional. I care about the algorithm, Instagram performance. I don’t want it to look too much like a product.

What do you mean, not looking too much like a product?

I don’t want the content to feel overly commercial or product-focused. At the same time, I want the presentation to be polished enough to reflect the quality and craftsmanship of my work. Having been on Instagram for this amount of time, I’ve learned a lot about how something will perform. People don’t like when they see a post that looks like you’re trying to sell things. I don’t like that either.

Because it’s obviously an ad.

Yeah. I don’t like that because of my background in fashion and art. I always want to make it look like photography, or to show my styling. I style the jewelry with lace, different sleeve fabrics, different lighting, instead of showing people, “Just buy this.” I want to show it to them like it’s a style. An art piece. I’m building a world around it.

You describe your work as “wearable sculpture,” which alludes to it being not just fashion, but art. I’m always curious, for any type of designer, where you see the line between fashion and art, especially with regards to your own work.

I went to art high school and art college and then worked in fashion. My dad was a sculptor himself. When I approach jewelry, I don’t see it as a product. I see it as a new way of sculpting. I love sculpture, the idea of it. I love that you can build the tiny version of it and bring it around with you. For the longest time, I wanted to be a fashion designer. I was most inspired by Rick Owens, Yohji [Yamamoto]. I’m not into colorful things or prints. I care about the shape and the feeling it brings you.

That’s how I think about fashion, too.

Yeah, I see you’re wearing all black. In fashion, I love texture, volume, proportion. I’m drawn to the same thing when it comes to jewelry. Like playing with a glaze, which adds texture, and pushing how people traditionally think about jewelry. People think of silver as being in a supportive role to an expensive stone. That’s how it is approached, especially in the luxury market. For me, silver is the main character.

Did that change when you started including other elements, like pearls or stones?

I think it adds to what I was already going for. I’m trying to create a feeling, a whole style. For example, when you wear all black, you want to look, like, dark feminine. Sometimes when you wear neutrals, you want to have a soft, ethereal feeling.

What do you see as the purpose of having a piece of art that you can wear on your body?

I think it’s as simple as when you go about your day, looking down at this piece that you were drawn to—it brings you happiness. In the beginning, I made jewelry because I could not find what I wanted in the market. I knew my style was quite niche in the beginning. When you go too alternative, sometimes it looks like you’re trying too hard. But [if you go in the other direction], it’s too bland. In the beginning, I thought my style was way too niche, that it would be hard to find an audience. Before it went viral, I didn’t think it would be possible for me to build a brand. But then I realized that so many people are drawn to my style. Sometimes I look at their pages—you as well. I found that the girls that I attract are exactly what I imagine them to be: artsy, really cool. I’m happy that I found my community.

Since you don’t have a physical store, what have you learned about marketing yourself online?

I didn’t plan to have my brand solely on the internet. It grew so fast, so I needed to figure out how to run an online business in a short amount of time. It was difficult. In 2025 I was trying different ways of posting, different photography styles, to see what would work for selling and for promoting myself. Now I’ve figured out what works, but it’s still a learning process. I want to get my work into a physical store because I’ve done two pop-ups, and a lot of people tell me it looks better in person.

Oh, really?

Jewelry is such a tiny object with a reflective surface. It’s difficult to see if it will fit you without seeing it in person. Especially precious metal—it’s not cheap. I think it’s kind of risky for people to spend that much money on something they’ve never seen.

The first pop-up was the New York one in Maison Mono, that tattoo shop. I made some pieces inspired by their tattoo art, and the tattoo artists created a tattoo flash sheet inspired by my jewelry.

That’s not the immediate collaboration I would think of jewelry and tattoo-but it makes sense for your style.

I think the artistic language of my jewelry is closer to tattoo art than it is to the jewelry world. The idea of body art, art that flows with your body, is what I’m most drawn to. So my jewelry—I love how it flows with the body instead of being an object in itself.

This content originally appeared on The Creative Independent and was authored by Erin Evans.