Maria Mizrahi combines semiprecious gemstones and different materials such as silver and seeds with Tagua Nuts to create colorful jewelry with a funky, whimsical flair.

Born in Colombia, she studied Industrial Design at the Xaverian University and specialized in “arte orafa” at the Riachi Institute in Florence, Italy. About ten years ago she moved to Boston with her family and I lives in Newton MA where she has her jewelry studio, Baloka.

Before starting Baloka, Maria was in charge of the opening of the Peppers and Rogers Group operations in Colombia, worked for IBM as an international consultant for Latin America in the Digital Printing Division and was the VP of marketing for Grafiletras. However, after moving to the USA she decided to exit the corporate world to combine her passion for jewelry design with the love to her native Colombia by using a unique native seed called Tagua in most of her designs.

Maria has been chosen by the jury of Newton Open Studios in several occasions and has exhibits in several art venues around New England, including The Fuller Craft Museum in Brockton MA, and The Arsenal Center for the Arts in Watertown, MA.

She was showcased at “The Newton Tab” in an article called “Little things that make a big difference” and talks about her efforts to use her art to help sustain the rain forest.