So how does a laser physicist get into the jewelry business? Simple, get married! We have been fortunate that my career has afforded us the opportunity to travel extensively throughout the world. While I was busy working, my wife entertained herself by visiting the various local markets, bazaars, boutiques, festivals and shops. She began to pick up a few pieces of jewelry for herself as souvenirs of our travels. Back home, she was getting many compliments from friends and family about the unique nature of the jewelry, and was requested to bring back a few pieces for friends. On a trip to Taiwan, we picked up a few dozen jade bracelets as gifts to friends and family. They insisted on paying for them, so we said, sure. We then put two and two together, and thought, hmm… wonder what would happen if we did this more often? So we began to research the jewelry industry, and proceeded to incorporate Glimmering Gems as our business. We bought and sold a few pieces, but it was strictly a hobby. We were pushed over the edge so to speak on a trip to Thailand. I was working (as usual!), and my wife hired a local driver to take her to a few of the local markets. When she told the driver she was interested in looking at jewelry, she became very excited and took her to a rather large and intimidating jewelry store. After a few hours there, she left with a commercial account to import jewelry into the US. Since then, we have grown to import jewelry from around the world and the business is no longer just a hobby. We are glad that you have found us on the web, and hope that you will enjoy shopping our fine jewelry. Below are a few pictures from our travels, as you can see, we do find some time to have fun too.

Jim and Rhonda