This Jewelry Tells a Story

Can anyone else relate to getting more and more sentimental as you get older?  

I’ve always been sentimental. I save things. I adore traditions. Things related to family and love make me teary.  

My son's first coloring page from 2006

It doesn’t take much to get the tears flowing. I cried at my son’s kindergarten graduation . . . and 10 weeks later when I dropped him off for the first day of first grade. I cried a couple weeks ago when I thought about my mom coming to visit (because I wanted to see her, just to be clear!).  I cried when my husband shared this video with me.  I cried just thinking about writing this blog post.  

I think it’s because the more time goes by, the more I realize how quickly time goes by. 

My son is approaching the age where he won’t want me to tuck him in at night anymore. So these days, even when I’m exhausted and just want to send him upstairs with a peck on the cheek, I’m really making an effort to put him to bed every night with a story and a song—like this one by Steven Curtis Chapman, which I’ve been singing to him ever since he was in utero.

The idea for Life Story birthstone jewelry was born out of my sentimentality and love of family. When my mom and my mother-in-law both lost their last living parent in the same year, I wanted to do something extra special for them for Mother’s Day that year. I’ve always loved birthstone jewelry, but I wanted this piece to be more. I wanted to create a piece to commemorate the family they came from and family they created. I wanted it to tell their life story.

I made a bracelet for my mom, using vintage pearls that belonged to my grandmother (her mom). The first strand of pearls starts with the birthstones of my mom’s parents. The second strand begins with my parents’ wedding anniversary stone, followed by the birthstones of my siblings and me.  

The bracelet I made for my mother-in-law uses a similar pattern and includes a charm of Czech glass in the colors of the Italian flag to commemorate her cultural heritage. 

This past Christmas, the idea grew. I wanted to create a special gift for my sister, something meaningful but simpler than the bracelet. So I developed the Life Story necklace.  

Sisters!

The Life Story necklace I made for my sister has a birthstone representing her, her husband and two children on a bronze chain finished with a charm of our parent's birthstones.

I made a necklace for myself, as well, and I love wearing it because it tells so much about my own family’s story. The birthstones for my husband, son and me are suspended from an antiqued sterling silver plated chain. An asymmetrical feature on the side includes three tiny pearls for my siblings and me, and the gems next to the pearls are my parents’ birthstones.   It reminds me of each of them and keeps them close to my heart.

Mother’s Day is coming up, and I can tell you from personal experience that these Life Story jewelry pieces make a guaranteed winner of a gift. The day my mom received her bracelet in the mail, I got a message on my phone that I couldn’t even decipher through her tears and hiccups. I couldn’t have been happier! (We sentimental types like to make other people cry so we have company.) 

Next time you're in the mood for a good cry, feel free to snag my Spotify list of my latest most sentimental songs.

Whether it’s for you or for a special gift for someone special, I’d love the opportunity to work with you to create a custom piece that tells your family’s story. We’ll add sentiment to birthstone jewelry by incorporating history and personal touches. We can integrate elements of a vintage jewelry piece that carries special meaning to you. Some of my clients choose to add a charm near the clasp to say something significant about their family.  

This client requested a charm of the infinity symbol to represent never-ending love

Delicate pink pearls on this bracelet speak to the strength and bravery of the breast cancer survivor who received this bracelet as a gift.

Tiny silver scissors make a perfect charm for this hair stylist's Life Story bracelet.

From now through Mother’s Day, my Life Story birthstone jewelry—necklaces and bracelets—are on sale. Mention coupon code Sentiment2013 when you order and get 15% off your custom jewelry.