Singaporebrides | Essentials

April 2011

A Charmed Life

By

Want to inject some old wedding traditions into your wedding that your closest pals will absolutely love? These little gifts pack a lot of sincere wishes and heartfelt appreciation into a tiny silver nugget. Every bridesmaid deserves one.

Almost every girl owns or covets a charm bracelet. There’s something very personal about this piece of jewellery, which definitely appeals to the sentimental side of all women. Worn around the wrist, it carries detachable little trinkets that represent something important to the wearer’s life. Its beauty and uniqueness lies in the fact that every charm bracelet looks and signifies something different for everyone.

Charm Cake with ribbons by Mary Kate McKenna

There’s a reason why these pendant-like jewellery are called “charms”—they were once worn as amulets to ward off evil. There’s evidence that charms made from animal bones, shells, mammoth tusks and clay were worn more than 3000 years ago. Then in ancient Egypt and Rome, charms were worn as symbols of luck and faith, and also for identification purposes.

A luggage signifies travel in the near future, while heels and a bag represents a well-filled wardrobe. A heart charm embellished with a cubic zirconia adds colour to the collection. European style wedding-themed charm bracelet from PANDORA. There are endless designs of beads made from a variety of materials in the store – you’ll not stop at one. Oh Joy! Labels and Stickers from .woodwould..

It was Queen Victoria who started the fashion of wearing charm bracelets as jewellery, and it soon became a trend amongst European nobles. Then its popularity soared after World War II, as home-coming soldiers brought handmade trinkets home to their loved ones. Interest and production waned after the 1980s as other kinds of jewellery gained popularity, but the increasing numbers of vintage collectors seem to have caused a resurgence in charm bracelet market.

If you’re impatient and want to purchase a complete set as a gift, many charm jewellers do have themed bracelets that will suit all occasions Juicy Couture is not only well-liked for its bag and clothing line, but also for its chunky, colourful and quirky range of charms and charm bracelets

There are actually many kinds of charm bracelets available today. The most popular ones are the Traditional, the European, and the Italian styles. The traditional ones are the most often-seen ones: the bracelet is often a chain link, and dangling charms are hooked onto these links. European charms are beaded rather than hooked and dangled. Made of anything from silver to Murano glass, these rounded charms are beaded with a sturdy, rope-like chain, and you can wear as many charms as your wrist allows. The Italian charm bracelet consists of a series of individual, modular links that are hooked onto one another around a stretchy band. Each of these flat, standard-sized links features a charm that has been soldered onto it.

Shopping, partying and sun-tanning in Paris and London? You know a girl hopes to be living and working in Europe if you see these charms around her wrist Agatha Paris has intricately crafted charms in wonderful collections and themes, like fairytale and wedding. There’s even a whole collection of kitchen utensils for girls who love to cook! Brass Letter Holder from .woodwould..

For many centuries after Queen Victoria’s reign, tiny charms have also been placed inside wedding cakes and used as a fortune-telling device for bride attendants. Traditionally, bridesmaids would assemble around the wedding cake after the cake-cutting ceremony and participate in ribbon-pulling—each one pulls out a ribbon that has been incorporated into the design of the cake. At the end of each ribbon would be a tiny charm, which are used as whimsical predictors of the bridesmaids’ future. For example, a coin meant prosperity; a ring, marriage; a thimble, singlehood.

Sometimes, just one, delicate little charm says it all. A rose represents eternal beauty. Immortalised in a charm, this is the perfect gift for any woman These crystal-embellished charms are from Swarovski. You can trust them to come up with such modern interpretations of the charm and still not forget to add that extra sparkle. Jewelled stampers and Flowering Cherry cards from .woodwould..

This lovely tradition has evolved from being a feature of the wedding cake into having its own baked delight: a charm cake, usually served at bridal showers or the bridesmaids luncheon. The brides would then buy each bridesmaid a bracelet for them to hang their charms from. Even that has been made easier in modern times for brides to simply buy charm bracelets as gifts, without the presence of any kind of cakes. If you think you’d like to give your lovely bridesmaids something special for your wedding, a charm with a personal blessing is more than perfect. They can even wear them on your wedding day! If you’re wondering where you can find these exceptional little gifts, why, you’re spoilt for choice!

For the girl who is all grown up, freshwater pearls add an elegance to the charm bracelet, while an elephant reminds her not to forget the wonderful people in her life These European style beaded charms from Lovelinks Gallery have designs that dangle like traditional charms, so you can have the best of both worlds. Bird Cage Balancing Game from .woodwould..

Of course, there are many other ways you can gift a charm—they don’t have to be worn on the wrist. Many charm retailers do earrings and necklaces, and many couture brands also do mobile phone charms and bag charms. You can also personalise other gifts with the help of a charm. Use them as part of a gift tag, where each unique charm identifies a special relationship you have with each of your bridesmaid. It gives special meaning to the saying “It’s the thought that counts.”

Plan a spa or pajama party with your bridesmaids and let them bring home these gifts. All girls love toiletries! The fun Poo-Pourri bathroom deodorisers even come with individual charms. If you know their horoscopes, the Soular Therapy body sprays and washes make wonderful thank you gifts. You can buy “Thank You” silver favour tags from Spotlight and  hang them from ribbons. All products from Flaming Queen

Store Listing:

PANDORA
Raffles City Shopping Centre, #01-37C
The Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands, #B2-77
Great World City, #01-39C
ION Orchard, #B1-09
Tampines Mall, #01-27


JUICY COUTURE
Ngee Ann City, #03-03

AGATHA PARIS
Mandarin Gallery, #02-30
The Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands, #B1-83/84


SWAROVSKI CRYSTAL
ION Orchard, #B1-17/18
The Centrepoint, #01-18
Tampines Mall, #01-05
Suntec City Mall, #01-034
The Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands, #B2-18


LOVELINKS GALLERY
Mandarin Gallery, #02-32


FLAMING QUEEN
Mandarin Gallery, #02-32


.woodwould..
The Cathay, #03-03
Mandarin Gallery, #03-24

All content from this article, including images, cannot be reproduced without credits or written permission from SingaporeBrides.

Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and Telegram for the latest article and promotion updates!