The Charm of Charm Bracelets

[Inky]

I know from asking around that charm bracelets are very popular among vintage lovers. I would love for you to share yours!!

I have one of my own I started in high school in the 70's and not too long ago I was gifted my Great Aunt Enid's charm bracelet (she is still living and is so generous to give us her treasures while she is still alive for us to enjoy).

The charms date back to my Great Uncle Harold's college lacrosse 1934 charm and encompassing the lives of my aunt, uncle, her daughter (my beloved godmother Nicole) and many more charms that I just do not know the meaning of yet. It is a truly treasured family heirloom and I am very lucky to be the current caretaker.

 

[BoPeep]

What a great piece, Inky! Love the little scuba diver and the fact that the charms are all gold as opposed to sterling. My mom has a sterling bracelet with pieces from her life (b.1941), and I've started one for myself, but the real vintage ones seem to hold more mystery!

 

[December]

Is that a nativity scene just left of the middle?

 

[Inky]

Is that a nativity scene just left of the middle?

Hi December, yes it is a little creche.

 

[Jasmine Jolene]

Does the date on the calendar have a special significance i think it's January 8.

it really is lovely. i too think it looks especially lovely in gold

 

[Inky]

What a great piece, Inky! Love the little scuba diver and the fact that the charms are all gold as opposed to sterling. My mom has a sterling bracelet with pieces from her life (b.1941), and I've started one for myself, but the real vintage ones seem to hold more mystery!

Thank you BoPeep - I don't ever wear gold, but I will start with this!! My own charm bracelet is silver too.

I would love to see your mom's if you can photograph it for us!

 

[Inky]

Does the date on the calendar have a special significance i think it's January 8.

it really is lovely. i too think it looks especially lovely in gold

Thank you Jasmine - Unfortunately i don't know what all the dates mean. I have a list going and when I call my Aunt Enid for Mother's day, I hope she is feeling well enough to answer a few of those questions for me.

 

[Puzzicato]

My great grandmother travelled a lot (she was married to a musician - stories of Berlin in the 30s!), and wherever she went she bought my grandmother a charm that was a little shield of the place she'd been. Now, it is 3 braceletsworth, that my grandmother wears as a long necklace. Then, when I was about 6 or 7, my grandmother bought me a bracelet and got me charms wherever she went. I don't wear it very often, because it is very heavy, but I'll take pictures sometime. I think those old fashioned charm bracelets have so much more charm than the modern pandora style.

The tree on your bracelet is so beautiful Inky! I hope you can find out some more details!

I googled 8th January 1955 - sounds like an eventful date

1955 - Furman sets NCAA basketball single-game scoring record with 154 pt
1955 - Georgia Tech ends Kentucky's 130-game home basketball win streak
1955 - Louise Sugg wins LPGA LA Golf Open
1955 - WUNC TV channel 4 in Chapel Hill, NC (PBS) begins broadcasting

http://www.historyorb.com/events/january/8 - any of those sound significant to your family?

 

[December]

Hi December, yes it is a little creche.

Gorgeous!

It's such a beautiful bracelet.

 

[CherryRed]

I ADORE charm bracelets! I have always loved them since I was little. I have my Grandmothers and mine that I started when I was dating my hubby so it's about us. I will go take some pics.

 

[skyvue]

I have my mom's charm bracelet. I'll take some photos and share them here.

I recall when I was a kid that we used to buy her charms as gifts on birthdays and other gift-giving occasions, though I don't recall if she was still wearing the bracelet then (this was in the early sixties, when she was 30 or so).

 

[CherryRed]

This one belonged to my Grandmother. It is made up of charms she got on her trips to different states. I also have a charm of a little travel bag of Eastern Airlines that she never had put on. The little Hula dancer was always my favorite. She really moves to do the hula!

And this one is mine. As I said before, I started it when hubby and I were dating. It has our birth stones, a wedding ring set, marriage licence, wedding cake, computer, phone and mailbox (all the ways we kept in touch before we were married) a tiny pic of him in a frame, etc.

 

[Inky]

I love these both CherryRed!! How wonderful you have your grandmother's and that you started your very own for you and your hubby.

I recommend you write down what each charm means to you for future generations of your family. I am hoping to get my Aunt to remember what most of these charms mean soon.

 

[Babydoll]

I have a charm bracelet from my Great Aunt Eileen that has some great charms on it. My favorite is a little house that has a hinged roof. When you open the roof, you see two little beds with red hearts on each pillow. Too sweet! I've lost that particular charm twice (once in the movie theater, and once on my parent's gravel driveway), and have found it both times. Suffice it to say, I've stopped wearing that bracelet. It is too precious to me to lose!

The other charms are the JFK memorial, a red football helmet for my great uncle (who was a high school football coach), a dollar bill holder, the house, a train from their trip to Hawaii, and the carillon from their hometown, Dayton.

When I traveled for work, I made a point of picking up at least one charm from each city/state I visited. I've also picked up many charms from my travels with my husband. The bracelet weighs a lot! But it is full of memories for me.

I got:

a moose, dog sled, igloo, and miner panning for gold from Alaska
a lone star, longhorn head, cowboy boot, The Alamo, Texas Ranger star from Texas (where my husband is from)
Mt. St. Helens, Mt. Rainier, the Space Needle from our adventures around our home state of Washington
an elephant from our visit to the zoo for our first anniversary
a horseshoe for good luck from my mama-in-law for our wedding
a light house, sand dollar, the Astoria Column, and the Megler bridge from our visit to Oregon for our third anniversary
a script T (for my new last name) from our visit to the pioneer village on our honeymoon
a claddagh (like the tattoo on my back), and cuckoo clock from the bavarian village we stayed in on our honeymoon
a skull and crossbones my husband brought me back from his Hawaiian vacation that he went on the day after he met me
a ship's wheel representing my husband working on a fishing boat in Alaska when I met him
a beehive from Utah
a loon, mama-and-baby moose, and the state shape from Minnesota

And for Mother's Day (this one is my first), my husband got me a silver silhouette of a little girl's head, and is having my daughter's name and birth date engraved on it. I will be adding it to my charm bracelet as well... it's my latest adventure!

 

[CherryRed]

Babydoll I see you have an Irish Claddagh on your bracelet too. I have one, a shamrock and an Irish harp.
Another favorite on mine it a knight on a horse. (hubby)

 

[cherry lips]

What a charming thread!

 

[goldwyn girl]

I LOVE charm bracelets and am always buying them. I have one that I collected all the charms for many years ago during my travels of the world. If I see a homeless vintage one I have to have it ! Unfortunately I don't have one from a family member, my mum was never interested nor my grandmother. I do have a couple from a lovely woman I know who was a teen in the 50's. She has told me about her getting and wearing them so they are special to me.

 

[texasgirl]

Great thread! I love everyones bracelets! I have one I've had since I was 16 that I've been adding to for years. I'll try and take a picture this weekend

 

[Puzzicato]

this is mine! My grandmother gave me a charm for every letter of the alphabet - from Aloysius (the teddybear) to Zebra.

 

[miss_elise]

i love this kind of charm bracelet - not so much the modern "Pandora" thingies