We are making charm bracelets part of our personal progress program.

We are using charms from this website:
http://www.angelicimpressions.com/simplycharming.htm#a

We ordered the following charms:
Faith - faith
Divine Nature - crown
Individual Worth - treasure chest
Knowledge - chalkboard
Choice & Accountability - compass
Good Works - apples in basket
Integrity - barbell
Stand Ye In Holy Places - shoe-highheel

We just had New Beginnings last night and told the girls about the charm bracelets. We have an awards night almost every quarter for girls to earn whatever they have earned. We told them that if they had done 1 more goal between now and awards night, or of they are done with all goals, and only working on projects, they need to have contacted us and told us what they are doing for one of the projects, then they will get the bracelet with the shoe on it. Then, as they finish the project in each value, they will get a charm to go with that value.

They were very excited about these bracelets. Part of the excitement was that they are silver. They love silver and are excited the new medallion will be available in silver. We are hoping to find a charm each year to go with the theme.

This is a **HUGE** portion of our budget for the year and we decided that we are really going to have to be super cheap the rest of the year, but we decided it was worth it.

Contributed by: Alana Kirkham, Trabuco Ward, CaliforniaDna0813@aol.com (3/13/02)

We also presented our yw with charm bracelets for New Beginnings.  We gave each girl charm bracelet with only one charm - a heart with her name engraved on it. The girls will earn a charm in each value area as they complete their value project in that area.  We put together one complete bracelet to show them what they will earn, and it turned out really nice.  We used these charms:
Faith:  a girl praying
DN:  a crown
IW:  a snowflake
Knowledge:  an open book
C&A:  the scales of justice
GW:  a hand with a heart cut-out in it
Integrity:  the Salt Lake Temple

We had really good luck with a company on-line called www.RockyRoadSilver.com  They sell the charms by the weight of silver in them, and we found some great prices in comparison to other charm dealers!  There are tons of places to get the charm bracelets.  We used www.AuntiesBeads.com because we needed them in a hurry and they had them for $5.00 in stock.

I would also like to second the warning that this is a BIG part of our budget for this year, but we really felt that it was important to get them excited
about the new program.  The majority of the cost - the charms - will actually be spread out over the next few years as the girls earn the charms. 

Contributed by: Rachael in Michigan rachaelhayes@mail.deseretmail.com

You can call around to local bead or jewelry supply stores and ask if they sell chain by the foot. There are also several internet sights that sell chain by the foot (depending on what you are looking for). You can do a search using the keywords chain jewelry foot and will usually find several places that might work for you. A couple of good ones I found are:  rings n' things: http://www.rings-things.com/Catalog_Pages/026.htm   They sell chain by the foot in several different finishes and sell in bulk (so the more you get, the cheaper it is). They have a pewter finish chain but it is rather large. Also, their sales staff is very helpful when you call in your order. They are a wholesale distributor but will sell to anyone.

shipwreck beads: http://www.shipwreck.com    These guys sell beads, charms and "findings" (i.e. everything else you need to do your beading project such as chain, jump rings, clasps -- some great toggle clasps--, etc). Their charm prices are great since they also sell in bulk (the more you buy, the cheaper it is) and they have a decent selection. They don't have many chain options but they are dirt cheap! Their sterling plate figaro chain is very small (even the large one) and I found that the heavy curb chain from rings n things was a little larger and worked better (but more expensive).

Also, if you find cheap silver chain but it is too bright (if you are using pewter charms), you can "age" your chain with chemicals or varnish. Those of you in major crafty areas can probably find "antique vanish" which tole painters use to make their finished projects look older (found in the wood and stain department of some hardware stores). You can just paint that varnish onto the chain then wipe it off. Add coats to get the desired finish. American Accents makes an "antique pewter" kit which does the same thing but also comes with a can of silver spray paint. Also, some stained glass stores carry chemicals which can blacken your silver chain. Any of these should work to give your silver chain a more pewter finish if you have trouble finding pewter chain (as I did). Good luck!

Contributed by:  justgiriffic@earthlink.net