I fell in love with pendants when I was a little girl. My grandmother had a true amber pendant. When I was three or four she held it up to my eye and turned me by the chin until I was looking at the sun. The curve of the amber acted like binoculars looked through from the small end and it was as if the amber held the sun itself inside it.

My most treasured wedding present was the amber pendant which my grandmother gave me on the day I got married. She also gave me part of her wondrous collection of jewelry from her treasure box, including a number of pendant jewelry which remain in my pesonal collection to this day. As befitting a family tradition, my daughter has also found hours of joy going through my collection.

I have collected pendants ever since. I love shopping at antique shops, second hand stores, flea markets and going to estate auctions. Pendant jewelry collecting is not for the fainthearted. Once you've come to recognize a rare find, you simply must have it, even if the cost is greater than what you'd like to spend. But the market is increasingly fluid. If you've ever watched the Oscars, you'll notice some beautiful pendant jewelry adorning the most celebrated stars.

It was inevitable that I would one day find a piece of pendant jewelry to die for! I happened upon a rudy drop pendant in an antique shop that captivated me. The asking price nearly choked me, but I had to own it. I had no resources to buy this exquisite pendant, so the time came for me to part with other items in my growing collection. Using the internet , I sold a very nice earring and matching pendant jewelry set plus two other pieces in a matter of two days. Happily, I got more money than was needed to make my purchase.

The internet has proven to be a boon to collectors of every ilk. My own pendant jewelry collection has grown considerably courtesy of various online auction sites. In addition, the internet has allowed many craftsmen and artists to offer their unique creations to the whole world. I love being able to buy one-of-a-kind pendant jewelry from a favorite artist halfway across the globe!

I never forego an opportunity to hunt down the next piece to add to my pendant jewelry collection. On a recent trip to Europe, I visited a region known for its ancient family lines. A number of familes have lived in the same area for thousands of years, making this a fertile ground for locating antiques. I managed a gorgeous pendant which then fetched triple what I paid for it.

Over the years, I've made a few bloopers, but the funny thing is, there is someone else who thinks otherwise and has gladly relieved me of my "mistakes". Of course, I don't always make a killing on these, but it's been educational as to what types of jewelry are sought after. For me and thousands of others, collecting and wearing pendant jewelry is its own reward.