Talya Meltem is the founder of Bella Noya, a collection of beautiful handcrafted jewelry. Talya pursued her dream of having a career in fashion by studying at the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising in San Fransisco (FIDM) to later start her own jewelry line.  Her collection is greatly inspired by the Caribbean.  Talya in her own right is an artist as she handcrafts jewelry into works of art.  She takes great care in selecting materials, composing and curating the pieces that will be used in her collection(s).  At 27, Talya is an accomplished jewelry designer,  creating signature pieces that reflect her inspirations and influences at a particular moment in time.  She looks forward to creating a new collection to debut later this year, capturing the essence of new inspirations she draws from.  For Talya, jewelry making is her form of art.  As she grows as an artist/jewelry designer and continues to find new sources of inspiration her collections and style will reflect that.

Q&A with Talya Meltem

1. What is the meaning behind the name?

When I decided to give a name to my jewelry, I wanted to give it to God because of everything He had done for me. Many people know Bella to mean, beautiful, but it also means devoted to God in Hebrew. Noya, another Hebrew name, means God like beauty.

2. What inspired you to make jewelry? 

I went to the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising in San Francisco. I have always loved fashion since I was a little girl, dressing up in my mothers clothing, dressing up my dolls and making collages and booklets from my mothers fashion magazines. When I became pregnant with my daughter, Katalina, I was so tired yet I was studying full time. I am always creating fashion looks in my head and decided to teach myself how to make jewelry so I could still be creative, even while resting in bed.

3. What do you enjoy most about handcrafting the pieces?

I love working with my hands and I love the challenge of duplicating something I see in my head into a piece of jewelry.

4. What inspires you? 

My inspiration changes with each collection. With my first collection, I was inspired to create bright pieces of jewelry to reflect the tropics; turquoise blue as the ocean and bright orange and red coral to feel like you were wearing hibiscus and heliconia around your neck. I am working on a new collection and I’m inspired to design more classic pieces that I am so excited about. I can’t say too much! You’ll see…

Bella Noya Photoshoot

Photo Credits: Bella Noya

Photographer: Lori Speirs

Support Local: Photographer/Filmmaker Lori Spears:

Phone: 928-5172 Email: speirs.lorim@gmail.com