Pandora bracelet?

[crispycritter]

What can you tell me about pandora bracelets? I like them but the price
way high! I've also seen some I like better at Brighton accessories stores.
I've heard Brighton is not real silver so even though the prices are better
I don't want my wrist to turn green when wearing it!
Is there anything out there close to the quality of pandora without the sky high price?
Thanks for any help, Chris

 

[Tiger926]

I love Pandora - have 2 bracelets, and many charms. Fabulous quality, great selection and wonderful warranty services.

I prefer Pandora over Chamilia, even though Chamilia has the official Disney charms.

In regards to something cheaper, I have seen knock offs at Kohl's and some other jewelry stores in the malls, but not sure of the quality.

You really do get what you pay for in regards to Pandora, as the workmanship is fabulous! So, even if the product is more expensive, if it lasts longer, and doesn't need to be replaced or repaired (at a cost to the customer), then it will be cheaper in the long run.

Tiger

 

[Lorien728]

Around Christmas DH and I checked out both the Kay Jewelers one and Pandora. No contest in quality! Pandora costs more but you def get what you pay for! Santa bought me Pandora love it!

 

[Kathryn Merteuil]

I don't have one, but I really want one!

 

[auralia]

They often have a deal just after Mother's Day or close to it where if you spend 100$ or so on beads you get the 80$ bracelet free. Now my dh gets me 1-2 charms for my birthday, Christmas, etc. so it makes shopping much easier for him.

 

[luv2mickey]

March and September are when they did the free bracelet deal the last couple of years.

 

[WeLoveM1CKEY]

I work at a store that sells the Chamilia. It and Pandora are competitors and the charms are mostly interchangeable so you could buy charms from either to fit either style of bracelet. The cheaper versions of these tend to have a thicker bracelet and therefore the Chamilia and Pandora charms do not fit the larger bracelets. However the cheaper charms tend to be barrell type so they will fit the Chamilia and Pandora bracelets usually. I have a Chamilia bracelet with a few of the Chamilia charms and have supplemented cheaper charms to fill in space until I get more to fill it up. The cheaper charms do not last long if you wear the bracelet often as they chip and stones fall out.

Another option that we sell a lot of is to start buying charms and put them on a sterling silver necklace until you can save up for the bracelet.

 

[chris31997]

MIL will get us charms for bday and Christmas also. We slowly add to it our necklaces and bracelets. We don't wear all over them, we customize our stuff to the outfits.

 

[3boymthr]

I have a Chamilia bracelet. It definitely pays to buy the real bracelet. My friend has a cheap silver plate knock off and she has problems with the clasp, the silver is wearing off, etc. The good thing about Chamilia vs. Pandora is that Chamilia won't void the warranty if you have other brands of beads on the bracelet but Pandora will void the warranty. I started out with 2 Chamilia beads and the bracelet but found that the beads bouncing around drove me crazy so I filled it up with cheap knock off beads and I'm gradually replacing them with more expensive beads. There are tons of sterling silver knock off beads out there that look really nice but be careful of the non-sterling beads, as I found to my regret they will cause the bracelet to tarnish severely. I have replaced all of my non-sterling with sterling (some knock offs, some Chamilia, some Pandora) and now don't have that problem. Even if you are buying glass beads they should have a sterling core to avoid the tarnishing problem.

 

[mollymar]

What can you tell me about pandora bracelets? I like them but the price
way high! I've also seen some I like better at Brighton accessories stores.
I've heard Brighton is not real silver so even though the prices are better
I don't want my wrist to turn green when wearing it!
Is there anything out there close to the quality of pandora without the sky high price?
Thanks for any help, Chris

I'm sorry I can't help you with Pandora but I can tell you that Brighton IS real silver so you don't have to worry about your wrist turning green.

 

[ssawka]

There is another company called Trollbeads that is similar in quality to Pandora, but I'm not sure how they compare on price. I had heard, although I never verified, that the gentleman that founded Pandora and the gentleman that founded Trollbeads are brothers.

For Christmas, I was debating between getting DW a Trollbeads or a Pandora. In the end, I bought her a Pandora because I knew she would recognize the name.

BTW, if you get a bracelet, make sure you bring it with you whenever you are buying charms. When we were at the MK in January, DW went into the jewelers on MS to get a Disney charm. She picked out one that she liked, but it would not fit on her bracelet, so the CM tried another one of the exact same style and the second one fit.

 

[carebee21]

I'm sorry I can't help you with Pandora but I can tell you that Brighton IS real silver so you don't have to worry about your wrist turning green.

Brighton is silver plated. It is not sterling silver like pandora or chamila.

I have a pandora bracelet and have it filled with both chamilia and pandora beads. I love it. I have some friends who got cheaper ones,like the ones from kohls and they have all problems with the beads wearing and chipping.

 

[crispycritter]

Thanks everyone for all the info, I never knew there were so many choices in bracelets!! I was wondering if anyone has tried the Pandora leather bracelet?
They come in different colors and look more casual. I also wondered
If they held all charms and beads etc. like the silver bracelets?
Thanks again for all your help,
Chris

 

[Momma2PrinceNPrinces]

I started a pandora bracelet for my mom for her Hanukkah/birthday/mothers day present. I had to roll it all into one because of the cost! I bought it during a promo where if you spent $125 you got a free silver bracelet. It was the one that is normally $85. I ended up spending over $200 on just beads! But it's high quality and extremely sturdy (even with just 5 beads it's already semi heavy!)

 

[Tiger926]

Thanks everyone for all the info, I never knew there were so many choices in bracelets!! I was wondering if anyone has tried the Pandora leather bracelet?
They come in different colors and look more casual. I also wondered
If they held all charms and beads etc. like the silver bracelets?
Thanks again for all your help,
Chris

I have a silver bracelet as well as special edition Breast Cancer leather bracelet.

I love the color and the look of the braided leather, but there are limitations such as you can only wear a limited number of beads due to weight damage and stress, and sweat, oil and lotions can discolor leather. Also, beads move around a lot. They did offer silicone posts to place on the bracelet so as to hold the beads in place, but that was only during a limited time and I missed getting them.

For these reasons, I prefer my silver bracelet, and I don't wear during summer months.

Good luck in your decision, Tiger

Sent from my iPhone using DISBoards

 

[3boymthr]

As a group we were buying a bracelet for Middle DS' Den leader when they finished cub scouts so to save a little money and allow us to get more beads I was looking at the leather bracelets. This was a couple of years ago but at the time I was told by the lady at jewelry store (they're an authorized Chamilia dealer) that they've had a few of the leather one's returned because the clasp has separated from the bracelet. She said the problem is the weight of the beads and that clasp isn't fused as tightly to the leather and moves around a lot more than the clasp on the silver ones. She said they were very popular but she didn't recommend them. She showed me the difference in the way the clasps were attached. I ended up buying the sterling silver bracelet.

 

[NYEmomma]

We started a bracelet for my DD when she was born -- she gets a new charm every birthday. We'll be starting ones for our newest DDs for their first birthday this summer too. Just got something in the mail from the local shop that we usually buy our beads at and their "Buy $100 worth of charms, get the bracelet free" sale is in late March this year. I forget the exact dates, but I think it's in the 20s?? Maybe 21st or 22nd?

We'll get both the girls a charm plus pick-up DD's charm for her next birthday in December so we can get to the $100 and get a bracelet free for one of the babies.

 

[kimsuenew]

I love Pandora - have 2 bracelets, and many charms. Fabulous quality, great selection and wonderful warranty services.

I prefer Pandora over Chamilia, even though Chamilia has the official Disney charms.

In regards to something cheaper, I have seen knock offs at Kohl's and some other jewelry stores in the malls, but not sure of the quality.

You really do get what you pay for in regards to Pandora, as the workmanship is fabulous! So, even if the product is more expensive, if it lasts longer, and doesn't need to be replaced or repaired (at a cost to the customer), then it will be cheaper in the long run.

Tiger

I agree! The quality and warranty are amazing! Our jeweler will clean it twice a year (more often if need be) free of charge. The bead choice is broad... there is a bead/charm for all tastes and events!

 

[diznee25]

Another Pandora fan here! I had looked at other jewelry stores' charm bracelets and I just prefer Pandora's style.

Yes, the price is high, but you get what you pay for. And Pandora's quality does not disappoint! I haven't bought a charm in about a year now.....itching to buy more for my bracelet! It's only about half full. Or half empty!

I love watching people's Youtube videos where they show you their Pandora charms. Very fun to see how everyone comes about getting their charms.

 

[4shinystars]

I am a Trollbeads girl all the way. Trollbeads is the originator of the concept. You can exchange your bracelet for another size free of charge- I've done this numerous times as adding beads makes the bracelet tighter. I have 2 bracelets, earrings, ring and will be getting another bracelet soon. My DD got one for her 16th birthday last year, and she gets a bead for special occasions.
Trollbeads are not interchangeable with Chamilia or Pandora, but Pandora and Chamilia can be interchanged.