Beach Glass

Some of my beach glass found on PEI

On our last trip to PEI (Prince Edward Island) in July 2009 my good friend, Heather, introduced me to beach glass: glass pieces found on a shoreline where the glass has been shaped and softened by the natural action of the waves against the sand. We spent an afternoon walking a beach in search of it and both of us faired well in finding it. We found clear, white, green and brown pieces. I bagged mine up and brought it home... but what to do with it?

Alison, a friend of mine at the college, always wears very unique pieces of jewelry. One day I asked her about a particular piece and she told me it was beach glass that a jeweler friend of hers turned into a pendant for her. Just so happens this jeweler friend has a shop in Suttons Bay, MI... not far from us in Traverse City. I LOVE unique things and I LOVE jewelry...

I took my bag of beach glass and made a trip out to Suttons Bay. I located Case-Daniels & Rae (http://www.suttonsbayarea.com/art/?id=34), the jeweler that will make jewelry out of your beach glass. The first thing I had made was a pendant for my friend Heather. I've had a few other pieces done as gifts for others, but I finally had a pendant made for myself. I've been eyeing a bracelet this jeweler (Rae) can make me... she's already pulled out the glass pieces I have that will work, but she says I need three to four more smaller pieces for the bracelet... which means I'll be walking beaches up here this summer looking for more beach glass.

My beach glass pendant!