The Joys of Castaway Jewelry
The musings of a charmer…
By Christine Schneider
Happily anticipating the surprises that lie within, I open the bag of jewelry and a new adventure begins.
SedonaKind receives excess jewelry from local thrift stores. To some, this bag of jewelry is simply a conglomeration of castaways from all those folks that donated their unwanted items. To us, they are the heart and soul of the wondrous and varied charms made by our members. These charms spread kindness near and far, making their way to thousands of places around the globe.
I can’t help but wonder, as I spread these new treasures over the table, where these pieces have been, who used and cherished them, how many memories of those adorned moments have been passed down through how many generations. Each piece has its own personality and soul.
I can envision one piece around the neck of a young woman going on her first date, meeting the love of her life and always remembering that piece as her “lucky charm.” She passes it down to her daughter who keeps it simply because it was so precious to her mother. She then passes it to her daughter who puts it in the “dress up” box for the kids. Her son pretends it’s a pirate’s treasure and her daughter wears it as she dances around like a princess. Then the kids grow up and the “dress up” box is sorted into two piles – throw out and thrift store.
Then there’s a piece with a beautiful bead and wire design and I can’t help but wonder how long the artist worked on it and where their inspiration came from. Was it designed for someone special or part of a collection? Did they sell it at a craft show or in a gallery or give it as a gift? How many people admired it, but either couldn’t afford it or had nowhere to go to wear it. How many special events did this piece get to go to?
Of course, everyone has their own style when it comes to jewelry and I play a guessing game as to what type of personality would wear some of the items. Who would wear the brightly colored, large beaded pieces versus the more subdued, dainty pieces. I smile as I consider my own dearly departed loved one’s when I see a piece that I know they would have loved.
Then, once in a while, there will be a religious medal or rosary in the bag. It often reminds me of a story my mother told me of her grandmother giving her a beautiful rosary for her communion. She used it often as I was growing up…probably praying for patience with my 4 siblings and I! She held that very rosary on the day that she died. I now have it and will cherish it always. Will it end up in a bag of donated items for a thrift store? Only time will tell, but certainly not as long as I have it.
I’m prepared to spend a few hours working on these pieces, extracting all that they have to offer, from chains to clasps and beads to baubles. Some pieces will be used for charms, others for adornments on our boxes of love. Some will be used to decorate gifts given to people in our community that we so appreciate and still others on cards or gifts to those that may need to know someone cares and is thinking of them.
Then, there’s that moment when I figure out how to breathe new life into these old pieces. I read somewhere that “creativity is making marvelous out of discarded” and that is my favorite part of this process. With love, kindness and all good intentions, a unique creation comes to life. I feel assured that the right person will receive or discover this gem at just the right time in their life. I hope it brings a smile to their face and an assurance that there is good in this world. I also hope that they will, in turn, pass it on with the same results.
It’s sometimes hard to let things go, especially when there is sentimental value attached to it, but as I go through my personal “stash” of old jewelry to donate to this amazing cause, I feel good knowing that I, or one of our charmers will breathe new life into it and at some point, it will bring a smile, or a happy tear, to someone, somewhere.
SedonaKind receives excess jewelry from local thrift stores. To some, this bag of jewelry is simply a conglomeration of castaways from all those folks that donated their unwanted items. To us, they are the heart and soul of the wondrous and varied charms made by our members. These charms spread kindness near and far, making their way to thousands of places around the globe.
I can’t help but wonder, as I spread these new treasures over the table, where these pieces have been, who used and cherished them, how many memories of those adorned moments have been passed down through how many generations. Each piece has its own personality and soul.
I can envision one piece around the neck of a young woman going on her first date, meeting the love of her life and always remembering that piece as her “lucky charm.” She passes it down to her daughter who keeps it simply because it was so precious to her mother. She then passes it to her daughter who puts it in the “dress up” box for the kids. Her son pretends it’s a pirate’s treasure and her daughter wears it as she dances around like a princess. Then the kids grow up and the “dress up” box is sorted into two piles – throw out and thrift store.
Then there’s a piece with a beautiful bead and wire design and I can’t help but wonder how long the artist worked on it and where their inspiration came from. Was it designed for someone special or part of a collection? Did they sell it at a craft show or in a gallery or give it as a gift? How many people admired it, but either couldn’t afford it or had nowhere to go to wear it. How many special events did this piece get to go to?
Of course, everyone has their own style when it comes to jewelry and I play a guessing game as to what type of personality would wear some of the items. Who would wear the brightly colored, large beaded pieces versus the more subdued, dainty pieces. I smile as I consider my own dearly departed loved one’s when I see a piece that I know they would have loved.
Then, once in a while, there will be a religious medal or rosary in the bag. It often reminds me of a story my mother told me of her grandmother giving her a beautiful rosary for her communion. She used it often as I was growing up…probably praying for patience with my 4 siblings and I! She held that very rosary on the day that she died. I now have it and will cherish it always. Will it end up in a bag of donated items for a thrift store? Only time will tell, but certainly not as long as I have it.
I’m prepared to spend a few hours working on these pieces, extracting all that they have to offer, from chains to clasps and beads to baubles. Some pieces will be used for charms, others for adornments on our boxes of love. Some will be used to decorate gifts given to people in our community that we so appreciate and still others on cards or gifts to those that may need to know someone cares and is thinking of them.
Then, there’s that moment when I figure out how to breathe new life into these old pieces. I read somewhere that “creativity is making marvelous out of discarded” and that is my favorite part of this process. With love, kindness and all good intentions, a unique creation comes to life. I feel assured that the right person will receive or discover this gem at just the right time in their life. I hope it brings a smile to their face and an assurance that there is good in this world. I also hope that they will, in turn, pass it on with the same results.
It’s sometimes hard to let things go, especially when there is sentimental value attached to it, but as I go through my personal “stash” of old jewelry to donate to this amazing cause, I feel good knowing that I, or one of our charmers will breathe new life into it and at some point, it will bring a smile, or a happy tear, to someone, somewhere.