With names like "Kerala" and "Jodhpur," the rings at taj taj jewelry evoke an aura of authentic Indianness. But while its rings are from India, taj taj's owners and designers are not. Kip Wood and Fritzi Horstman, film industry veterans from Southern California, established taj taj after Wood's trip to India on a spiritual quest took a slight detour.

"I was over there seeing a teacher or a guru," says Wood. "One of my friends here in California had a ring everyone had fallen in love with. People said I should go to Jaipur and check it out and bring some back. I was in Bombay most of the time, but I went to Jaipur, snatched up a bag and brought them back with me." That first impulsive purchase helped launch a venture that now not only boasts the imported rings, but also earrings, bracelets, necklaces and miscellaneous "Indian treasures" designed and created by Wood and Horstman.

Horstman's family has always been involved in some aspect of the jewelry business, but she never envisioned herself following the family line. "My grandfather was a jeweler and my mother was a jewelry designer in New York. It's always been part of my world, in my genes, I guess," she explains. "Now that she's gone, the tradition just got passed on. I just started designing jewelry this past year. It seems to be an innate thing."

Both Wood and Horstman also have an innate desire for "simplicity and beauty," the design philosophy they espouse. Along with brilliantly colored stones and ethnic flair, this elegant and unique style helps taj taj access a previously untapped market. "The rings are unusual and beautiful. You just don't see that style in the States much," asserts Wood. But ethnic flare and fantastic stones are common enough—it's the touch of whimsy, apparent even in the attitude of its designers, that really makes taj taj jewelry so outstanding. The way they name their pieces is a case in point: "We got out a big map of India, held up the rings, picked a city and named [the ring after] it. They could have been awful cities or wonderful cities—we didn't even know. We just liked the sound of the name."

What with calls from European and Canadian stores, numerous mentions in mass media and endorsements from trend-setting celebrities, taj taj jewelry is poised to take off in a big way. And that's not good news just for Horstman and Wood: The duo gives 10 percent of its profits to charity. But before they become high-rollers in the jewelry world, Horstman, especially, would like to return to where it all began. "I went to India in 1989 and I was actually in Jaipur, where Kip landed. I've always wanted to go back to India. I have a feeling [I'll go] probably in the next year, I hope for six weeks, to search for more gems and more ideas. I think India is the soul of the world."