Silver Charms

Sterling Silver Charms : a Full Range

There are thousands of sterling silver charms to choose from online and it can be difficult to know what to pick for the best. This guide aims to outline the various choices you have so that you can pick the best charms for you. Here are the key factors :-

1. The Look You Want

Do you want to hang a couple of charms from a bracelet or necklace or a whole collection of charms. If you are using just a couple choose quality charms which mean a lot to you with higher end pricing. If you want to build your bracelet “en masse” you will probably need to go quantity over quality. Just make sure you choose a few special charms which will “stand out from the crowd” to give your bracelet or necklace a unique look.

2. Color

You can buy charms which are totally made of sterling silver or you can buy those which have a coating or pattern of colored enamel. You can also buy silver bracelet charms encrusted with colored stones. You can either go for the plain “go with anything look”, choose a bohemian multi-colored look with different colored charms and stones or choose a mixture of plain slver and one color to go with a particular set of clothes. If you add colored charms you may be wise to have a way of easily detaching them. That way you can wear your bracelet with any color when you choose.

Silver Italian Handbag Charm (Click image for details)

Silver Italian Handbag Charm (Click image for details)

3. How You will Use Your Charms

Designers have started to use silver charms not just as jewelry attached to a bracelet but also on many other items. The main innovation here has been the creation of charms with clips which can be hooked on anywhere and as a result you will find them attached to cell phones, key rings, earrings and bags as well as bracelets and necklaces. If you are going to use your charms like this make sure they are fitted with the necessary clips (or buy the clips separately).

4. Traditional or New

Traditional sterling silver charms come in all sorts of shapes and you will get tons of choice if you shop online. (My local jewelry store was able to offer a choice of 8. Five minutes online and I swear I saw 800 silver charms to choose from). Alongside the traditional charms, there are also those mentioned previously which have pretty enamel coating or which have been encrusted with precious or semi precious stones. And now there are some completely new types of silver charm :-

Silver Bead charms

Bead charms are an interesting alternative to clip on traditional charms. They are threaded onto a thin chain bracelet rather than dangling from links yet you still choose individual silver beads to make up a totally unique bracelet. The beads are different shapes and sizes and are decoarted in different ways. Some are enameled. Some are encrusted with stones and some are just plain silver. A great choice if you’re looking for something a bit different from a normal charm bracelet but like the idea of your bracelett being different from every other one. The main brands to look out for with these bead type charm bracelets include Pandora Beads and Troll Beads.

Silver Italian Charms

Italian charms are also very different in the way they link together from the traditional style of silver charm. They first gained popularity in Italy and Europe hence their name. Italian charms clip onto an expandable bracelet rather than dangle from it. But again you choose each charm individually and make up a bracelet which is just for you.