life, as told by a charm bracelet

I came across this post about charm bracelets on Garden & Gun's blog {so jealous she has her mother's and her grandmother's!!}, and was inspired to dig up my old charm bracelet:



I got a silver link bracelet from my aunt when I was about 13, I guess, and decided to turn it into a charm bracelet. I was all gung-ho about it for about a year, and then I sort of lost interest.  Then, when I was in college, I decided to switch all my charms over to an Italian silver bracelet, which was a little less dainty than the one I started with, and a little more substantial for holding charms that I'd received over the years. I decided to transfer several of the charms I'd collected over the years as gifts, or as part of a necklace to one location on my charm bracelet.



I have always adored all things old - old stories, old recipes, anything that tells a story of another time, especially if it involves someone you know.



I love that each charm has a story of its own, and that I can still remember where each one came from, and what it means, even if it is something as simple as being an object that I loved at the time {like the sun, moon, stars phase I went through in middle school, or the Eeyore phase I was in with my friends in high school}. I especially love receiving them as gifts, because I think it is sort of a little symbol of a connection you have with someone, or a little trinket that reminds them of you, and it always means a lot to me that someone took time to pick something with meaning.



To be perfectly honest, the constant jangle of the bracelet gets on my nerves a little.  But, I still enjoy collecting charms, telling their stories, and wearing my bracelet as a girlish {I know!} finish to an outfit.



I hope that one day, I will be able to pass my bracelet on to someone in my family who will appreciate the bracelet for what it is as well as the stories behind it.



Do you have a charm bracelet of your own, or one that belonged to someone you love? I'd love to hear about it, and see pictures!  Feel free to share a link to a photo in the comments ... I'd love to hear from you! Anyone can comment!!