Month: January 2026

Preserving Memories with a Charm Bracelet

I just finished reading a heart-warming novel by Pamela Raleigh entitled, “The Memory Bracelet.” The story follows a grandmother who is suffering with Alzheimer’s and her granddaughter. The story is summarized on Amazon as follows:

‘When college sophomore Tessa Wilde visits her Alzheimer’s-stricken grandmother Esther, a shocking secret slips out, one that threatens Tessa’s identity and raises old feelings of betrayal and rejection. The only way to pursue the truth, though, is to explore those unreliable memories.

But can she separate Esther’s ramblings of a storied past from the effects of Alzheimer’s?

Relying on Grandmother’s stories that live in the charms of her beloved bracelet, Tessa pushes her grandmother to reveal the truths that have been hidden for too long. As Esther’s health deteriorates and communication fails, Tessa faces the ultimate question: can she forgive Grandmother for half-spilled secrets and an unreconciled relationship? And face the fact that they’re more alike than they are different?

Perfect for fans of Barbara Davis and Kristan Higgins, The Memory Bracelet is a gripping yet heartwarming novel about the pain resulting from complicated relationships, carried from one generation to the next, and the fierce determination to heal them.’

The story backflashes are triggered by the charms on the grandmother’s bracelet. While the reader can follow the various experiences prompted by the charms, the granddaughter does not know the whole story. The grandmother struggles to share what lessons were learned made even more difficult with her inability to speak clearly and coherently thanks to the influence of Alzheimer’s.

It was a very touching story and had me thinking about charms that would trigger my memories of things I’ve done in my life…sort of a tangible resume. If I were to build a charm bracelet for myself, what would I include?

I started making a list of charms that would represent my life. Then I went to Amazon to see if they had charms to fit. I’m sure I could find fancy, expensive gold and silver charms, but since this was just for fun, I just did an easy search.

For example, I’ve been sewing since Junior High School. How about a sewing machine charm?

Cute! My first machine was my mother’s Singer Featherweight machine…black just like this!

If I wanted to remind myself of my quilting experiences, there’s a charm for that!

Or, I might find something in this assortment:

When I was first teaching, I also studied Cosmetology…to be a hairdresser. Of course, it was too much to do both, but I did learn to cut hair. (Yes…I’m a Beauty School Dropout!). However, I’ve been cutting hair for family for 55 years! And yes, there’s a charm for that!

How about all the writing I’ve done over the years…from curriculum materials to my blog! I did start with a manual typewriter! There’s a charm for that!

And then there are all the books I’ve read! Yes, there’s a charm for that!

When I think of all the love I’ve given to the Greyhounds, I realized I already had a charm for that!

I can’t forget how much I’ve enjoyed gardening:

and Baking/Cooking (this one is just too cute!)

I’m sure if I wanted to do it, I could assemble quite a nice charm bracelet of my life. Since I really don’t like a noisy, clanking bracelet and would probably never wear it, I think these pictures would be enough to jog my memory of all the many things I’ve done, or made, or loved!

What pictures or charms would you assemble to represent your life experiences? It might be a way to start the conversation with our grandchildren about things we’ve done…or encourage them to start their own collection. Enjoy!

Please email me directly if you have comments or questions. maryjkisner@gmail.com

Prepping for Snow While Dreaming of the 2026 Garden

We anticipate that the predicted snow storm for this weekend will dump a significant amount of snow on us. I saw a picture on Facebook of the Blizzard of 1978. I remember that winter well…Ted was just turning two and Kathy was 3 months old. It felt like we didn’t go outside for a month! Our sidewalk looked like a tunnel, just like the street in the photo below:

Here is the caption for the photo:

Snowfall during the Blizzard of 1978 hit Pennsylvania with a wild regional split, backed by some eye-opening stats. Northwestern PA took the hardest punch, with Erie and the Lake Erie snowbelt piling up 20 to 30 inches, boosted by intense lake-effect bands. The Laurel Highlands and ridges of southwestern PA stacked 15 to 25 inches, with wind gusts topping 40 to 50 mph, creating drifts that climbed over 6 feet in spots. Central Pennsylvania averaged 10 to 18 inches, though open farmland saw whiteouts so severe that PennDOT reported hundreds of road closures. Southeastern PA saw lighter totals, generally 4 to 10 inches, but powerful winds and sub-zero wind chills created dangerous travel conditions and widespread disruptions. Overall, the storm remains one of the most chaotic and wind-driven winter events Pennsylvania endured during the late 1970s.

Hopefully, we have better methods of snow removal now but already various appointments are being postponed or cancelled for Monday!

Our preparations for the snow storm are not too complicated…mostly because we are already prepared for the power to go out. Bert handles things like the generator, the wood stove in the basement and the snow blower. I ran a load of laundry and tried to make sure we have what we need for food…although, other than milk and eggs we could probably skip a run to the store. The sun is shining right now and I wanted some apples, so I did run to the grocery store and picked up milk and eggs! (smile)

When bad weather is predicted, I seem to get in the mood to bake bread…but at the moment, I have enough homemade bread in the freezer. I did take a whole chicken out of the freezer and will roast it tomorrow. I’ll take the time to simmer the bones to make soup stock. Somehow, making soup stock feels like the right thing to do when we could be snowbound! Chicken noodle soup anyone?

I’ve found the best thing to do during a snowstorm is to dream about our 2026 garden plans. This year we did receive assorted seed catalogs…this is a picture from last year:

However, we did not get one from Burpee…our favorite Pennsylvania seed company. We kept waiting…but no catalog in the mail. It looks like we had to ‘request’ a catalog to be sent. Interesting. We ordered seeds online from them.

First, we had to consider our garden space, what we grew in the past and what worked. I know I have enough tomatoes and tomato sauce canned and will probably not need to do more this year so maybe fewer tomato plants. Our zucchini was fun but took up a lot of space. I can easily buy them at the Farmers Market when I’m in the mood. The cherry tomatoes were cute but the skins were tough (thanks to the weather) so we’ll skip them this year. The pumpkins were impressive but I think we fed all the groundhogs in the neighborhood!

So, here are the spaces we have available:

Three planters on the patio and maybe a pot of something:

Two raised/fenced beds off the patio (the back one already planted with asparagus roots):

The fenced garden on the hill (already planted with lavender on one end and echinacea at the other end):

And of course, the space in front of the wood pile is available…not sure what will happen there!

It seems we have lots of room, but we’re certainly not a truck farm!

After much discussion, we decided to focus on what we know works and fill in with flowers.

Our seed order arrived last week! I deliberately copied out the photos of the actual vegetables we ordered…just to see if what we grow looks like the picture. (Haha…never happens, but I can always dream!)

I hope that whatever weather you are experiencing now, you can take time to dream about what you are going to do this spring. I like to have a vision for the future to help me deal with what’s happening now! Enjoy!

Remember, if you have comments or questions please email me directly at maryjkisner@gmail.com.

How to Care for your Gemstone Bracelet

I’ve made hundreds of gemstone bracelets over the last two years. It has come to my attention that a few folks have been frustrated with their bracelets falling apart. Remember, the whole ‘bracelet’ fad started with plastic letter beads that were fairly indestructible. There were other fads that had string, cord or leather bracelets that could handle 24/7 wear. The stone beads that I use are just that…stones and crystals! They have their own individual properties that influence how they should be cared for. Each stone has a Mohs Hardness Score that provides some guidance about how it should be treated. When I create a bracelet that has several different stones, I’ve complicated the issue of how to care for the bracelet.

The following information is a general guideline for most bracelets that have more than one kind of stone. I hope it helps you keep your bracelets looking great!

How to Care for Your Gemstone Bracelet

Stone bracelets can contain a wide variety of gemstones, each with unique properties and care requirements. Common stones used in bracelets may include tiger’s eye, lapis lazuli, malachite and lepidolite. Each type of stone has its own hardness and porosity which influences its care.

Avoid Water Exposure

While most quartz beads (clear, rose and smoky) can withstand daily wear in the shower, any stone with a Mohs hardness score of less than 4 or 5 may begin to lose its luster. The very soft stones like selenite and amber (Mohs Score of 2) will begin to dissolve over time. Since most bracelets have a mixture of stones, it’s wise to not wear your gemstone bracelets in the shower, the pool, the hot tub or the ocean. These bracelets are strung with an elastic cord that will also degrade over time with water exposure. If your bracelet gets dirty, gently clean it with a soft damp cloth to wipe the surface and dry with a lint-free cloth.

Cleanse Your Bracelets

Gemstones can absorb energies from the environment as they come in contact with other stones, objects or people. Because gemstones can absorb and store low-frequency energies, it helps to cleanse them frequently. Cleansing can be done with salt, smudging and moonlight. Using selenite is the easiest.

Selenite is a transparent, crystalline form of the mineral gypsum. It has a hardness score of 2 on the Mohs scale, which means it is soft enough to be scratched by a fingernail and dissolves in water. In crystal healing, selenite is revered for its high vibrational energy and spiritual cleansing abilities. It is used to clear negative energy from spaces, people, and other crystals. It is said to create a protective barrier against negative energies and psychic interference.

In general, you can easily cleanse your bracelets by placing them on a selenite plate or bowl overnight. These are available on Amazon and other rock shops on the internet. You can also place bracelets in a mesh bag with my Selenite Key Chain Accessory. My Key Chain Accessory is a small loop of Selenite beads that can be attached to a key chain or stored in a mesh bag. Your gemstone bracelets can be added to the bag overnight to cleanse them of any accumulated negative energies.

Recharge Your Bracelets

After your bracelet has been cleansed, recharge your bracelet with your intentions. Hold the bracelet in your hands and review the purpose of the bracelet. Refer to the intentions in the printout that came with the bracelet.

Storing Your Bracelets

When you are not wearing your bracelet, protect it from damage by storing it in a separate cloth bag, or arrange it so it will not be damaged by other jewelry. I like to see mine displayed, but I keep them separated from each other, away from direct sunlight.

Please email me directly if you have questions or comments. maryjkisner@gmail.com

Making Bracelets: How It All Started

My interest in making gemstone bead bracelets did not emerge overnight. It’s been over two years since I first started reading about these stones. It was a very different interest from all the other craft stuff I was already doing…sewing, fabric crafts, hand and body products with essential oils, cooking and baking recipes and gardening and preserving food each summer. When I first started reading about the gemstones, I wasn’t even thinking about bracelets!

I think it all started with an advertisement from Sedona Crystal Vortex, a rock shop in Sedona (https://sedonacrystalvortex.com/). We had visited Sedona several years before and enjoyed the shops near our hotel. I seemed to be on their mailing list! One of the ads showed a little bag of stones that could be kept in my pocket. It said if I carried them in my pocket and handled them frequently throughout the day, they would help me lose weight. Riiiight! I was intrigued so I ordered them. There were 5 little stone chips in a tiny mesh bag tied tight. I started learning about those particular stones and carried them in my pocket for quite a while. Nothing magic, but every time I put my hand in my pocket, I noticed them and remembered the reason they were there. This ‘intention’ kept my focus on why I should pay attention to what I was eating. The picture below shows three of those stones that are now in my collection. I’m not sure what the other stones were, but it doesn’t matter. Three seemed to be the number of items I could focus on.

Over the next few months, I built the beginning of my stone collection. They were pretty and I enjoyed reading about their histories and how they were used in the past. I was so afraid I would mix them up I tried to make sure I labeled each one and put them into little drawers with the information cards about each stone.

This led to a set of drawers:

I learned about each stone and usually carried two or three in my pocket every day. Luckily, I was wearing cargo pants with deep pockets so none of the stones got lost!

I also found quite a few books at Barnes & Noble bookstore about crystals and stones. Here are a few I still have on my shelf:

Finally, finding ‘The Book of Stones‘ by Robert Simmons and Naisha Ahsian was a turning point for me. Besides color pictures of the stones, each description includes where and when it was discovered, where it currently comes from, its color and hardness number and many more details that I was not interested in when I first started reading about the stones That first year, I was reading about the stones, ordering more small samples and carrying them in my pocket. Crazy, I know!

On Etsy, I discovered a seller that made bracelets with 4mm beads, all the same stone… I ended up buying quite a few. It was a much easier way to take the beads with me, rather than a pocket of stones! However, many of the stones I wanted weren’t available as bracelets and the bracelets didn’t fit well, so they stayed in the drawers!

Then, the cultural shift of millions of folks following Taylor Swift around the world and instantly, beaded bracelets were all the rage! I thought how fun…a new craft! These friendship bracelets used plastic beads, often with letters to build messages. I tried a few, even some with PSU letters and blue and white beads…because I’m here in Penn State country! I had to buy letter packs of the whole alphabet! I could make about four bracelets with P S U and then I ran out of letters!

I tried making 5 bracelets with the words in a favorite poem but then I didn’t know what to do with them! Nobody cared about the poem except me!

Then I tried bracelets with a person’s name spelled out in Morse Code! At least then I could use some of the beads that I was learning about. That was fun, but once I’d given one to everyone I knew, I still wanted to know more about the stones.

At this point, my interest in the stone beads led me to make bracelets that would address a specific issue…like joy or courage. The first bracelet was my weight loss bracelet, using the same stone beads as the stones I carried in my pocket!

One of the most recent bracelets I’ve made had quite a few different beads, all to support motivation, energy, self-confidence and self-discipline. I made it just for me for days when I needed a kick to get me moving! It turns out several other people were interested in it also.

So, that’s how this all started! But…I have learned a lot…about how these stones were used in history, how they are still used in alternative health situations and how my creative mind can enjoy making these bracelets. My disclaimer with each bracelet reminds folks:

About Your Gemstone Bracelet

Each of the beads in your bracelet have meaning and together support each other for your well-being. They are described in the insert with your bracelet. You can wear the bracelet or carry it in your pocket. Each time you see it or handle it remember its intention as described on the tag, such as bringing you joy or lowering your stress level. Reminder: This bracelet is not a medical device. Its purpose is to help you focus and send positive energy to your mind and body. I have made your bracelet with love and the best of intentions for your well-being. Mary Kisner

I’ll try to not bore you with too many details about my bracelets. I do still cook, bake, garden, preserve food, sew, make soap, read fiction and now make bracelets! I’d love to hear from you, but remember to email me directly because too many spammers have drowned my website with junk!! I also post a link on my Facebook page to these articles, so you can comment there. Thanks! maryjkisner@gmail.com

Clear Quartz, Amethyst, Blue Aventurine, Blue Apatite