Traditionally, there are several times in a woman's life when she can receive a charm bracelet; once as a young girl and once for her marriage.

In the past, when a woman married, she was given a charm bracelet to celebrate her future. A charm bracelet with wedding bells or a marriage certificate was later filled with charms representing the honeymoon, anniversaries and the birth of her children. This bracelet was frequently referred to as a "Lifetime" bracelet, growing over the years to one day be passed onto her daughter, so she could continue the tradition of charm collecting from generation to generation.

Charm bracelets were passed on from mother to daughter, either as a new gift or as a family heirloom. The daughter then added her own charms to the bracelet, including ones that represented her favorite hobbies, interests and beliefs. As the daughter matured, so did her charm bracelet, increasing not only the number of charms, but also in sentimental value.

To a woman who lived during the 1930s, 40s and 50s, charms, usually worn in multiples on a link bracelet, were of great personal significance. A charm bracelet became a chronicle of a woman's life; a time capsule that represented her loves, her interests, her travels, and her experiences. These sentimental, yet precious objects told her story, and preserved it for generations to come.

A woman most probably received her first charm as a young girl; perhaps a ballerina or a flower. In her teenage years, she may have received the additions of a love token from a sweetheart, a souvenir from a school trip, a jeweled mortarboard for graduation. Charms commemorating her engagement, wedding, first home, children--all the major milestones of her life--followed in line.

With the mid-century trend for travel enabled her to see much more of the world than her mother and grandmother had. Perhaps a small cruise ship charm told of her honeymoon trip to the islands; or an Eiffel Tower charm of a romantic weekend in France. She could spend many a cocktail party explaining the numerous exotic travel mementos on her wrist.

Like many women of her day, a little pearl typewriter signified that she had a job outside the home. She might have also enjoyed sports (golf and tennis) and was loved the arts, particularly painting and theatre.

A woman might have added other charms to her bracelet simply for their beauty. Compared to the flat, stamped charms of modern times, vintage charms are three-dimensional, highly detailed, and often jeweled -- tiny works of art in their own right.

There's been a new trend for collecting vintage charms. Women today often wear a single charm from their collection on a bracelet, or as a pendant. Collections are often beautifully displayed in a shadow box, or hung from ribbons on a bulletin board, mirror or frame.

Vintage charms make wonderful gifts. For a recently married bride, each guest could gave the bride an antique charm representing one of her, or the couple's, interests or experiences. For another bride, she could do the opposite, using the antique charms as personalized thank-you gifts for her bridesmaids. Yet another idea would be that a woman could treat herself each birthday to a charm with some relevance to the preceding year of her life; and she could start the same tradition for her young daughters.

Charms have become popular as a way to express individualism, because no two bracelets are alike. Hobbies, crafts, work-related, and sports-related charms can be easily found, as well as those pertaining to pets and animals of all kinds.

There is a huge selection of charms available today, with a charm for every season and every reason. Many women find collecting charms addictive, and will include a many bracelets in their collection. The ease of removing and replacing charms make for endless combinations. A bracelet can be fashioned to correspond with any mood or occasion.

Charms have recently seen an increase in popularity, especially with celebrities. They've given their stamps of approval, as many Hollywood personalities have been photographed with their charm bracelets on. Designers, like Pandora Jewelry, have produced their own collectibles, and the sky is the limit in terms of both options and price. Early charms were typically quite inexpensive, however some of the charms available today can vary from under $10 to several hundred dollars each.

Pandora Jewelry invented a new system for charm bracelets and necklaces, which added a new dimension in collecting jewelry. This unique jewelry line established a foothold in Northern Europe as one of the most successful jewelry businesses to date. Since 2002, Pandora Jewelry has brought hope and opportunity to jewelers across North America.

Each item in the Pandora collection is a handmade Danish design in sterling silver and 14K gold. Various pieces of our line are handcrafted with colorful precious stones and cultured pearls.

Lewis Jewelers is proud to carry the full line of Pandora Jewelry. For more information, contact Lewis Jewelers at 877-88-LEWIS or visit www.pandorabraceletsusa.com.

More than the name of a legendary figure with an infamous box, Pandora is also the hot new jewelry trend that's sweeping America. This unique jewelry is now available at fine gift, jewelry and department stores across North America.

According to Greek mythology, Pandora was created by the Greek god Hephaestus. She was sent to earth with a box and when she opened it, all the evils of the world escaped. The only thing that remained in the box was the virtues of hope and opportunity. Hope and opportunity have become the inspiration behind Pandora Jewelry line.

This unique jewelry line has already established a foothold in Northern Europe as one of the most successful jewelry businesses to date. Since 2002, Pandora Jewelry has brought hope and opportunity to jewelers across North America.

The backbone of the Pandora bracelet is the unique patented threaded system. Each bracelet is divided into three sections by small threads. Each bead is equipped with interior threads, which allows you to screw individual beads onto any bracelet segment in the order you want. The beads move freely and rotate slightly with your wrists' movement, creating an undeniably eye-catching effect.

Whether your wearing jeans to formalwear, the Pandora bracelet enhances any attire. Each bracelet can be designed to be as unique as the woman who wears it.

With Pandora bracelets, you can create your own look and style. Make one for every whim or special moment. For example, you can design the Bohemian romantic, the elegant chic, the raw grace, the 60's flower power, the charmed sophisticate, the billionaire, the simplistic minimalist, or the pure feminine. Use Pandora Jewelry to change your mood and express your personality.

Patented Pandora bracelets can range in price from $21 for the basic sterling silver to $750 for a solid 14k gold. Small attachments price out at $9 and clips and beads range from $16.50 to well over $500.

Dedicated Pandora jewelry designers work hard in our in-house design studio in Copenhagen, Denmark, to ensure consistent innovative integrity and originality in our products. Our factory employs 250 highly trained silversmiths and goldsmiths to fashion every design into a finished jewelry product. Pandora introduces new designs four times a year.

Pandora Jewelry is also famous for its philanthropy through its sponsorship of two major organizations, The Susan G. Komen Foundation and the Mississippi Hurricane Recovery Fund. We designed a bead especially for each foundation. A portion of the profits from the sale of each custom bead is donated to the foundation. Pandora Jewelry has donated more $50,000 to our sponsored organizations.

Pandora Jewelry also sponsors Glamour Magazine's Women of the Year Awards. Each year, Glamour Magazine honors extraordinary and inspirational women from a variety of fields including entertainment, business, sports, music, education, and politics. Pandora Jewelry donates a custom made bracelet to each winner.

Lewis Jewelers is proud to carry the full line of Pandora Jewelry. For more information, contact Lewis Jewelers at 877-88-LEWIS or visit www.pandorabraceletsusa.com.

As Mother's day approaches many of us think about the extraordinary women who shaped our lives. Many people not only honor their mother on Mother's Day, but also like to give gifts to grandmothers, aunts, sisters and nurturing friends. Jewelry is an excellent gift to give at Mother's Day. Jewelry fits everyone and can be cherished for years to come. Unlike chocolate which is fattening, and perfume which can cause allergic reactions, jewelry is one of the safest gifts you can give. However, it's important that you select the right piece of jewelry.

1. Pick a piece of jewelry that will reflect her lifestyle. Does person you are buying for dress up or does she have a casual wardrobe? Does she like bright colors or prefer neutral? Does she like large, eye catching pieces, does she wear whimsical pieces, or is she into something understated?

2. Pick out something personal. Custom made jewelry can be surprisingly affordable. You may be able to purchase a custom made bracelet or necklace and select birthstones, design features, and special beads or crystals, for the same price as a premade manufactured piece. Think about things your mother or friend loves to do. Maybe you want to add a special charm or order a bracelet using her favorite colors.

3. Select something that's easy care and easy wear. A stretchy bracelet makes an excellent gift for a woman who has a physical impairment such as arthritis, ms, or a stroke survivor. Look for gifts that are durable and that do not require expensive cleaning.

4. Find out about possible skin allergies. A small percentage of the population suffers allergic reactions to low grade silver and gold. By selecting a custom necklace or bracelet, you can order your jewelry with the type of products that will not cause an allergic reaction. For example, maybe your mother would do better with a leather necklace or high-end bracelet that meets a specific minimum grade of silver or gold.

5. Select something unique. There are several advantages to selecting a unique piece of jewelry; it creates a lasting memory, it makes the person wearing it feel special, and it gives the person wearing the jewelry an opportunity to talk about the gift giver. And let's face it, mom's love to talk about their children.

6. Order the correct size. A stretchy bracelet will fit anyone. Bracelet and necklace sizes are determined by measured inches from tip-to-tip. Typical bracelet sizes are 6, 6.5, 7, and 7.5. If you don't know what size to order, select a size 7, which is an average length. Necklaces come in a variety of lengths. A 15 inch necklace will feel like a comfortable choker on most women. A size 17 necklace will hang loosely around the neck. If the special woman in your life carries extra weight in her face and neck, she'll probably enjoy a 17 or even an 18-inch necklace more than a 15-inch necklace.

Shopping online can be an intimating experience in that there are so many ways to do it. You have to first decide whether it is one item or many that you have to get. Then you have to decide hot to find what you want and where to get the price. Then you have to decide whether buying online is even the best way to even do it.

Lets say that you would rather shop online than go to a typical brick and mortar shopping mall. Lets also assume you have more than one item to look for and lets assume that all of what you have to search for may not be at just one store. So you have to decide, do you go to multiple web sites of various types of stores or do you go to an online shopping mall. You do a search using on the major search engines for online shopping malls and find a lot of them but some are repeated more than once because of how they are defined.

You find that all online shopping malls are not created equal. You may find that some have just a few stores or categories for a certain niche market, some may not accept major credit cards or even some require you to actually leave the online mall site to make payment arrangements. Upon further analysis, you may find that some online shopping malls act as a go between where, although the merchandise passes through the mall, the actual supplier may be another store that just uses the mall as a broker to sell their goods and the actual merchandise comes from the store and not the mall. For this go between processes, you may have to pay a little more shipping and handling fees.

There is another way to shop through an of online and that is through a portal. This portal affords the customer to register, and then shop the actual stores that would anyway. The actual store handles the sale, credit card arrangements and customer service. The benefit of going through the portal is that the store you are shopping pays a cash rebate back to you for shopping through them. This rebate is credited back to the customer�s portal account and at the end of each period, typically monthly, and then the customer is issued a check for their rebate purchases. The of portal shopping mall works with the stores to give the highest rebates possible and varies these amounts as they see fit. Each month, the portal shopping mall offers specials like free shopping or coupon codes applicable for certain items or additional discounts for certain quantities. The more you shop at these particular stores, the more you save. Both the customer and the stores benefit by this process so it is a win win situation for everyone.

The portal shopping mall concept does have a customer service contact to assure you get your rebates. If for some reason you don�t get credit for a purchase, you merely contract them and they work with you to resolve any dispute. Clearly, this may be the best way to of online .

Shopping online can be an intimating experience in that there are so many ways to do it. You have to first decide whether it is one item or many that you have to get. Then you have to decide hot to find what you want and where to get the price. Then you have to decide whether buying online is even the best way to even do it.

Lets say that you would rather shop online than go to a typical brick and mortar shopping mall. Lets also assume you have more than one item to look for and lets assume that all of what you have to search for may not be at just one store. So you have to decide, do you go to multiple web sites of various types of stores or do you go to an online shopping mall. You do a search using on the major search engines for online shopping malls and find a lot of them but some are repeated more than once because of how they are defined.

You find that all online shopping malls are not created equal. You may find that some have just a few stores or categories for a certain niche market, some may not accept major credit cards or even some require you to actually leave the online mall site to make payment arrangements. Upon further analysis, you may find that some online shopping malls act as a go between where, although the merchandise passes through the mall, the actual supplier may be another store that just uses the mall as a broker to sell their goods and the actual merchandise comes from the store and not the mall. For this go between processes, you may have to pay a little more shipping and handling fees.

There is another way to shop through an of online and that is through a portal. This portal affords the customer to register, and then shop the actual stores that would anyway. The actual store handles the sale, credit card arrangements and customer service. The benefit of going through the portal is that the store you are shopping pays a cash rebate back to you for shopping through them. This rebate is credited back to the customer�s portal account and at the end of each period, typically monthly, and then the customer is issued a check for their rebate purchases. The of portal shopping mall works with the stores to give the highest rebates possible and varies these amounts as they see fit. Each month, the portal shopping mall offers specials like free shopping or coupon codes applicable for certain items or additional discounts for certain quantities. The more you shop at these particular stores, the more you save. Both the customer and the stores benefit by this process so it is a win win situation for everyone.

The portal shopping mall concept does have a customer service contact to assure you get your rebates. If for some reason you don�t get credit for a purchase, you merely contract them and they work with you to resolve any dispute. Clearly, this may be the best way to of online .

Your d-day is fast approaching along with many last minute trepidations, and you strive to look your best. Something that flatters your curves and something that you can carry yourself well in, is what makes you want to reminisce your wedding gown as much as you would love to reminisce about the wedding night. An ideal gown is the one that accentuates your figure and camouflages the flaws, highlights what needs to be highlighted, yet, making up for the natural flaws. Gone are the days when women strived for an hourglass figure. Now, being fleshy is in vogue and brides have no qualms asking for a plus size bridal gown.

First and foremost, the bride needs to measure up her height, the width can wait. Her frame should decide the hue of her plus size bridal gown. A lissome and slender frame can carry any color with flair. A voluptuous frame has many options to choose from even in plus size bridal gown

The pear shaped woman has a bigger waistline, as compared to a smaller upper body. This is most commonly found in women. Wider hips can be concealed by A-line plus size bridal gown that have ample flair flowing and concealing the width of the hips.

An apple shaped body, where the bust line is bigger than the waist line will look better in plus size bridal gowns with V-necklines. This however should be avoided if you have a pear shaped body.

A full skirt Ballerina plus size bridal gown will accentuate slim hips and fuller busts, making you look like an enchanting princess on your d-day. However, avoid this if you have wide hips. Also avoid halter neck plus size gowns if you are top heavy. Having minimum embroidery at the bust line, reserving such ornate designs around the hips, can divert the gaze to the hips, instead of the torso.

The next determining factor is your complexion. A pale complexion will look stunning in peach, cream, lavender, sea green and pink, as much as with pure white and pearly hues. Chocolate hues, gold, silver grey, mauve and ivory will go well on dusky complexioned lasses. The idea is, gowns can either complement your skin tone, or be a contrast to the tone.

A plus size bridal gown with pastel shades will go well with lighter shades of skin tone, where you can flaunt your ample busts, show a bit of your cleavage. Amongst the pastel shades, there are the pink, ivory, silver, mauve, sea green and cream. Amongst the darker ones, you have the golden and lavender ones. A plus size bridal gown in ivory or pure white with satin finish looks gorgeous.

If you possess stunning, shapely arms do show them off in sleeveless plus size bridal gowns. It would be a crime if the shapeliness of your arms is concealed by ornate designs on the sleeves, however exquisite the sleeves may be.

A tall, slender frame can use a lot of frilly plus size bridal gown, with sequins, pearls, latticed and feminine ones. A shorter frame will look better in simple cuts, which accentuate the curves.

A paunch needs to be concealed too. A gathered smock sweep along the midriff can
mask this flaw.

Japanese pearls popularly known worldwide as akoya saltwater pearls carry thick nacre and intense luster. Japanese cultured pearls are produced by a species of small oysters, Pinctada fucata, no bigger than 6 to 7 cm in size, Akoya oyster is a species of salt-water mollusk that produces this type of pearl. Japanese pearls larger than 10 mm in diameter are extremely rare and highly prized. Best time to harvest these cultured pearls is during periods when the oysters are dormant. This occurs during the hottest and coldest times of the year. If harvested some other time it may bring less layers of nacre and dull luster.

Kokichi Mikimoto had perfected the technique of culturing akoya pearls. Mikimoto grew full-round pearls by inserting beads into the pinctada martensii mollusk, now simply called akoya. Japanese pearls luster and luminescent depth rivaled naturals pearls which are rarity now.

China has emerged now to grow high quality akoya pearls. Water quality in famous biwa lake of Japan has tremendously affected the production of high quality akoya Japanese pearls and many large Japanese pearl growers have switched their productions or affiliated with Chinese pearl farms to grow akoya cultured pearls and monitor the high standard quality of pearl harvesting. As a result there has been quite a jump in the sale of Japanese pearls both in domestic and international markets.

Akoya pearl necklaces have become symbols for beauty and elegance and one of the most popular pearls the world over. Japanese pearls are in fact the epitome for the classic beauty, quality and grace when it comes to pearl luster. High thick luster is a hallmark for any pearl. Each pearl is hand-knotted to make full matching pearl necklace. Japanese pearls are indeed adorable and much sought after. White color Japanese pearls are the best and traditional classic pearls. There was a time when only rich could afford pearls and hence it became precious and more so a status symbols among rich people to possess and show off pearl jewelry but not anymore. With the modern improved techniques of culturing pearls, it has now become affordable by everyone. Pearls are always in fashion and always in style.