Claddagh ring earring turned necklace

My Ireland earring turned necklace charm came back from the jewelers earlier this week.  I am absolutely crazy about it.  It’s 10K gold and Melayne and I decided it was the perfect size for a necklace charm, so we split it.

The Claddagh ring originated from Galway (one of our favorite places we visited) and the heart represents love, the hands represent friendship, and the crown represents loyalty.  It’s typically used as friendship rings but commonly used as engagement rings too.  I just read that in Ireland and the States it’s handed down from mother-to-daughter or grandmother-to-granddaughter.  How special is that?

My girlfriend Kate told me that when she and her twin were young and traveled with her grandparents, they would encourage the girls to pick, “something that would last forever.”  We had a good chuckle over the things we would have picked as a child to the reality of collecting things that truly last forever.  What wisdom.  Kate still has her paperweight from London and I know I’ll always have this to remind me of the pure beauty and memory of our Ireland trip.

And of course made in authenticity on the back.

Diana Elizabeth thinks buying things that she can use all the time are great souvenirs too.  She can use them every day and think of the places she’s been.