Charm Collecting - A Fun And Addictive Hobby

There is something so addictive about charms. You start by buying a few, or perhaps inherit or receive a charm bracelet as a gift, and all of a sudden, you can't resist the urge to get more and more of them. You have officially become a charm collector.

Small, lightweight and useful in so many ways, charms make for great items to collect. Even if you amass hundreds of them, you're not going to run out of space and there is always room for more. In order to keep the collection from getting completely out of hand, however, it's a smart idea to select a particular theme and try to stick to it (it's hard, I know!).

To help you zoom in on a specific theme, here are some suggestions:

A Specific Interest
There are charms in every shape you can imagine, some are more common that others of course, but if you have a passion in life (other than collecting jewelry!), focus your collection around that. It could be cooking, traveling, race cars, gardening, a sports team - you name it.

Fashion Designer Charms
Many of the famous clothing and bag designers also make charms in various forms that is to say Womens jewelry. Prada, Louis Vuitton and Gucci all offer them, and for some that are a bit more young and playful, check out Juicy Couture.

Special Occasions/Holidays
You could build a large collection just around a certain holiday such as Thanksgiving, Christmas, Valentines, Easter, etc. Or specific occasions like graduations, mother's day or weddings.

Antique Charms
Decide on a specific decade and go to town! Charms have been in fashion for so long that you can pick pretty much any time period and find plenty of them. You probably want to decide on a spending limit too, since prices in this category can range from a few dollars to tens of thousands.

Material
You could also build your collection around a specific material. Silver and gold are obvious choices, but how about Bakelite or celluloid? Celluloid charms were very popular in the 1920s, 30s and 40s, and came in boxes of Cracker Jacks and in gumball machines. There are many available on the market, but make sure that what you buy is an authentic piece in good condition.

Shopping For Charms
The easiest way is of course online, and I would suggest starting with doing quite a bit of online research on the particular type of charms you want to collect before starting to buy (or buying more of them). Read what the experts have to say, get on forums and ask questions, learn as much as possible in a word Designer Style 925 Silver And Ruby Woman Earring SE0020R Red. If you're shopping for gold or silver, read up on the different alloys and markings. Knowledge is key to buying the right items for your collection, and to be able to recognize a bargain or rare find when you see it.

Some other places to find unique pieces (both at home and abroad) are yard and estate sales, flea markets, antique shows and vintage shops.

Last but not least, let family and friends know about your new hobby. Tell them exactly what you're looking for, and you have solved their gift giving problems for years to come.

Making Your Own Jewelry - Materials I Use and Starting Your First Necklace

In this article I want to talk about the materials that I use, and getting started on our first necklace. What I like to do is use natural materials most of all--gem stones, seashells, maybe seeds, and stick with the metal such as sterling silver, gold filled, 14 carat gold metals in the beads. What I do is I buy mostly ones that are pre-drilled, because I'm not doing drilling here, although you can buy a piece that is not drilled and wire wrap it. We'll talk about that later. There are so many kinds of things that you can buy.

You can actually get spatial beads that are long tubed, swirly beads, straight beads and there's all kinds of things you can do-- donut shaped round beads, gold filled, sterling silver. I like to use the natural products because I also am aware that the gemstones in particular have, some people feel, their healing properties. That, to me, is what calls me to this work.

Getting started on our first necklace I thought we'd work with some very small light beads, so we are going to choose a fine wire, so that the beads can actually be thread on there without a problem. I measure it by, a lot of times, just holding it up to my neck and seeing where it falls, and then I just start stringing. Sometimes I string different arrangements on the same string of wire, just to see what section of it is looking better and it look like it works.

The ones that don't work I take those off and I kind of expand from there. You can take a larger piece and hang it from another piece of necklace. When you're hanging a bigger piece onto a necklace, you want to be able to figure out where it's going to go first before you actually make your bend, and you are going to want to use these round nose pliers to make a bend once I know that.

That's because the size of your circle that you use will depend on which size of the bead that you're going to put it next to. Once you have the necklace the way you want it to be and you're sure that you've counted your beads and that they're all even on both sides, you can go ahead and put on your clasp you start with putting a crimp bead on your wire, and then I'm going to use a trigger clasp and you'll want to thread that back around into the crimp bead, bring it up so that it's tight but not too tight. Then you use the crimping pliers. You'll squeeze this crimp bead, and it makes a crimp right in half, right in the middle, and you turn, and so one part of it is used to do that, and then at the end, it squeezes both halves together.

Give it a tug and make sure that it's holding, and trim the excess. So now you have your trigger clasp on the end of the wire. So on the other side, I like to add a length of chain, and what that will do is make it adjustable. So usually you cut off two or three inches, depending on the length of the rest of the necklace, and what we'll do again is put on the crimp bead, crimping the bead in half and then using the other end in the front to fold it. Now you can change the length of this necklace.

Titanium Bracelets As Gifts For the Men in Your Life

Choosing gifts for men is easy if it's about selecting gray socks, red power ties or the latest designer cologne, which is what most department stores assume we ladies want to give our men. But many of us have men in our lives who'd prefer to buy their own socks, don't wear power ties, and have already received enough cologne to last a lifetime from well-meaning relatives. So what do we give when we want to offer something that demonstrates we understand who they are? One of the things that is sometimes overlooked is titanium jewelry. No, not just any jewelry, but titanium. Why? Because even men who don't normally wear a lot jewelry often value a small item made from the ultra strong, very masculine, none-corrosive, almost indestructible, aero grade metal used in jets and spacecraft. It's not a girly gift. It's not too personal to be offensive. It's not so impersonal it hasn't required thought. It's not too expensive to create embarrassment for the receiver and not too cheap to make us embarrassed to give it.

Consider Some Unusual Titanium Bracelets

Just as one small example of an ideal present for a sportsman, specifically for a cyclist, is the titanium bike chain bracelet. It's designed to look like a bicycle chain but is made from solid titanium. It costs just under $100 and is available from online shops like Intense Titanium.

There's also a classic style that's great for an athlete who doesn't normally wear a lot of jewelry but would like a single piece that won't be harmed by saltwater, chlorine, or even perspiration. The item is an ID bracelet that costs just under $70 and features a distinctive chain link with a brushed or polished area for an inscription. It may be accented with a teeny gold rivet or be plain, however, the simplicity and versatility of this item makes it an ideal gift. Why? It can be personalized with a message, a few words, a slogan, a date, a name or, to be less personal, may be left blanc for any inscription the man may desire. It can also be an ideal gift for anyone who has need of a medical alert but doesn't want a standard style. These ID bracelets can be personalized to include a medical condition, an emblem or insignia or whatever is useful information in case of an emergency. Athletes may be in good physical condition, but that does not always mean they have no health concerns.

For something really different, consider a titanium magnetic bracelet with or without gold plating. There are some unusual styles through a UK distributor called Magnetic Direct, and they cost about ?35. These feature a solid titanium bracelet with a series of 13 magnets that have about 3000 gauss each in strength. The gold plating s a fun touch, however not essential.

Unusual Titanium Ring Designs For Men Of All Ages

If bracelets are not quite right, something smaller, although often considered more intimate, would be a titanium ring. Although many wedding bands are now made from titanium, don't let that scare you away. There are unique titanium rings that have tattoos, colored motifs, Celtic knots and even unusual style crosses. It doesn't matter what your relationship with the man, be he a husband, a boyfriend, a plutonic friend, a son, or even a father or grandfather, titanium jewelry offers masculine, versatile and thoughtful gift options for serious occasions or lighthearted fun.