Restart business after surviving critical illness

My name is Nicole Moja. I am a French citizen but have lived in Asia for many years. I had my first breast cancer young-at 32, and since then have survived three more occurrences. I have been clear for 15 years now. A catastrophic bout of pneumonia in 2010, ending up in an induced coma for 6 weeks. Last year I had to replace the aortic valve in my heart due to damage from radiation treatment for my first cancer.
The miracle of modern medicine, combined with love of my work and the support of many wonderful people, has got me through it all and allowed me to look to the future with confidence.

Since 1994 I have designed jewellery and my business MojaJewellery has given me the passion and focus to live and thrive. It is what I love doing. I have specialised and learned much from being a “personal jeweller” to women in all walks of life around the world, anticipating their needs, assisting them in developing their own personal and unique fashion identities.

The most rewarding aspect of becoming close to so many of these extraordinary women has been the friendship and love I have encountered along the way. I constantly receive messages from them to say “I get so many compliments”. For a designer, it can’t get better than that.

This is the power of a well-chosen piece of jewellery worn with confidence and their gift to me.

Because of my recent illness and the surgeries involved, I haven’t been able to work for over a year, thus falling behind with medical insurance payments, but also rental of both my home and office, and incurring other debts. Now I am ready and need to get going again.

Mine is not a start-up business, it is a re-start business, which due to medical expenses and not having earned for 18 months, I need financial help to do. This is why I wish to put my story out there on this site to seek the help I need to continue my work and face my other obbligations.

I have already designed a new Collection, and have to buy stones. I also need to put the Collection online, update my website to allow online sales, commission new photography for the Collection, and generally get back to work.

I design the jewellery in my studio in Bali, which is where I live and where I have all my jewellery hand-made in a workshop employing Balinese and Javanese craftsmen. This is a big part of why I love what I do. To me there is only one true luxury and that is what is real and authentic. It’s not about money, it’s about beauty .
The work supports Balinese and Indonesian craftsmen from other islands and it is their jewellery-making skills acquired through many generations that not only supports their families but allows me to realize my designs in a way that is special.

For me, this is our future: a world where nature and traditional skills have living value and yet are affordable; beautiful things created without maiming or depleting our planet.

Designing jewellery has allowed me to refine my sense of colour, texture, balance and attention to detail. I love beautiful stones, especially rough-cut ones, from all-over the world and will only work with them knowing them to sustainably and honestly come by. For example, I love coral – it’s beautiful, but I would not use it in my jewellery.

I could go on, telling my story, but will stop here.

Having heard it, will you help me in getting back on my feet to re-start MojaJewellery and take care of my other obbligations?

I need US$25,000 to do it.