How Maison Miru’s Founder Created the Viral “Nap Earrings”

If you’re a jewelry and social media lover, chances are you’ve seen the oh-so-popular “nap earrings” on your feed. 

Recently, I went to Maison Miru’s Earth Day Exchange event, where the brand encouraged everyone to bring in a tarnished piece of jewelry to upcycle and exchange for a new pair of earrings while enjoying treats at a cool café. 

This goes to show Maison Miru’s brand values: caring for our earth, people, and having fun while creating something new.

The story of how Trisha founded Maison Miru makes her pieces (which also includes other earrings, rings, necklaces, charms, nose rings, and accessories) that much more special.

Read on for the inspiration behind her jewelry brand and nap earrings.

What was your inspo behind creating Maison Miru?

Trisha Okubo: I’m 4’11” and have never been able to find clothes off the rack that are comfortable, and make me look good. I learned from my maternal grandmother, my Po Po, that if there’s something out there that you want but can’t have, you can just make it yourself. 

I was fed up with not being able to find the clothes I wanted, so in college, I signed up to do a degree in Fashion Design, in addition to my daytime coursework studying engineering. 

That same spirit of “if you can’t find it, make it yourself” eventually led me to start Maison Miru.  

Shop the Story:
Maison Miru Nap Earrings Collection

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What drew you to jewelry design?

It’s naturally inclusive. It’s not like clothes that fit only a certain range of body types: literally everyone can wear jewelry. 

Jewelry doesn’t require you to be thin, or young, or to look a certain way, and as someone who does not fit mainstream standards of beauty, I find that liberating.  

How did you transition from engineering to jewelry design?

It’s a long story — but the short version is that I was laid off from a tech job that wasn’t quite right for me, and it was a blessing in disguise. 

I was in London, halfway around the world from my California home, jobless, visa-less and for the first time, without direction in life. After doing soup shots at my kitchen table, I gathered up the courage to actually do what I wanted to do in life.

I love making things, so I wanted to make the things that I wished existed but didn’t. 

I ended up taking my “garden leave” severance and planted the seeds for Maison Miru. Then, I kept reinvesting my profits back into the business, which allowed me to grow without ever taking any outside funding. 

Because we’re completely independent, we have the flexibility to be thoughtful about how we grow. This is super important to me, because it’s not just what you do that’s important, it’s how you do it.

When and how did you first think of the idea to create Nap Earrings? 

When we launched the Ear Bar back in 2016, it was a modular collection of studs, hoops, and no-piercing-required ear cuffs that you could mix and match to create your own signature look. 

We had traditional (butterfly back) earrings in super dainty styles that caught the eye of people from the piercing community.

Over emails, DMs, and IG comments, they implored me to make these styles with flat backs, like the earrings that professional piercers use. 

I hadn’t heard about flat back earrings, but I did a deep dive to research what would make best in class flat back earrings. 

Three years and over 100 prototypes later, the nap earrings were born.

What makes nap earrings special?

Compared to some traditional earrings, nap earrings are special for three reasons:

1. They have a flat back
Unlike a traditional pokey post, nap earrings are super comfortable and poke-free.

2. They’re durable
Nap earrings are designed for 24/7 wear and totally waterproof and sweat-proof, so you never have to take them out.

3. They are safe for sensitive ears
They’re made from medical grade titanium. Basically, they’re the earrings you didn’t know you needed. Similar to permanent jewelry, once you have them on, you never have to take them off. (But easily can, if you want.)

What’s the most rewarding part of running your business?

I get to do what I think is right, instead of what I’m being told to do. Just because something has always been done a certain way doesn’t mean that it’s the right way! 

I have lived my entire life thinking that I’m an organized person…and it turns out that I’m not. I’m personally organized, but when it comes to organizing something larger than myself, that’s just not where I shine.

I’m incredibly lucky to have an amazing team that complements my skill set, so we each get to focus on what we’re truly great at!

What advice would you give someone aiming to pursue their dreams?

I wish we lived in a world where everyone got to do what they loved, but the real world is a mix of play and practicality. 

The trick is to find the intersection of what you love to do (and what you’re good at), what the world needs, and what the world values. 

Focus on that sweet spot: it’s your area of magic.

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