3.16.2021

My Charm Bracelet


Who remembers this post? Just manifesting my charm bracelet into real-life over here! Looking back at that post, it hits on everything so perfectly that I wanted to share a quick little update on how it's going.


This is my charm bracelet how it stands currently. I'll get into each of them below but wanted to first talk about the bracelet itself. I was able to go into see the Charm Co office (pre-pandemic) and talk to them about starting a bracelet. I needed all the advice on where to start and how to go about finding charms and they were so helpful (they are the experts!).

I was also able to try on a few different chains they had available in store and fell in love with the one you see above. I was told it was a vintage piece so they don't have it on their site (I would say this is the most similar) BUT if you reach out to them, they can source a bracelet that is similar for you! They are so beyond nice and helpful, I go to them with everything. 

It's a gold double link charm bracelet and there are others you can source on places like eBay, local jewelry stores, vintage boutiques, and other online retailers. I tried on a few but fell in love with how this looked on my wrist. Starting a charm bracelet is all about what makes you happy!


New Zealand Charm: I picked this one up after looking everywhere in New Zealand's Queenstown and it's actually a necklace charm! I couldn't find a gold charm that I liked to save my life on our trip and we were in one of the main towns so I knew it was either here or nowhere. A lot of people are actually confused by what it is, and it's the country outline. 

Wedding Date Calendar: This was the first charm that I bought from Charm Co and possibly one of my favorites! It has our wedding date and the address of the house we were married engraved on the back. The stone can be whatever you want and we decided on a sapphire to represent my ring (and because I just love blue lol). This charm is perfect for just about anyone too -- can get a birthdate, an anniversary -- anything that is special it's totally customizable. 

(a picture of the inside basket (below) and back of the calendar (above))

New York City Custom Map Charm: This is my most recent charm that was added last week and I ADORE it. It was always in the plans to get a charm that represented NYC (even more so now that I'm gone) and while there are a million NYC charms, I couldn't find one that I loved. The thing about charms is that they're only truly special if they speak to you in a certain way and a taxi just wasn't *it*.

I remembered my SIL got a custom map charm necklace for her wedding and I loved the idea. I started playing around some with the idea of getting a double-sided map charm of my two apartments in the city. So I took to my iPad and traced over a google map from my two apartments and drew something up.

Then I reached out to Christina, who is a private jeweler in the area that I've been working with on another project (more to come next week!), and asked if she could make it happen. And guys... she DID. It could not have been easier either, I sent over the PDF drawings I created and she sent back a CAD design to approve and then in less than a month, it was back in my hands.

She has been amazing to work with and I just cannot say enough good things about her. So if you ever need anything custom, she is your girl!! I just love that I was able to create something in my mind and then have it come to life so perfectly. The danger is now I want to create a million more!!


Nantucket Basket Charm: This I bought during our anniversary trip to Nantucket this past summer. I knew I always wanted something for Nantucket and our love for the island and I thought what better time to buy one than on the island for our one year. A little story about this one is the day before our trip (actually on our anniversary) we found out we lost the house we currently live in. And on the trip I was like "screw it!" and went shopping. I went into just about every store on the island looking for a charm and kept coming back to the same place to look at the same basket over and over again. 

What really sold me was the little penny inside the basket, and if you know me pennies actually signify a big part of my life (6 penny, penny linn designs...) and remind me that my grandma is with me. So when I saw it, I teared up a little and knew it was a sign. Turns out later that day the sellers came back to the table to negotiate and now we live in the house!

Sydney Opera House Charm: Like New Zealand, Australia was impossible to find a charm that I *loved* -- there were a lot of good ones, some that I liked but wasn't sure it was worth the price, and others where I thought "I can find something better". I looked and looked and nothing came to fruition. I did end up finding this cute little gold opera house and told myself I would go back if I couldn't find anything at a better price. But when we did go back, the shop was closed. 

Sooooooo this is a charm from a gift shop in the Melbourne airport 😂. Officially my most affordable charm with "Australian gold" and "Australian Opal" (unverified lol) and I grabbed it as we were running to our gate to head to NZ. It was purchased with a smart water and (probably) chips. And again, was meant to be a pendant on a necklace, but I actually really love it. It makes me smile every time I see it at the fact that I spent so much time looking for a charm to just end up buying a duty-free one! But I actually love the color on it (I decided I want more color on my future charms!) and it's holding up really well.


Next on my "wish list" for charms are...

Kentucky: This has been on the wishlist since day 1 but I simply cannot find a UK charm I like. I'm thinking I may need to design one (now that I know I can), but I'm really scouring the internet here. I would love something blue and white, the emblem, a flag, or basketball-related would be fine for me, and (of course) gold. I'm finding lots of silver!!

30th Birthday: My 30th birthday is coming up in May and I'm in the thought process of figuring out what I want. I was originally thinking something that says "30" or "happy birthday" but I'm coming up short on anything I love. I've also started to look into items with emeralds or a Taurus (which is my birthstone and sign), which I thought would be cool to bring more color in. I have my eye on this vintage Taurus charm and this champagne bucket (that I would engrave and change out the stones to be emerald on).

Penny Linn Designs: I told myself when I launched if I hit $X amount in sales that I would celebrate by buying myself a charm. So I'm debating between my gardenia logo engraved on a circle charm or something with a 2020 penny on one side, and the logo on the back (similar to this). Still thinking it over (these charms are not just simple purchases lol). And I'm trying to stop myself from just putting a bag pull on my charm!!!

New Home: This is lower on the list as I can't find or imagine anything that really speaks to me right now, but eventually I would like to get a charm (a house would be cute!) to commemorate us buying a home. This is at the top of the (very rough) list


More than anything, I just love that each charm tells a story -- one that I'll be able to tell to my children and grandchildren one day! And I can't wait to see how it looks 5, 10, 50 years down the road. 


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