Look Back Ironcraft!

This Ironcraft's theme of vintage/retro made me look back at what I desired when I was younger. Our family always had plenty of food and a warm place to call home but not much left over for the luxuries or frivolities. The blessing here is that this is why I learned to sew and to make my own jewelry. I'd use old jewelry and make them new again. A teenager's need for bling turned into design skills.
I decided to make a bracelet for myself, much like I would make in my teens, using old charms and chains. I use to envy the girls at school with their charm bracelets. They were so shiny and so cool! I laugh when I see those old charm bracelets in consignment or second-hand shops now. Somehow the shine has worn off, my appreciation for shiny trinkets having morphed into an eye for craftsmanship and durability.
Nevertheless, I had lots of fun choosing the charms to add to my chain bracelet. I chose charms for their color, their shape and the significance I could imagine they would have had to me as a young girl. I added rings because they added movement in the piece. I chose a charm that says "Create" for my need and gratitude at being able to take what I have on hand and transform it into something I can use. Finally, I added something newer. I added one of my own hand-made beads. It is not vintage but one I am particularly proud of. It's a faux brown agate made from polymer clay and some of my best faux work in the medium.
So eat your heart out girls of my youth, I now have a charm bracelet of my own. And thank you Ironcraft for this challenge and the memories it brought.