My wife and I founded of Tears of the Moon in August of 1991. It is almost embarrassing to speak of being the creator of Tears of the Moon because so many people have been involved in its development. I have surrounded myself with very creative and intelligent people from the start. We all seem to thrive on hard work in a creative, open and productive environment.

Tears of the Moon has survived in this modern economy of "have it made in China and service the market". We still believe in design, craftsmanship, quality and integrity. TOTM employs a little over 30 full time people. These people are the best of the best and are an amazing group of people.

Another element that makes Tears of the Moon different from other Body Jewelry companies are the result of my life experiences. The experiences I am talking about are twenty plus years spent working as a silversmith and fine jeweler, a degree in Anthropology and Environmental Studies, travel and a sense of the aesthetic.

I love jewelry and almost always have. I find it fascinating how much meaning we attach to jewelry at times.

Whenever my wife Stephanie and I travel we always search out the local museums. I can spend hours looking at ancient jewelry. I get very intrigued by the methods of production and the materials used. Holding antique and ancient jewelry can be mesmerizing to me. The feel of a piece of jewelry is often my biggest impression, if it is something available to hold. I have held Pre-Columbian jewelry in my hand and closed my eyes to find wear patterns confirmed by my eyes that must taken generations to achieve. I teach this tactile aesthetic sense to my employees. I say "it is great if it looks good, but it is truly beautiful when it feels beautiful". It should without a doubt be burr free, but in addition it should feel sensuous. It should be beautiful even when you close your eyes.

When you look at ancient or ethnic jewelry it is often totemic. It can hold much more meaning than meets the eyes. We see this with Catholic rosary beads and saints medals or pendants. They can be a key or a door to a persons higher power or god. Wedding rings are ascribed the most meaning of any jewelry in modern society.

It is interesting to see how different people ascribe value to a piece of jewelry. If the intrinsic value is based on it being a status symbol, Modern or Western people see the beauty in the dollar value of a piece. A good example of what I am trying to describe is a diamond tennis bracelet or a big diamond ring. The beauty is apparently the high dollar value and the fact that it sparkles. If I hold one of these pieces with my eyes shut I usually find they are sharp ugly objects.

I believe there can be much more to jewelry than having a status symbol or a one time accessory. People do bond with their jewelry. I just want to make sure if it is a Tears of the Moon piece it will last and it is beautiful even in the dark.

-Jim Coffman
Owner/Founder of Tears of the Moon