Seaweed Sunday

A follow up to my beach week that is long overdue! My week staying at the family cottage resulted in more collecting...par for the course if you know me at all. Because there is virtually a complete absence of seaglass (not like when I was a child) I found myself drawn to something else.

At first, the driftwood I found in abundance pulled me towards the high tide line and above. But as the tide pulled out, I noticed a plethora of interesting seaweed! The bluestone walkway was HOT and I spread the fingers of my new found favorite weed out to dry. 

Serendipity, a great word! Just so happened that my brother had a book and he was "cleaning house" a bit...so I am now the lucky owner of a book that may keep this interest in seaweed alive. The interest mind you, not the actual seaweed! I believe I found the description of the seaweed that caught my attention in the first place. 

I was not able to identify all the seaweed I collected and some was quite difficult to dry...but bear with me here. It isn't as boring as it seems!

The pressed and dried seaweed was just like pressing flowers but with a head start on that hot bluestone, was taken out and shaken off. Lesson learned, wash all sand off before drying! Then the "what to do with all this stuff" question arose. Do I do what is expected or do I go out on a limb?

My favorite piece (top photo) above did not fit in the mattes and frames on hand. That will be saved of course but no expenses here please-use crafty leftovers to give this beach week project a home. Using the paper choices I had on hand...well, what color do you think I went with?

Ta da!

 An antique desk, a flower bouquet in a seaglass filled jar, a simple rock jar and some bling. This corner has many other pieces of artwork coming along in addition to the prints you see here. Stay tuned as to how the scene develops. For now, my seaweed adventure is done. I definitely plan on drying more and hoping to find even more exotic looking species along our Connecticut shoreline.

A penny for your thoughts.

Creativity seems to be catching in our home and that is such a good feeling! I received a Christmas gift from my husband, a.k.a. Pappa D that merits some heartfelt attention.

A card, with a Tiffany's bag tucked inside. Hmm, he knows I am not an expensive jewelry lover. I just wear what I wear, no need for anything new so this took me by surprise.

And surprise me it did. Out tumbled pennies...and I was asked to look a little closer. They were all important dates in my life! Now that is special and very thoughtful. Pappa D is catching on! What can I do with such a gift though?

First, clean the pennies so to better see that important date on each. Vinegar and salt will clean copper quite nicely. Rinsed with clear water to stop the process, I moved right along, still thinking.

With my magnifier loop in hand, I was able to date each coin and chart my life!

Now please excuse the dates (telling my age to all) but look at the events! What fun Pappa D had, searching his change for these! Everyone can relate, we all have loose change and we all have years to remember. I will design this into a keepsake. Thank you again Dave and thank you for another idea to build upon.

A Glowing Seaglass Sunday

My mission this week was to organize the "haul" from this past Spring, Summer & Fall. The seaglass needed to be organized & dusted!!!! The table that displayed the recent finds needed attention and considering it SNOWED, this was the perfect time to get about doing this job!

This idea needs some tweaking but for now, some battery lit votives I just happen to own have sent my mantle a-glow! As the sun went down the seaglass filled receptacles became more & more heavenly.

The glass is beginning to glow.

Reflecting off the print Ebb Tide by our favorite artist & neighbor Christopher Blossom, the mantle is awash in color.

This is so soothing and calm....ahhhhhhh. Another Seaglass Sunday!

Seaglass Sunday Summer Wrap Up!

Better late than never. Before we get even further into the fall season, I wanted to show a few moments of Summer 2011. It was a wonderful. Gardening, beach days, tomato harvesting and more.....

 The summer's haul. Soon to be organized into bowls and vases.

  Tomato in the tree??? Squirrels are quite clever.

The Pandora Shell collection.

Summer Salads.

Shell and driftwood collections on display.

While I dug in the garden, Sally dug in the yard!

Tomatoes runneth over. And over.....

Gardens survived, came into their own and filled in nicely by September.

 AND, I signed up for a watercolor class this fall.

So is this Indian Summer? Not yet! When the weather is sunny, clear and warm and after we have had the first killing frost...then we can claim a day like this to be an "Indian Summer" day. Today finally felt like the season has changed though...a brisk breeze off the water, a few falling leaves yet a warm sun. Just wonderful!

Autumn Gardens

My autumn, my garden. It is overgrown, unplanned yet colorful and unexpected! The annuals planted have made it through the hot summer, the rainy weeks on end and the winds from mother nature in her glory. The perennials are either done for the season or still trying! And so am I! The autumn garden is worth waiting for. It is like a pot of gold at the end of a rainbow.

The colors become more intense, the plants flourish. The morning dew takes its time to evaporate, leaving little diamonds on the leaves.

My front steps fill in with reseeded allysum.

Collections from summer walks suddenly become small sculptural installations.

And the mums.....just what the garden needs right now!

Mermaids' Tears on a Rainy Sunday

Sea glass is romantically called mermaids' tears due to old legend or folklore which would have it that mermaids, forbidden to change the course of nature by Nepture, the God of Sea, nevertheless defied this by trying to save sailors in peril at sea and were consequently banished to live in the depths of the oceans, banned from surfacing or swimming near fishermen or sailors again. In their distress the mermaids would cry tears that turned into crystalline drops, reminders of their shattered sentiments and their inability to rescue those lost at sea. Other lore stated that mermaids could only come on shore in the light of the full moon, and as dawn broke they shed tears as they were obliged to return to the seas were transformed into rainbow coloured glass...

 Today was one of those days I think the mermaids may have been crying!

I was not able to get out on the beach today so I decided to arrange my "tears". This is a small sampling of the range of colors, shapes and sizes that I have collected over the years. Every seaglass lover or want to be collector should own the book Pure Sea Glass by Richard LaMotte. (See my page entitled Books about Seaglass and More on the right sidebar)

Now, for the interesting part. Not only do my "tears" come in beautiful colors, some of them actually glow!  If you have a good eye for color, you may just realize that some hold a secret that few know about. But since I don't like to keep secrets, I will show you! Circled below are two pieces, can you see the subtle color difference from any others?

Now, for the most amazing part.

This is what is called "Vaseline Glass". Originally called Uranium Glass because it contained trace amounts of Uranium, it was produced pre-1930 and when viewed under a black light in a dark room it glows a bold, flourescent lime green. These "mermaid tears" are of course some of my most special.

Thank you to a fellow blogger, beach-combingmagpie.blogspot.com for the lovely story of how seaglass became known as "mermaid's tears".