Collecting: Sea Glass
When The Man was planning an abalone dive trip up to the northern tip of California, I knew I wanted to tag along. I'd heard that some of the beaches were covered in sea glass and had always wanted to see them. I figured while he was diving I could do some beachcombing.
The sea glass is plentiful in the area because it used to be the city dump. The residents would throw their garbage off the cliff into the water. The broken bottles and jars have been tumbled in the sea for years, creating the soft muted tones. I suppose it's like "dumpster diving" in the ocean. Although, probably much more relaxing and beautiful than the real dumpster diving.
I didn't go into the State Park section of Glass Beach because I knew I didn't want to collect anything from there, so I ventured down south outside the park (fewer tourists) and was still able to find much of the beach covered with glass.
I loved hiking along the trails…the coastline is absolutely gorgeous. There were a few surfers and hippies hanging out, along with lots of squirrels and wild blackberries. The bushes were wiped clean by said surfers and squirrels. But that was ok, I was there for the sea glass anyway, right?
One thing I love about collecting is when you get home and can sort them out by color. It kind of reminds me of sorting "pretty" rocks in egg cartons when I was a kid.
You can leave them all mixed up, if you're into that sort of thing. I'm not because I'm slightly ocd. But in the good way. 😉
Now I can't wait for another opportunity to tag along on an abalone dive.
Do any of you collect sea glass? Do tell!
38 Responses to “Collecting: Sea Glass”
Sea glass is one of my most beloved collections. I found some of my best pieces in California, too. Love your vintage bottles!
Okinawa Japan has vey good sea glass! I have a ton of it and it has followed me to Germany. It reminds me of my all things beachy and such pretty colors-my fav being the aqua colored ones. I LOVE YOUR BLOG!
I´m a bit envious now I have to admit – that looks pretty!
I do! We used to spend much of the summer sailing to Catalina when I was a kid, and the rocky beaches were scattered with lots of shells and sea glass back then. Not so much any more. But I still look for it whenever I’m on a beach. I especially love lavender sea glass.
Yes, on two trips to Mexico in the past several years
beach glass I collected was my most prized souvenir
brought back from the trips. I display it in a glass
jar on a bookcase where I can see it daily. Marie
My kids and I were absolutely delighted to find loads of sea glass while on vacation in a little town in England. My youngest said it was just like getting presents from the mermaids. Each time we found a piece it was pure joy!
That is amazing. Sea glass is a treasure indeed. I don’t live near an ocean to be able to collect sea glass, but I definitely would if I did live near one.
I like to collect old Mason jars. I use Mason jars all over the house.I also like to collect antique keys. It’s fun to put them on the dinning room table in a great big rectangular trencher. We’ve had some great family conversations at dinner time about those keys(who owned them, what they were keys to) fun to make up stories about them.
Heather,
I really enjoyed your post. We have a home in Cape Cod, and I cannot begin to tell you how many hours I have spent searching for sea glass. If you found all that glass in one day, you really did well. Even in the spring and fall, it is challenging to find more than 12 pieces at one time. However, I love the hunt and it is so exciting to find an unusual color (not the typical clear, brown or green). I know I have spent many more hours walking the beach looking down at the sand for sea glass than I spend looking at the ocean. I have been collecting sea glass for about 30 years now so I do have a pretty large collection. When we vacation with our daughters, we search for sea glass everywhere we go. It reminds me of my love of searching for antiques only this is much less expensive, but very enjoyable.
wow! What a great find. I spent two years living in Nova Scotia and combing the beach for sea glass was one of my favourite activities while the kids played in the sand. I never brought home more than ten pieces at a time though. I have a large jar filled with all of our beach collections: sea glass, shells, and a small orange plastic “sea monkey” that my two year old was so excited to find. Our beach jar is full of memories and is one of my most prized possessions.
My 12 year old wanted a ‘seaglass color room’, so that is what we did when we moved into our new house. It is so beautiful and tranquil.
My sister used to have a home on the Chesapeake Bay, and had a magnificent seaglass collection that she kept in a large clear bowl. Maybe that was the inspiration for my daughter!
– Holly
How lucky you are! The only sea glass I have was bought in a bag from someplace I can’t even remember. I would be like a kid in a candy store on that beach! Jealous!
Heather,
I’ve always wanted to collect sea glass but have never found any in Southern California. Good to know where it exists along this west coast. Your collection is very pretty, especially in the aqua colored jars and bottles.
Karen
I would totally collect that stuff if I lived near the ocean! Would gathering some be a good excuse to book a ticket to the west coast??!
I love sea glass and have quite a large collection in jars and bottles. My brother lives in Spain and one tiny beach on the north of the island had as much sea glass as it had stones – I was literally picking it up without having to even look for it. We collected quite a bit there and some german tourist saw what we were doing and joined in then gave me their stash when they had finished. I have a small amount from that beach in a jar with a little strip of paper showing the name of the beach and when we collected it. The rest of my stash joined my growing collection. I only collect green and white/clear. If my kids ever go to the beach with relatives or school they always bring me some back. There is also a silver jeweller who lives locally near a beautiful Gower beach who makes jewellery from sea glass and right now I’m wearing my favourite silver pebble and sea glass nugget bangle – it’s my favourite piece of jewellery. Glad to see I’m not alone!
We collect Sea Glass on the Delaware Beaches….love finding rare and unique colors -orange, purple, red, etc. We go every day off work for more searching. I’ve started selling it because I had way too much!
Lake Glass – We live near Lake Erie in Ohio and I just started collecting this spring.
So far I only have small pieces but it’s the hunt of it that I love and being outside enjoying another side of nature.
my daughter just got back from seattle and bainbridge island, and she and her boyfriend brought me a huge bag of sea glass they found on at his families house. i love it, it’s so beautiful!
I do collect sea glass — I live near the Indiana Dunes of Lake Michigan — so I go as often as I can. Your finds are beautiful!
I do, I do!!! Walking in the sand, smelling the sea air, feeling the breeze and looking down for sea glass is my favorite thing to do! I love it!
“…presents from the mermaids” is one of the most wonderful things I had ever heard!
xoxo, Chris
ps how was the abalone diving?
I do! One of my favorite things to collect. I did a blog post a few years ago about sea glass. http://cherishedvintage.blogspot.com/2008/07/beach-glass.html I find mine, mostly on Whidbey Is. in Washington. I have found some great pieces on the beaches in Maui too. The perfect inexpensive souvenir!
-Karoline
Hi Heather,
I do collect sea glass…and have for years where ever we travel to..but you finds are amazing..we spent the month of January in Panama and I found the bottom of a bottle that said USSR..and brought home quite a bit…sweet finds! your shots are just so perfect..those would make some great post cards❤
I love collecting sea glass. It is getting quite hard to find here on the East Coast these days…..we used to find tons of it.
Cara Heather ,io vivo in Sardegna, adoro raccogliere i vetri di mare
per tenerli dentro vasi di vetro, in casa…..Sono bellissimi sono i gioielli del mare!!!!!
Qui da noi si trovano anche conchiglie chiamate “occhi di Santa Lucia”.
Li conosci? sono bellissimi.
La tua collezione è bellissima!
Baci Giò
We go bareboat sailing in the Caribbean every couple of years and I love to go beach combing at all the remote little dot islands. I have little jars from all our trips with sea glass in them. I found a large piece with writing on it in Anegada, BVI that I turned into a beautiful necklace. I’ve gotten the whole family in on the search. Thank you for sharing your beautiful pictures.
I have never collected sea glass but have always admired it. I realize I’m going to sound like a complete dolt, but I didn’t actually know it was real glass, polished by the waves – I thought it was small colourful rocks that were just CALLED that! I hope to have a small collection some day – preferably in interesting jars, like yours 🙂
I recognize the place in your photographs, one of my very favorite places to visit. I have several pieces of sea glass from there as well. It’s beautiful, and I love the way it feels between my fingers.
Thank you for sharing.
I recognize the place in your photographs, one of my very favorite places to visit. I have several pieces of sea glass from there as well. It’s beautiful, and I love the way it feels between my fingers.
Thank you for sharing.
I recognize the place in your photographs, one of my very favorite places to visit. I have several pieces of sea glass from there as well. It’s beautiful, and I love the way it feels between my fingers.
Thank you for sharing.
I recognize the place in your photographs, one of my very favorite places to visit. I have several pieces of sea glass from there as well. It’s beautiful, and I love the way it feels between my fingers.
Thank you for sharing.
Actually I am going sometime next week —I’ve never been and so a former co worker invited me. I can’t wait!
I collect it too, on the other side of the pond. Actually, I always bring it home where I find it. Once my luggage was SO heavy for all the treasures I had collected on the beach, that I had a little problem at the airport 😉 but after looking at me like a kid caught red handed by his mother stealing cookies from the cookie jar, they allowed me to take my suitcase on board! LOL
What wonderful treasures. I’ve been to a lot of beaches, but have yet to find much glass. I would love to find such an amazing amount. I also am in love with the antique jar with the fabulous lid. Beautiful photos as always, Heather.
Karen B
I collect seashells and sea glass. I don’t find much sea glass here on the beaches we visit in Florida. It’s a rare find! You have some wonderful pieces! WOW!
You’ve found one of my most favorite places! Abs, wine and seaglass, what could be better. When you’re in the Monterey Bay area next there’s another beach, the old Fort Ord dump site that has glass as well as pottery shards. Really fun and great diving.
Where I live there is a barrier vacation beach on the ocean. When I was a teenager there was an older couple who used to collect different colored glass bottles to bring to the beach in the winter time. They would put the bottles in the ocean and target practice, shooting them. The one and only reason was to “make” beach glass for summer vacationers for the following year!
Funny, I have lived in So Cal for over 30 yrs and never collected sea glass until I happened upon some last year. I don’t think it is the good kind…more like a lot of partying was going on in this rocky place since there seemed to be a lot of fresh sharper-edged broken glass & I was worried with my young kids, but I found a few very small frosted ones that could be the real deal before we left.
I think I first started seeing the pretty sea glass on blogs a few years ago & wondering where people were finding this so easily (and not getting cut) since I’ve never seen any at our beaches…now, I know it is where there was once dumping. Sometime I just want to leave the kids with husband and go ‘hunting’…I got the itch and have only been back to the ocean once this year where I again by chance found some “mermaid tears” at another pebbly beach that we just happened to stop at on the way home.
Anyway, I have the sea glass, pebbles and shells in a small fish bowl in our aqua, white & green bathroom.
Is that a squirrel in the picture? So cute! I love your sea glass collection. What do you do with those? Do you do arts and crafts with that? I collect sea glass also and I’m fond of making necklace and bracelets out of it.
I also love collecting sea glass, and I’ve been doing it since I was a kid. It was one of our bonding moments with my sister and my mom. We collect and mom makes the jewelries. I’m 31 now an I still have them.
SeaGlass.us
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