It isn’t often that I get a chance to make matching pendant and earrings sets, but I have been putting some glass aside for a while now and figured the New Year was the perfect time to start! I used some fabulous jewelry quality lavender sea glass and amazing yellow and pink pastels along with some cornflower blue rims. All of this jewelry is available in my Etsy shop!
Pastel Sea Glass Pendant & Earring Set by SeaGlassVisions
Above: This lovely jewelry quality pastel sea glass is on sterling silver.
Below: Amazing lavender jewelry quality sea glass accented with Italian glass beads on sterling silver.
Lavender Sea Glass Pendant & Earring Set Created by SeaGlassVisions
Every year I enjoy creating Christmas ornaments with my sea glass. While my sea glass and sand filled ornaments, mentioned in the post below, are always popular sellers, it’s fun to create new items. This year it’s my Vermont Inspired Snowflakes.
Lovely Handmade Sea Glass Snowflake Ornaments by Sea Glass Visions
I have based these keepsake ornaments on the photography of Wilson “Snowflake” Bentley who lived in Jericho, Vermont. In 1885 Wilson Bentley took the first photograph of a single snowflake crystal. In his life he took over 5,000 photos and found no two to be exactly alike.
These unique snowflakes are created with a generous eighteen pieces of sea glass that was handpicked by me from the shore at Fort Bragg, California. I use a variety of decorative pearl beads, crystal beads and metal accents. They hang from a white ribbon.
These sea glass snowflake ornaments make a perfect gift as they are presented in a lovely silver box that includes the story of Wilson “Snowflake” Bentley. These are true keepsakes.
Due to their popularity only a limited number are available in my Etsy shop. If you shop locally in Anne Arundel County, Maryland you can find them at these artisan shops:
EL & Co. in Pasadena, Maryland
Side Street Framers & Gift Gallery, Severna Park, Maryland.
Every year I enjoy making Christmas ornaments using sea glass. These lovely ornaments have been very popular and have been best sellers for a few years now.
Beautiful sea glass Christmas ornaments
I have filled these ornaments with sea glass handpicked by me from the shores of Fort Bragg, California and some also have a bit of sand from my favorite Caribbean Island, Anguilla. Along with the decorative ribbons they include artistic ornament hangers. They are offered in beautiful gift boxes, a perfect Christmas present ready to give!
As they are very fragile I do not offer them in my Etsy shop but do offer them in two artisan shops in Maryland, EL & Company in Pasadena and Side Street Framers & Gift Gallery in Severna Park.
Some projects take longer than others and are joys to create, and this was definitely one of them. This frame started out life as a plain wood frame. It was lovingly sanded, painted, distressed and then decorated with Hawaiian sea glass sand, California sea glass and pottery, shells of all types, starfish, sand dollars and a fish net. This project took several months to complete.
Then I held this frame for months after I completed it. First off, I loved it myself, but outside of my “sea glass room” my home doesn’t have a nautical/beachy theme. Even my hubby’s suggestion “you can put our wedding picture in it” didn’t feel quite right. So, I decided that it would be best with someone who would really appreciate it. Then I couldn’t decide if I should sell it in my Etsy shop or as a consignment. While it’s true Etsy would bring me a much larger audience, I do think that some handmade items are better appreciated when seen and touched, and when the natural “quirks” of the handmade piece can be felt accepted as every creation is unique.
So, with that thought in mind I recently took this frame I named “Mermaid’s Catch” to a local consignment shop in Pasadena, Maryland called EL & Co. My visits to EL & Co. always include catch up time with the owner, Tracy, and it’s always fun to see the new items she has in the shop.
“Mermaid’s Catch” handcrafted frame by SeaGlassVisions
It was while we were catching up that a customer walked into the shop. Tracy pointed out the frame to her. The customer had been married on the beach in Florida. The bridal bouquet she held was made of sea shells, she was a beach theme fanatic. She fell in love with the frame and bought it on the spot. She even sent me pics, now posted on my SeaGlassVisions Facebook page, that show the frame in her wedding display.
It’s always an honor when a customer choses a piece of art I have created and incorporates it into such a place of honor in her home.
I was so lucky just a year or two ago to find out about, and be accepted as a vendor with Bay Country Crafters. Bay Country Crafters is a group that organizes two major craft fairs a year in Millersville, Maryland featuring dozens and dozens of talented artisans. They have been doing this for 32 years this Fall. This craft fair runs for at least ten days, this one from November 1st – November 12th. This means there are a LOT of shoppers and it takes a LOT of jewelry to keep my displays filled!
Bay Country Crafters Initial Display
The setting is the Historic Baldwin Hall, a well known local site, and one worth a visit even without a craft fair. The fair is set up like a large boutique, incorporating everyones work into beautiful displays that have a surprise around every corner. Along with the jewelry you’ll find items for your pets, babies, holiday decorations of all kinds, wreaths, trees, ornaments, organic soaps and lotions, herb blends for cooking, homemade cookies and chocolates, hats, scarves, pictures, furniture and much more! A lot of these items are one-of-a-kind.
Getting ready for this craft fair has kept me very busy. I’ve created new pendants, earrings and bracelets as well as Christmas ornaments and sea glass display jars filled with Maryland sea glass. For my jewelry designs I used sea glass from Maryland, England and California.
This is a pic of my second restocking with newly made pieces…
I have recently created a “seasonal” line of sea glass jewelry using the colors of autumn. These collections of lovely autumn colors of greens, blues, browns, amber and lavender are created with sea glass from Maryland, England, California and Greece! I am selling them locally in consignment shops in Maryland!
This first picture is of jewelry available at EL & Company in Pasadena, Maryland
This second picture is of jewelry available at Side Street Framers & Gift Gallery in Severna Park, Maryland.
I was very lucky to be able to purchase eight sea glass and sea pottery sail boat sets from California. I have decided to create a “collection” I am calling “Smooth Sailing”. Each piece will be one-of-a-kind, including the nautical background and frames which are re-finished by hand by me to accent each piece.
I live near the Chesapeake and I think these will sell very well. I am offering them for sale locally in Pasadena, Maryland at EL & Company on Mountain Road. These are the first three pieces.
These earrings are currently available in my Etsy shop!
These earrings have been created with rare pastel colors of jewelry quality sea glass with sterling silver findings. The sea horse, star fish and dragonfly jewelry charms are perfect for summertime! These would be a perfect gift for you or someone special!
Some of the fabulous sea glass & sterling earrings available in my Etsy shop!
I’ve been having a great time playing with my sea glass in a new way. While I truly enjoy creating lovely sea glass jewelry I have found another fun way to use my sea glass by creating sea glass art!
I created a lovely Mermaid art piece in a picture frame. This lovely Mermaid has special meaning for me too. When I was a child I was given a book of Hans Christian Anderson fairy tales. This picture was the picture in the book that accompanied the story “The Little Mermaid”.
Along with the sea glass I used a variety of sea shells found by me on the Caribbean island of Anguilla as well as sand a lovely sand dollar that was found by me in the Bahamas!
I plan to be offering this and other pieces of Mermaid Art in my Etsy shop in late Spring 2015. Please make sure you stop by and visit! SeaGlassVisions
