by mary
March 1, 2015
I recently made this necklace out of a little metal tag I got at one of my mother-in-law's garage sales.
I got probably a dozen of them with different numbers on them, all together on a safety pin.
I thought at first they might be tags like you used to get at a bakery or meat counter to mark your place in the line, & when they called your number it was your turn to order. But that doesn't seem quite right.
My husband thought maybe they were locker tags like we used to get when we were little & went swimming at a public indoor pool & you got a locker to put your clothes in. But I seem to remember you got a numbered key, so you could lock & unlock your locker; & I'm not sure how you would lock anything with this.
In making the necklace, I decided to use little shell beads from an old broken bracelet, in keeping with the idea of swimming, & because I liked the way they complemented the off-white enamel on the tag. I also used black lava beads to complement the black numbers.
So, it remains a mystery to me, & I'm wondering if anyone recognizes them or has any other theories on what they were for originally?