Sea glass , "seaglass" or sometimes "beach glass" is glass which is
found on beaches after having been tumbled smooth and frosted by the
ocean waves over an undetermined length of time.
Some of the glass I
have found is very old, from an era when glass was far more widely used,
and attitudes to the environmental damage caused by dropping litter
into the
sea were somewhat different to what they are today.
There is an infinite variety of colours of
sea glass, and of course
every single piece of sea glass is totally one off, having been on its
own unique journey through the tides and currents of the ocean.
Some sea
glass has travelled great distances, washing up on shores far away from
where it was originally dumped, whilst other pieces have stayed trapped
for decades in harbours, dropped by sailors and smoothed and tumbled by
the tides whilst yachts and fishing boats go by.
Around the
coast of Cornwall, we find lovely sea foam, aquas, pale greens, deep
greens, and whites. These shades to me, represent the colours of the sea
in Cornwall, and are the perfect choice to reflect the unique coast of
my favourite place! Much rarer colours found on Cornish shores include
blues, certain greens and deep aquas, and lavender.
Grey, pink,
teal, black, yellow and turquoise and red (found once in about every
5,000 pieces), and orange (the least common type of sea glass), are all
extremely rare colours. Rare sea glass in these colours is almost
certainly rarer than diamonds.
The older pieces tend to be
smoother, and rounded in shape, whilst the newer pieces wash up in all
manner of squared or flat shapes. In jewellery all different shapes are
used , and to great effect. The special 'glow' of sea glass, the way in
which each piece catches the light in a different way, and the variety
of subtle shades - pale aquas, frosted whites, palest blues to deepest
colbalt blues and of course the array of greens all add to the magic and
mystery of sea glass.
Recently my passion for genuine Sea Glass
has led me to look for this increasingly rare commodity further afield.
I
have managed to source some amazing examples of glass, some of which
are at least 100 years old, that were discarded from an old glass
processing in the North East of England, at Seaham in Durham. I have
started to design around these pieces of glass, and I really love the
pieces I've made.
#seaglass #ocean #treaure #mermaids #sea #glass #beach #coast #coastal #upcycled #recycled
