Collector's Corner | Ivy @ ivylovespandora - The Art of Pandora

Brighten your day with the colourful Ivy from @ivylovespandora on Collector’s Corner!

Hi Ivy! Thank you for joining us on Collector’s Corner. How are you? I hope you are comfy and are settled down with a drink.

Hi Dora! Right now I’m drinking DAVIDsTEA Glitter and Gold tea with soy milk. It was the first DAVIDsTEA I ever tried and it’s been my favourite ever since. It’s a nice deep black tea with orange rind and cloves, it’s very warming! It has since been retired too unfortunately but the last time it was available I was very bad and managed to snag myself a kilo.

Haha! There is absolutely nothing wrong with stock piling on tea… or Pandora! In fact when did you start collecting Pandora jewellery?

I began my Pandora journey in 2013. I was desperate for a bracelet and when I didn’t get one from my family I decided to treat myself after a tough semester in university.

Pandora is the perfect pick-me-up! What was it that made you first fall in love with Pandora jewellery?

My mom had been collecting the charms and bracelets for quite some time, and she had some really beautiful pieces, particularly ones with genuine amethysts which she loves. We didn’t even have a concept store in my city yet. She always brought the catalogues home and I loved those so much; I treated them just like the old Sears Wishbook when I was a kid and I would circle everything I wanted, even the 18k and diamond love pods despite not having a job or even any money of my own!

I loved the unique classic Pandora two tone look right away and I knew if they ever came out with a unicorn charm that would be it for me. The Last Unicorn was one of my all time favourite movies growing up and I had every single unicorn Beanie Baby they ever released in Canada. Sure enough, the fall of 2013 they release the beautiful two tone unicorn dangle and that became my first charm. I started with the iconic barrel clasp snake chain bracelet, a bright silver rockstar and a sun and moon clip, the unicorn, and the original ghost and pumpkin charms. I quickly fell down the murano glass rabbit hole and I haven’t been the same since.

The old style of charm bracelets were always so beautiful to me, and my mom had one that was given to her by her grandmother when she went to San Francisco, and another one with charms from my dad.

I worked for Pandora for a couple of years after university and that definitely helped me grow my collection! I loved the people I met there, seeing their collections and hearing their stories. Right away I understood that one of the best parts of Pandora is the community, the people are so supportive and kind (not to mention a little bit enabling of our shared habit!).

I love the colour, the interchangeability and the personal meanings. I love that so many of us can have the same charm but it means something different to each of us. For me my Pandora collection is just something else that allows me to be creative. I can express myself and tell the world parts of my story with my charms and the choices I make with colour and arrangement. It’s a conversation starter and it’s my other favourite hobby now (aside from knitting!). I love matching my charms to my handmade sweaters and themed t-shirts. It’s fun for me to show them to my coworkers when I manage to find something rare or particularly exciting.

I don’t think you are the only one who does that with the catalogues! Do you also strategically leave them around where someone might see your favourites?! You’ve been collecting for quite some time now, can you tell us about your collection?

Like most of us I think I started collecting under the delusion that once I had one full bracelet I would be done. That phase passed quickly and soon I was looking forward to the bracelet events so I could grow my collection most efficiently. My first charms were mostly pink coloured, sparkly, and related to my hobbies and interests. I quickly had several pink muranos and was starting to break into two tone so that my dream of having an all two tone bracelet could come to life. The year the Disney collection launched in North America I splurged with some help from my family on a bunch of Disney charms so I could get the 14k clasp bracelet for free! What a birthday present to me that year.

I love Disney charms, murano glass and hunting down retired beauties from other Pandora fans all over the world. For a while I didn’t wear the murano glass at all, at the time I preferred a more neutral look, but that time has long since passed! If there are no muranos on my soft bracelets I love to layer with a bangle that has some colour to it.

Disney charms, especially Disney Park exclusives are some of my all time favourites. I was a kid during the 90s Disney renaissance so I have so many fond memories from the films of that period in particular. Beauty and the Beast is my all time favourite Disney film, I love the animation, the characters and the music.

Now, 8+ years on, I have 20 snake chain bracelets that are more or less full of charms and a handful of special clasp bangles with mini designs that I change around depending on the season or for events. I’ve just started collecting the new Pandora ME redesign as well! I love the new ruthenium bracelet, it’s so versatile and very different from a lot of previous Pandora styles.

I was also deluded that I would only get one Pandora bracelet! Do you have any rare, or hard to find pieces in your Pandora collection?

I think my rarest charm would be the Ugly Duckling from the Hans Christian Andersen set. I definitely identify with that story as I was bullied very extensively for how I looked as a kid. I would love to one day complete the entire HCA collection; I would put the Top Hat charm on my Alice bracelet and the Princess and the Pea charm with my other fairytale two tones.

I also have a handful of retired Disney charms which as we all know become pretty hard to find as soon as they’re discontinued. I managed to get the 90^th anniversary Mickey two tone, the 75^th anniversary of Fantasia Parks exclusive and the Alice in the Teacup charm. Earlier in the year when I was really having a terrible time after my dog passed away one of my closest friends, who is not a Pandora person at all, knew that I had the Disney Parks Paris exclusive Cheshire Cat charm on my wishlist and she managed to track one down and send it to me. To say that I was touched would be an understatement.

This year my goal was to complete my collection of Disney Princess muranos and thanks to the Pandora community my dream has come true.

I am so sorry to hear that you were bullied when you were younger. I have also had issues with a bully in the past and know how damaging it can be. But on a positive note, your friend was so kind in locating the Disney Parks Cheshire Cat charm! She sounds like a real treasure and I am sure that charm is extra special to you. What is your favourite item of Pandora jewellery?

This is the hardest question for me to answer! I love all my pieces so much and for different reasons. Even though I have so many charms at this point (who can relate haha) I remember who gave me each one and for what. My favourite charm aesthetically is my 14k Gold Golden Radiance charm with pink sapphires. It’s one of the older 14k charms and the soft pink of the genuine stones against the warmth of the yellow 14k gold is really spectacular to me. That one I received from my partner for our 5^th anniversary to go with my pink sapphire five stone ring (not from Pandora unfortunately). The stones are just so beautiful and at just the right time of day, around golden hour or just after in outdoor light the stones look more lavender than pink.

I think my favourite piece for an emotional reason is the Pandora Club charm from 2014. I got it from my Nanny and Poppa for the year I graduated. It was a big deal for them because I was the first grandkid with a university degree and it’s not every day your grandchild grows up to get a fine arts degree. Unfortunately because of my Nanny’s health issues they weren’t able to travel to see my ceremony. Everyone was disappointed but I understood why of course. She passed away in 2016 and he passed away in 2018 and it’s extra special to me now.

Ah bless, your Nanny and Poppa sound like they were real sweetie pies.
With such a large collection, how do your wear your jewellery? Do you make up bracelets one by one, or do you keep your charms and bracelets separate and make up bracelets for any occasion?

I usually shop by theme, I start by choosing a charm or a bracelet that I like and I will build from there. For example I knew I needed an Alice in Wonderland bracelet for my Alice charms. I thought the enamel daisy clasp would be a perfect compliment for the garden themed details, which then paired with the daisy safety chain. I built the rest of the details around knowing I wanted to reproduce the Cheshire Cat colours as well as the colour from Alice’s dress all around the bracelet.

Everything is very themed and unless I have something very specific I’m dressing for (like my friend’s wedding where I wore all silver stars) I leave the bracelets more or less intact once I finish them. I might switch something out if I get something new that fits the theme but that starts a cascading problem of “now where do I put this one?”

I have a Cinderella bracelet, a Beauty and the Beast bracelet, a Mickey and Minnie Bracelet; then I also have my “Pandora Disney Friends” bracelets where my Bambi, Pinocchio, Toy Story and other friends live, as well as my Star Wars bracelet and my Disney Christmas bracelet. I also have a 14k Gold clasp bracelet with all gold charms, clips and safety chain, two 14k Gold clasp bracelets with fairytale themed charms and nature themed charms separately, and two all silver bracelets that are my hobbies and interests. I have a blue nighttime bracelet, a springtime birthday bracelet, a pink and purple autumn sunset bracelet, a pink, rose and white bracelet where my Pandora Club charms live, and a pink floral hearts bracelet on the enchanted padlock bracelet. Not to mention my dozen or so bangles for stacking.

That sounds very organised! Now for the juicy question, what is currently on your wish list?

The better question is what isn’t on my wishlist! It seems to grow by the day. I would love to start a dedicated Halloween bracelet and use the new Matte Purple Murano charms with the Rose Glittering Sunset Murano charms. I would still need the new Pumpkin and Skeleton Girl charms, and some other creepy things like the Treasure Chest or the Purple & Green Leaf charm.

Since I have a Christmas bracelet now (I resisted for so long but the new Bambi and Thumper dangle sort of forced my hand!) I would love to move it to the double wrap sparkle clasp bracelet, and add the Christmas puppy to it. I am dying to complete my Star Wars collection with the C3P0, R2D2, BB8, Han and Leia, the Millennium Falcon and Yoda dangles in particular. There are so many beautiful details in the new Harry Potter pieces, I love the Snape Patronus dangle, and the see-through enamel on the Flying Key is incredible.

I would love to get some more of the Disney Parks exclusive pieces, especially the Stitch castle, the Wish You Were Here Postcard, Maleficent, the Toy Story Land, the Autograph Book charms. Plus maybe even if I’m lucky something for the 50^th Anniversary of Walt Disney World. I’m also on the hunt for the Shimmering Rose Clips, the Enchanted Hearts Clips, and the two tone Fairytale Fish.

I’m also really into the new Pandora ME and I would love the smaller link necklace (let’s be honest I would love the large link necklace to layer and mix with too) and the pearl Smiley Face dangle. There’s something so hilarious about it and I think it would be fun on either the silver and pearl bracelet or the edgier black ruthenium bracelets I already have. I also think at this point since I’ve accidentally become so invested in Pandora Rose I should have the Pandora ME Rose ME Link and round styling link to go with my other bracelets… what do you think?

Wow that is some list! Although to be honest I just keep my wish list in my head as it looks too scary written down! Definitely go for the Pandora ME Rose Link Bracelet and Smiley Face dangle, they are both awesome pieces. It sounds like you are a fan of the Pandora ME relaunch, what do you think about the direction Pandora has taken in 2021?

I’m happy to see that they have stepped away from everything being just a button style charm. I know we still get them but they seem to be more in line with a theme or a specific design. I remember a couple of years ago when everything was covered in CZ, charms didn’t really have meaningful names, and there was nothing that seemed personal to me and I had mostly stopped collecting. I am so glad that time seems to have passed. What made me fall in love with Pandora was the uniqueness of the characters and how detailed everything was, as well as the natural gems.

I love that there are more charms based on hobbies and interests so that there is something for a whole variety of people. I’m also excited that they are really expanding the Disney assortment. They’re adding so many princesses, girls who haven’t had any or many charms before. I love that their campaign images are inclusive and they’re showcasing the real people of Pandora and it’s not so editorial and stylized. The people who love Pandora are real and varied individuals who look to the brand because they want to see themselves and express themselves. I think Pandora understands that. I’m also very excited about the focus on sustainability, both in regards to packaging and waste but also in terms of their materials. I think the collaboration with UNICEF really reinforces how important all these decisions are.

I completely agree with you about the button charms. The new openwork button charms are very intricate and detailed pieces which tell a story. A definite improvement. What would you like to see from Pandora in the future?

I think a return to more natural stones would be really exciting for me. Even if we went in the direction of synthetic or lab created instead of mined from the ground. Just about any time I see a charm that has the lab sapphire or ruby I add it to my collection. I love the durability and sparkle of those stones as opposed to CZ.

The Murano collection I think also would benefit greatly from a big expansion. The Sunset and Shimmering Blue Waves Muranos are great and really fit the new style of Pandora. I would love to see more detailed Muranos like the Enchanted Garden or the Rainbow Clouds. The raised Pink Flower Murano from mother’s day a few years back were really neat and I think Pandora could really do some incredible things with more 3D lampwork style glass beads.

I think the Pandora Brilliance collection (so far sadly only available in the UK) is something amazing and new and I am really hoping they take it to more markets. I know if it came to Canada I would be first in line at my local store! I also think there are more than enough Harry Potter charms that Potterheads need a soft snakechain bracelet to fit more charms than the firm bangle. I would love to see a Hogwarts button style clasp like we saw with the wildflower button clasp. There could even be a tiny Hedwig dangle like the little flower dangle.

Oooh they are some great ideas! I hope Pandora is reading! As someone who collects Disney x Pandora, which Disney character would you like to see Pandora produce in the future?

I’ve always loved the Muppets and really anything Jim Henson. We watch Muppets Christmas Carol and Muppets Family Christmas every year in my house. I would absolutely be over the moon if there were to be Muppets charms. They could do the babies style and have Kermit, Miss Piggy and the whole gang. The Kermit green and Piggy pink would go so well with the rest of the babies assortment. I would even love to see a “Partners” style charm with Jim and Kermit together.

The Toy Story charms are so fun and the articulated joints make them really stand out. I think it would be so fun to have a Bullseye charm where his legs dangle freely so they flop like they do in the movies! The Star Wars Death Star clips were a fantastic surprise for anyone hoping for a fully Star Wars themed bracelet. I think now we need a Star Wars safety chain, what if you have two starships like they’re in battle, and the chain itself could be the exchanging fire? I also think we need some proper lighstaber charms, they have the glowing glass in the bottom of the firefly, what about glowing coloured glass for the different sabers; purple, blue, green, even red and yellow? I think people would love that, and what a fun way to show if you’re on the light side or the dark side of the force! One of my favourite Disney characters is of course Cheshire Cat, I think a Cheshire murano would be super fun, either his glowing smile over black or his iconic pink and purple stripes.

I would love a Cheshire Cat Murano! Muppet Babies charms are a fantastic idea too.
These last two years have full of change for all of us. How do you think your Pandora collecting has been affected by the Pandemic?

It was so odd, the day or so before my province locked down I went to my local store and bought the new Mulan charms and I talked to my favourite sales associate about how odd it all was, what we thought was going to happen and how long it would last. I don’t think at that time we could have had any idea what would go on after that and how long it would be going on for. I didn’t see her again in person for almost a year. I bought from the website for the first time in 2020 for the 20^th Anniversary Collection and I was so glad for it at that time! My local stores didn’t get any of them for the whole year so if it hadn’t been for the increased stock on the website I wouldn’t have been able to get in on the fun at all. I would check the breakdown on theartofpandora.com and see when the charm was going to go live on the site in my timezone and get up in the morning to order it. I liked how easy it was and how available the vast majority of the stock was, after the first couple of months at least! I made several orders for my birthday around the middle of the year in 2020.

Around the time of Black Friday more things were open so I called my local store and had them put a bunch of things together for me and my partner went and picked it up for me which was super nice. This year again was so uncertain with things opening and closing again it really was a mix of in person and shopping online. I’m usually a pretty focused shopper so if there’s an event or i’m coordinating an important purchase I will have a couple of things in mind when I go in so if there’s something not available there’s always a backup.

I think one of the most important things I’ve learned over the course of the pandemic is that we should do our best to be kind and understanding to the people who are putting themselves out there to help us shop and not only provide us with a service, but are part of our community as well.