ROMANCING THE CHARM SWAP: SIGN UP ON THIS POST TO PARTICIPATE

THE ROMANCING THE CHARM SWAP SIGN-UP IS NOW CLOSED. PLEASE CHECK BACK LATER TO SEE THE RESULTS OF OUR CHARM SWAP. THANKS FOR VISITING THE TATTERED ROSE AND PLEASE LEAVE A COMMENT.

Greetings, friends, followers, readers and lurkers! I am very happy to announce I am hosting a charm swap in honor of St. Valentine's Day! For those of you (like me) who may not currently have a significant other, or would just like to ensure a special little treat for the most romantic of days, here's your opportunity to get something extra sweet! for the special day. Sign up by leaving me a post here and an email address so I can contact you.
Here's how the swap will work: Make a charm for every member in the group (which will be no more than 30) with a romantic theme - I leave the interpretation to you of what's a romantic charm: a little string of beads with a heart, a bead with a romantic word, a romantic symbol, a romantic scene, whatever you think fits the theme of romancing the charm. The charms should be not longer than 1-1/2 inches and should have a silver colored jump ring attached to connect to a bracelet (or necklace or whatever else you can dream up to use your charms). The charms should be predominantly silver colored if they are metal, but may contain other metals in moderation. The charms can be from any medium: clay, metal, cloth, treated paper, shrink plastic, glass, china, etc.; they can be etched, stamped, soldered, stuffed, felted or any other method that meets the specifications. Return them to me in an envelope by January 23, 2009 and enclose enough U.S. POSTAGE for their return. Make sure your name and complete address is either legible on the outside of your envelope or enclose a legible card inside. You do not have to send a padded envelope (though it will be appreciated if you do) but be sure to enclose U.S. POSTAGE not the bar strip you get from post office as these cannot be used to mail the item to you (I know that sounds crazy, but it's the rule now. They will put the little strip on your package but when I take it to the post office to mail it back to the swapper, it cannot be used because it was made more than 24 hours ago. So this bears repeating. ENCLOSE ACTUAL U.S. POSTAGE STAMPS NOT A POSTAGE METER STRIP. (I was educated in my last swap when I had to pay postage for several of the packages because I did not warn the players of this problem.)
Here's what you will receive: a special handmade charm from everybody in the group! Just in time so you can assemble your own bracelet or necklace in time for the holiday!

For inspiration, read A CHARMING EXCHANGE by Kelly Snelling and Ruth Rae (North Light Books, 2008)

PRETTY LITTLE THINGS by Sally Jean Alexander or SEMIPRECIOUS SALVAGE by Stephanie Lee or any of the many, many other jewelry making books at your local libraries or book stores. No doubt, you may have some inspirational books, blogs or website of your own you can leave in the comment section to inspire us all.
Please sign up here for the Romancing the Charm swap by leaving your name and your email address if you have a no-reply blogger account. If you are worried about privacy, I will erase your email addresses before my next post. If you do not have a "no-reply blogger account" I believe I can get your email address from your comment and it is not necessary for you to leave it here. I need an email address so I can send group messages without having to contact your individual blogs or waiting for you to respond to my posts here.

Well, I think that's all the details, though no doubt I have left out something important. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask them here and to leave me any comments whether you are able to join in the swap or not!

I hope you will join in the fun! It's 7 weeks to make the charms and get them in the mail to me. I'm sorry I don't have a swap button, but please feel free to pass around this info. I'm looking forward to romancing the charms with you this Valentine's Day.

Cheers,

Trish G.