Sea Glass Part 1 of 3
Some artisans make really lovely sea glass jewelry - see my past post History in the Sand about a Nova Scotian artisan's work. If you live anywhere near Erie, Pennsylvania, you're in luck. The 2009 North American Sea Glass Festival will be held  there on October 17-18 (next weekend).

Why Erie? That's because "sea" glass can also be found on the shores of inland lakes - courtesy of dumping by the heavy shipping traffic.They are known as beach glass there. Just as there are many beadaholics, sea glass enthusiasts abound. The Festival is expected to attract thousands of them.

Here is a video of last year's festival highlights featuring many sea glass jewelry artisans and the Shard of the Year contest where cash awards are given out to the very best. The winner last year won for her red shard. Red is one of the rarest sea glass colors (see my past post on a lovely piece made from red glass).



Overall, sea glass is a diminishing commodity due to the rise of plastic use (and boy, what a mess that has made of our oceans - check out the Great Pacific Garbage Patch video or article). The sea glass that remains continues to decrease in size year by year.


If you need a sea glass reference book check out Pure Sea Glass: Discovering Nature's Vanishing Gems. The book has includes tips on beachcombing strategies, provides help identifying sea glass and assessing each specimen's rarity. Via and via

For tutorials check out my Jewelry Making Tips

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