Saturday 28 November 2015

Get creative with charms

wineglass-335Silver and gold charms are most frequently used to create a stunning charm bracelet, but the imagination and creativity of some people take them into places you would never expect to find them. I love hearing from my customers when they find a new use for charms and tell me how they were able to create something that would have been impossible or very difficult without them.


One of the very clever ideas one of our customers had, was to use silver charms to decorate a dolls house. A telephone charm is just the right size to sit beside the couch on a side table in the lounge room of a dolls house. Of course the charm was silver, which isn’t the best colour for a phone, but using automotive paints she was able to make it black and paint the numbers on the dial in white.


The charms we sell are delivered to our customers highly polished and the surface of the charm won’t always readily take a coat of paint directly. This is easily overcome by using an undercoat or primer. Spray paint in cans from an auto shop comes in hundreds of colours and the compatible primer is designed to adhere to bare metal. Applying several light coats will give a beautiful finish and a little care will prevent getting ‘runs’ where too much paint is applied in one pass. Should you make a mistake, automotive paint is soluble in acetone and a quick soak will remove it without causing any damage to the charm.


In our range of ‘house and home’ charms you could find many suitable items for decorating your own doll’s house. We have kitchen implements such as kettles, jugs, knives and forks and spoons. For the lounge room we have several styles of telephone charms, from modern to antique, so you are able to match the period of your home. You will also find chairs, clocks, candle sticks, champagne buckets and even toilet charms and grandfather clocks.


Another customer was unfortunate to lose her mother and wanted to create something special for her sister to remember her by. She made a crystal hanging and wove in some silver charms from our store. Her mother loved knitting, reading, flowers and dolls and she was able to find these charms on our website to incorporate into her craft-work. Being able to create something with your own hands that has such a personal meaning for someone you love must give you a deeply felt sense of joy in difficult times. Everyone has moments and loves that can be represented by beautiful and precious items designed for a bracelet, but able to be used in many other ways as well.


Charms can easily be integrated into handmade creations using wool or cotton that blends in with the materials you are using. Jump rings would normally be removed first, but if you needed to use them in your design you should order the charms with ‘closed’ jump rings. You may also choose to use link-locks so they can be attached without soldering that could damage the piece you are creating.


Clip on charms (with a parrot clasp) let you dress up nearly anything; mobile phone cases that need some extra bling, something to personalise your keys or on the zipper of a handbag or purse. The range of items you can accessorise is limited only by your imagination and the availability of somewhere to clip them.


wineglass-close-335If you simply have too much money then a set of wine glass trinkets could be just the thing to impress your friends. Extender chains are 5cm long and can have a charm attached halfway along the chain. They clip together around the stem of your wineglass so you will always know which one is yours. Simply choose a set of matching chains and an equal number of different charm designs so everyone has there own unique marker. Silver looks great, but if you want to truly show off  your wealth then gold charms are highly recommended. There’s nothing like the sound of gold on crystal as you raise your glass in a toast to your guests.


Christmas and birthday presents can be dressed up with charms too. Most of our silver charms are very inexpensive and look great attached to the ribbon of a present. A stick on bow will cost a couple of dollars and be thrown away, for just a few dollars more a charm will be cherished and can become a nice addition to the present. For birthdays a ‘sweet 16′ or ’21’ charm or any of the many special birthday charms would look great. At Christmas you might like to choose a Christmas tree charm or even a Santa charm for that special touch.


I’m sure that there are hundreds of ways to use charms other than on a bracelet and I would love to learn about how you have been creative with charms too. Please leave a comment to share with our other readers.


 



Get creative with charms

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