Making a Stand

I guess I should say making a display stand! I am going to be selling my seaglass necklaces soon at a local Garden Expo and I wanted to use natural materials to create a unique, "from the earth" display. I had so much fun (with a bit of frustration) in the process. I had all the materials – from my driftwood collected, a dowel, drill, rocks, coping saw and then some patience :)

Drilling went as expected, I painted the dowel to look a bit aged and thought it would all just fall into place as planned! 

But somehow, the angles drilled weren't quite right. (so re-drill) The balancing of two different driftwood pieces was off. (idea! use rocks as shims or "props" as it turned out) Then how to attach the whole ensemble together so it is steady, straight (biggest issue) and still looks OK?

Doesn't this look a bit like a Foot Long Sandwich? Yikes....NO!!!!! 

I had been collecting some rocks that struck me as subtly colorful and I was considering doing something with them. They were sitting on my windowsill and I decided that they should be a permanent part of the display! Not just a temporary shim. They added color, interest but not enough to take anything away from the real purpose of this adventure.

The next display stand was going to have a base of an awesome piece of driftwood. Sand was still hiding in some of the crevices and added to the mess I had already created.  Although this dowel did not need a shim or any help to stand upright, the rock theme continued.

When I could sigh a sigh of relief that this project was not done in vain, and with the support of Pappa D, my very supportive husband, we brought the stands down to the beach...

Swing to the right, swing out of control! I did say patience was a factor. The wind was making this a lot more difficult than expected.

This shot just defines my seaglass, sand, driftwood & rock connection. They are all so interrelated and so much a part of my life!

Hope to give a link to the Fairfield Garden Expo soon! Would love to see you there!

Selling Seaglass Necklaces

So I think I am almost ready! A little cataloging of necklaces made, more photographs of individual pieces, buying more pinch bails (the part that goes into the drilled hole) and open an etsy account? Not sure if that is the route I want to go yet. In the meantime, more studio shots, more fun!

Some of the first necklaces...

 and from whence they came, are years and years of more seaglass collected – just waiting to be worn by a fellow seaglass lover!

Jars and bowls full of my treasures fill my home, just ask my family!

Be still my heart, I could spend hours arranging my glass!

Wishing for Spring, a cute little seaglass flower to tide me over.

as my excitement spilleth over!

Seaglass Studio

Last week I was fortunate enough to have a real pro set up some great lighting and use real pro equipment to photograph some seaglass. I used my new camera to take some of my own shots but alas, it is still only a point & shoot! I did get a few good good ones though....and really, a point & shoot is all I wanted so that I could literally pull it out of my pocket on all my beach walks!

Water droplets, antique punch bowl cup and that wonderful light from below all give my seaglass a little extra impact.

Mostly blues and lavenders although my photo makes them look pink. (Wouldn't that be nice?) This is where the better equipment and better editing by a pro really make a huge difference.

My little bit of fun included making "flowers" of my first drilled seaglass pieces since I did not have the silver chains ordered yet! I wish I had sprinkled these with water too!

 

We did a few variations of "necklace display" using an awesome piece of driftwood, an antique frosty milk bottle and more but these were the only ones I can even think of showing here!  I am looking for more display bottles in my collections and I am hoping to have many more finished necklaces for the next studio session. I know the seaglass flowers are a little cutesy but I want to shoot more of them now.

(plus a few seaglass hearts?) I am excited!

Seaglass Sunday!

My passion for seaglass is finally something I can share. Not just here in thoughts and photos but as wearable art! Mother Nature has taken her time sculpting and smoothing beautiful old glass into these gems and now, after years of saying I would make jewelry of some sort, I have found my time.

First, the space needed to be cleared. My old basement playroom filled over the years with "stuff" took 4 dump runs, a trip to goodwill and a sore back to uncover a corner to set up my new professional drill! I was so excited but also a little nervous to try drilling the first piece.

Success!!!! I watched youtube demonstrations, read any and every web page about how to drill glass, specifically seaglass and took a big gulp. GULPPPPPP. After the first piece I assumed it was beginner's luck but the second piece went smoothly too. I hope I am not jinxing myself now.

I actually had a bag of bails since I had asked another local etsy jeweler to drill a piece for me about a year ago. I wore that piece whenever I needed to remind myself I could do this too! Now I have finally replaced that piece with one of my own and I will wear it with another gem or tiny starfish charm.

The next piece I will drill will be the lavender one I found today on a very cold walk! I hadn't found any purple for what seemed like ages. I really, really hope the drilling is successful since purple is my favorite seaglass color. I felt it was a sign that I was moving in the right direction.

Now I can also finally use the business card I designed for myself a few years back. Obviously, this was something that was in the cards for me..... I just needed to be dealt the right hand!