Charmed, I’m sure: The web offers funky, juicy trinkets

May 28, 3:03 AMLA Health and Beauty ExaminerSarah Torribio

Previous Next

Comment Print Email RSS Subscribe

Subscribe

Get alerts when there is a new article from the LA Health and Beauty Examiner. Read Examiner.com's terms of use.

Email Address   Include other special offers from Examiner.com Terms of Use

Charm Star sells this Airstream-style trailer trinket.

Baubles, bangles and beads are perennial favorites of the fashion-minded woman. But what about charms?

Whether suspended in bunches on bracelets or hung solo from necklaces and earrings, there is an indisputable charm to . . . well, the charm.

Usually made of metal—gold, silver, pewter or, more rarely, tin—a charm is a tiny sculpture that is the perfect size for wearing as jewelry. They are popular gifts (or gifts to ourselves!) because they make such a personal statement. Whatever is going on in your life, whatever you are into, there is a representative charm.

Does your favorite niece love ballet? There are countless shops and websites selling charms shaped like ballet shoes, tutus, twirling ballerinas and declarations like, “I love dance!”  At the Ballet Boutique site, you can even get a charm with Minnie Mouse on her tippie-toes.

Do you know someone who is about to have a baby, or who just welcomed a little bundle of joy? There are myriad sites offering charms shaped like all manner of baby gear, such as pacifiers, booties and duckies.

A search conducted on a website called The Find, which combs the web for gift ideas, turns up dozens of charms in the shape of prams—you know, the kind of old-fashioned stroller an English nurse might have once used to navigate a baby around Hyde Park. Options range from an über-affordable $10 and under to splurge items like 14-kt white gold pram charms from Diamond Harmony embellished with pink or blue sapphires and clocking in, as of this blog entry, at $414.95.

Inedible Jewelry's food charms look good enough to eat.

Everything and the kitsch-in sync

Classic charms on themes like the ones I mentioned above are timeless. To see how far back this charming tradition goes, you can read about the various heydays of commemorative charms in an article on the My Mother’s Charms site. What I’ve recently become interested in, though, is the lure of kitschy charms.

What is kitsch? According to the Urban Dictionary, the Yiddish-derived term means:

“A style of decorative art and design in which ordinary objects with vintage appeal, old-fashioned characteristics or banal usefulness feature prominently. Clutter, trite sayings, kitchen utensils and homey objects appeal as kitschy.”

I can best describe my fascination this way: “I can’t believe someone made a charm shaped like this, but I’m glad they did.”

Allow me to elaborate. A great company called Charm Star sells sterling silver charms of all kinds of adorable curiosities. They are sold hanging on necklaces and earrings instead of on bracelets because Charm Star founder Beth Lawrence—owner and creator of freshie & zero—a site devoted to Lawrence’s hammered jewelry—believes charms “should live their lives out in plain view.”

The Nashville-based jewelry maker has come up with some really quirky trinkets that will bring a smile to your face. Some of my funky faves are: a classic Airstream trailer, $24; popsicle twin pops, $22; a taco (Yes, a ½” wide sterling silver taco hanging on an 18” silver chain!), $24; a stack of pancakes topped with butter and syrup, $36; a Vespa-like scooter, $28; and a tiny cuckoo clock with dangling pendulum and three cute little birds, $30.

Those with a real sweet tooth might want to stop by Inedible Jewelry  and browse their “dessert” menu, which features charms ranging from an ice cream sandwich to a chocolate-covered strawberry to a swirly lollipop to a candy apple to a chocolate connoli to a slice of key lime pie.

Inedible Jewelry also includes main courses—yummy charms like a bagel with lox and cream cheese, several selections of sushi (nigiri, anyone?), a grilled cheese sandwich, a deviled egg and a wedge of brie. Each of the charms, which run $6 a piece, is designed and hand-sculpted out of polymer clay by crafty sisters Jessica and Susan Partain.
 

Juicy helps charms go couture.

Juicy charms

If you’re willing to pay $35 to $52 per charm, Juicy Couture has a fantastic and very collectible line of trinkets that will charm your socks off. Juicy’s covet-able selections include a turquoise-tinted 14-kt gold genie lamp, a pink enamel Buddha with a rhinestone bindi, a sexy and strappy black and silver Kiera wedge shoe, sassy pink heart sunglasses, a summery enamel and rhinestone citrus slice; and, of course, the signature Juicy crown, made of silver-tone plate over brass embellished with rhinestones.

Call me silly, but my favorite is a nice, juicy banana. The yellow enamel fruit peeks out of its 14-kt gold and rhinestone peel and seems to order fashion foodies to “Slip on me!” or, at least, “Slip me on!”

The charms can be affixed to silver or gold starter bracelets, which cost $42.

Inedible Jewelry, Charm Star and Juicy Couture are just three makes of charm that will have people asking, “Where did you buy that?” And you know, the third time’s a charm.

Yes, charm bracelets are a perennial favorite—a happy and harmless habit that you can build on.