Glass-O-Lantern

Give Jack a Touch-O-Glass

In keeping with the spirit of the Halloween season I decided to incorporate some sea glass into my pumpkin carvings. Having the glass backlit by the candle adds a colorful twist to this traditional craft.

Sea Glass Tip: Because the sea glass is illuminated, use some of your darker, unusually colored shards that can't been seen under normal conditions.

Sea Glassing In the Upper Bay

Yesterday was a windy day, full of surf, and it made for a successful sea glass collecting adventure in the lower Narragansett Bay, RI. Today, I decided to see what may have turned up in the upper bay.

Because the upper bay generally doesn't have as much surf as the lower bay, sea glass is usually less conditioned, keeping more of its original shape. This can make it easier to guess the origins of the shard but makes a piece less desirable for jewelry. These pieces of sea glass are probably more appropriate for a craft project such as candle holders and mobiles, or just to add to your collection of interesting shards. Sea glass found in the upper regions would have to be in the water a long time before it acquires that frosty, pitted look that is so desirable.

Well, it didn't take long to find out that I made the right decision on where to look. Almost immediately, as I stepped onto the beach, I found this beautiful sun-colored amethyst sea glass stopper! Unbelievable! I have never found a stopper of this color. Usually I get the light aqua or light green types.

It didn't end there. Right near where I found the stopper was this tri-colored sea glass marble. You just never know what a windy day will leave on the beach!

Along with these beautiful treasures I also found some bottle necks and pottery shards along with some common sea glass colored pieces.

All in all another fine day to take a walk on the beach and treasure hunt!

Take care and happy hunting!
Gary de Blois

Catch of the Day

A beautiful, sun-colored amethyst sea glass stopper!

A Perfect Day To Go Collecting

Even though it was late October it was turning into a beautiful day. Low tide was around 12:30 PM and the surf was up. How many more days would there be like this? I certainly wasn't going to waste it so off I went to one of my favorite sea glass collecting spots.

This spot is located in lower Narragansett Bay where there is almost always surf. This lends itself to sea glass that is generally well conditioned with rounded edges. The surf was a little stronger than I thought it would be. Instead of walking along the low tide line I had to run back and forth along the rocks as the waves rushed in and receded. Unfortunately, being so late in the season, I didn't bring my swimsuit. While trying to take some pictures I had to work quickly, keeping one eye on the surf, so I didn't get surprised by a wave.

This secret collelocation usually yields more of the common sea glass colors associated with an area where people would go to socialize. Thus I would expect to find mostly the greens, browns and whites of various beer, wine and liquor bottles. Occasionally I would locate a quality sea foam green or even a cobalt blue.

Most of the glass I found was quite small although there were one or two pieces that were of good size including a thick and elongated light aqua piece of glass.

I also collected some sea brick for my garden. It makes a colorful contrast to the green foliage.

After about an hour and a half I was ready to call it quits for the day. I had plenty of other projects that needed my attention. 

As you see from the picture on the right, it wasn't a bad day at the beach. There were a few well conditioned whites, greens and even some aqua sea glass. I even found a few very small cobalt blues!

Take care and happy hunting!

Gary de Blois

Catch of the Day

A thick, elongated light aqua piece of sea glass.

 

Sea Glass Festival 2008

So you couldn't make it to the NASGA Sea Glass Festival this year?
Here's the next best thing to being there. View a slide show of the festival as it progressed at the University of Delaware's Virden Center in Lewes, DE.
It was crazy from the start! Over 2,000 people walked though the door the first day and estimates are that over 3,500 showed up for the weekend.
See more by clicking Shard of the Month - 10/08

A Simple Wire Wrap Sea Glass Pendant

For a sea glass jewelry idea try a simple wire wrap pendant like the one on the left. With a few basic wire wrapping tools, some wire of your choice and a piece of sea glass that you have found, create a simple piece of jewelry that will certainly garner attention from your friends.
Step 1: Selecting Tools & Materials
The three tools suggested for this sea glass project are wire cutters, round nosed pliers, and flat nosed plier.
The wire selected should be strong enough to support your sea glass pendant on a chain. If you are using sterling silver, for example, I recommend using 18 gauge or 20 gauge half-hard. Although you can use any style it is easiest ( and more forgiving ) to use round.
TIP: If this is your first venture into jewelry making with sea glass, use a piece large enough to handle easily.
See more by clicking Simple Wire Wrap Sea Glass Pendant

Old San Juan: Fortress City Offers Chunks Of Charm (and Sea Glass!)

For most visitors to Puerto Rico, Old San Juan is a city of colonial delights, with narrow alleyways, Carribean-colored buildings, pulsating Latin rhythms, and the mysteries of magnificent El Morro Fort.
City walls built nearly 400 years ago to protect locals from marauding pirates and empire-building Englishmen offer a glimpse into history, where you can imagine aristocrats singing songs of love and drinking bottles of rioja.
But for the glasser, the beaches of San Juan Bay and the shorelines of the Atlantic Ocean encircling the island offer their own exquisite rewards — lovely smooth shards of glass in aqua blues, deep turquoise, and pastel greens.
From the surf town of Rincon to the west, to the neighboring island of Vieques to the east, Puerto Rico offers lots of areas for sea glassers to explore.
One beach in particular stands out, though, and it is surprisingly easy to reach, located just before you enter the main tourist district of Old San Juan. Driving along the one-way stretch of Hwy. 25, look for the Puerto Rican capitol and government buildings on your left. If you've reached San Cristobal Fort, you've come too far and will need to circle around again. There is a parking lot on your right that runs parallel to the road where you can park for free.
See more by clicking Hunting Sea Glass in Old San Juan

Shard of the Month - Oct 08

A Brilliant Orange, Octoberfest Sea Glass Marble
Finding a sea glass marble is truly a special moment, but finding one in that rarest of colors, orange, makes it that much more fantabulous! Here's how Susan Bishop, of Port Hadlock, WA, recalls that moment.
"Actually Marc, my partner, found that certain special marble. We were down the beach about 3 miles and had just walked around the tip of the point. The sun was really bright and you could see glass reflecting everywhere, a wonderful site that all sea glass collectors should experience. It was like finding an isle with a pirate's treasure!
See more by clicking Shard of the Month - 10/08

The Godfather of Sea Glass

Richard LaMotte Boosts the National Profile of Sea Glass
Few sea glass collectors DON'T recognize the name of Richard LaMotte. As the author of Pure Sea Glass: Discovering Nature's Vanishing Gems, LaMotte is a nationally recognized authority on sea glass. His book is now in its 5th printing, and he is routinely interviewed by national media including Coastal Living magazine.
The Journal: How did you become interested in collecting sea glass?
LaMotte: I've always enjoyed beachcombing. When my wife felt that making sea glass jewelry would allow her to work at home I quickly went to work trying to find sea glass along the Chesapeake. After a slow start I found several spots that produced amazingly well-worn and rounded shards of aqua, cobalt blue and soft green. I was hooked.
The Journal: Other than bottles what are some sources of sea glass?
LaMotte: Tableware and utility glass make up a fair portion of the sea glass that is not originally from bottles. The types of glass found are often site-dependent. Tableware pieces from Pressed Glass, Depression Glass, Fiestaware and other early to mid-20th century patterns can quickly add color to one's collection.
If a collector is in an area where they only find standard brown, green and white they are likely in a bottle-heavy area, seeded in the mid- to late-1900s. Utility glass refers to lighting, insulators and several odd forms of glass used for electrical applications over the past 100 years.
The rarest colors often come from what I call vanity ware and vases — items used to display or hold special objects around the home. Art glass is also unique but very hard to date.
See more by clicking LaMotte Sea Glass Interview