SO CHARMED...

CHARM BRACELETS HAVE MADE A COME BACK!

But for those of us who have always been charmed by

all those jingly metallic dangles, they have never

really gone out of style.

Charm Bracelets, in one form or another, can be

found in almost every era of jewelry history. Ranging

from religious and magical charms to baubles and

adornments intertwined with wishes and prayers.

I myself, own six or seven charm bracelets all

very different from one another.  My first

bracelet I received from my best friend, who

asked me to be her Maid of Honor in the early

1970's. It was a sterling silver-double link

bracelet with one girly charm on it. It was

her bridal thank-you gift to me. That started

me on my way to collecting. Over the years 

many more charms were added to commemorate

a plethora of special occasions. Many monumental

events were celebrated with gifts of charms, such as

graduation, birthdays, the birth of children,

anniversaries, new jobs, holidays, and vacation

remembrances, etc. Thus, I call this particular

bracelet "My Memory" Bracelet. It tells the story

of  my live in special events, that come to mind

while looking at each individual charm.

After WWI and going into the Second WW charm

 bracelets became "sweetheart" mementos and

soldiers not only sent them home to their girlfriends

but to their mother's and wives also. Most of these

charms were smuggled out of Europe or coins were

fashioned into charms by soldiers in the trenches

waiting for the next round of fighting.

My second charm bracelet was dedicated solely

to my family, especially the children and pets.  

I call this "My Family Bracelet".  It has charms

that represent their hobbies and sports interests also.

The third charm bracelet I own is a 14k gold

Heart Bracelet that I purchased for myself. This

bracelet was a hundred and twenty dollars but

I got it on sale with a 75% off coupon. I really

love a good buy! The truly unique aspects of

this bracelet is that it was my first gold bracelet,

all the gold links are a stretched oval shape and

it has 6 hearts on it that all look identical.

It is a beautiful bracelet in its pure simplicity.

In the 1950's Charm Bracelets went from

platinum and higher karat gold (like 14k to 18k)

and precious and semi-precious stones to everyday

affordable base metals called pot metal, as well as

sterling silver and 9 or 10k gold.  Now every woman

could afford a charm bracelet and most had at least one.

My fourth charm bracelet was an Italian Charm

Bracelet, where all the charms are flat and link

together to form the circular bracelet.  This

bracelet for me was the most fun to put together.

In fact by the time I was done I had 3 complete

Italian Charm Bracelets. These charms were very

easy to find and also very affordable.  My mom,

sister, aunt and I had more fun finding unique

charms for each other's bracelets.  It was an

absolute blast for about a year and a half....just

trying to surprise each other and ourselves with

our fabulous charm-finds.

As the charm bracelet became a popular jewelry

fashion statement they took on a pop-culture all

their own. Bracelets became kitschy music and

book venues to show off your favorite band or

book series. Elvis, The Beatles, The Monkees as

well as Nancy Drew and Ivory Circus Charms

became all the rage.

My fifth charm bracelet, I found in my favorite

antique store in Portland Oregon. And it is

indeed an antique...as I had just seen it and read

about it in a book I had bought on the history of

charm bracelets, called "charmed Bracelets' by

Tracey Zabar and photographed by Ellen Silverman. 

This bracelet is brass with enamel and rhinestone

charms. It has a total of five charms; a lipstick tube,

a purse, lips, a high-heel, and a bikini, on it. It is

delightfully Art Deco. I will definitely be keeping

my eye-out for more antique bracelets from now.

Everyone who see's this one on my wrist wants

one just like it. Hmmm, I may have to start

making charm bracelets to sell!

Immigrants coming into our country began

bringing in their own foreign charm bracelets

with their unique and unusual styles. 

Souvenir travel charms also became

prevalent as car, sea, train and air travel

became a more acceptable and more common

means of public transportation.  These charms

evolved in to "good luck" tokens and were

made into gambling chips, roulette wheels, rabbits

feet and four-leaf clovers. Thus, charms began

developing a sense of humor all their own.

My sixth Charm Bracelet, is another sterling

silver combo, comes from Hallmark and

looks like a knock-off of the much more

expensive Pandora Charm Bracelet. This is

an affordable version, that most any woman,

young or old would adore wearing.

This one has unique bead charms, dazzling

colored rhinestones spheres, monograms,

as well as a host of girly and family oriented

charms to choose from. You can boldly declare

your story with this fun and quirky bracelet.

Television also affected the jewelry culture. 

Fans of the Beverly Hillbillies, I Love Lucy,

This is Your Life, Dr. Ben Casey, and

The Honeymooners, all wanted their

favorite shows and stars on Charm

Bracelets. Who wouldn't love wearing a

sweet little charm bracelet of Shirley Temple?

My seventh Charm Bracelet is one large

clear heart that you put floating tiny

charms in to. I put one together in

honor of my Grand-daughter's 1st Birthday.

I put a red birthstone heart in it, two

rhinestone initials, pink baby feet and

a rhinestone crown.  All representing the

fact that She is My Little Princess.

Here is a list of some different charm

types if you decide that you would like

to start a charm collection of your own: 

CONTAINER CHARMS: designed to

hold something within-a picture, a lock

of hair, perfume, a prayer, a baby tooth, etc.

DOCUMENT CHARMS: engravable birth

or marriage certificates, driver's license,

diplomas or messages. 

FIGURAL/3-D CHARMS:

Probably the most popular and

widely available. You'll find

everything from animals to buildings

to people to everyday objects. 

MECHANICAL CHARMS: charms that

have elements that   move.  Movable

part charms are highly sought after. 

SILHOUETTE/FLAT CHARMS: pretty

self-explanatory, a child's head, a state,

a flag, initials etc. 

STANHOPE CHARMS: these vintage

charms usually have a little peephole

 that magnifies words, like The Lord's

Prayer, The Constitution, or an etched

picture of a city, like San Francisco.

CAMEO, ENAMELED AND PAVE' CHARMS:

carved, painted and jeweled charms.

Some of the famous women whose wrists

were publicly adorned with Charm Bracelets are:

Jackie O, Ginger Rogers, Mrs. Babe Ruth,

Mrs. Paul Whitman, The Duchess of Windsor,

and Mrs. Harry Winston just to name a few.

FINALLY I WANT TO SHARE ONE LAST

PIECE OF CHARM BRACELET FACT

AND FANCY WITH YOU.  IT IS SOME-

THING EVERY GIRL AND WOMAN

NEEDS TO KNOW:                                 

There is an unwritten rule of all

Charm Bracelet owners and it is this:

THOU SHALL NOT BORROW

MY CHARM BRACELET...start your own!

MAY WE ALL LEAD CHARMED LIVES!                                  

LADY IN RED

* ALL Italic font PARAGRAPHS ARE

STATEMENTS FROM THE BOOK

 "charmed BRACELETS" by Tracey Zabar

and Photo's by Ellen Silverman