Some that I found was perfectly smoothed and frosted from its years in the hash marine environment, almost like jewels. At the time I didn't know it was called sea glass or beach glass. I thought about ways I could make use of them and the size and shapes got me to thinking they’d be perfect for necklace pendants if I could find a way of drilling a hole to hang them from. Many, many hours later after reading numerous articles and books and buying of tools, I started out on my jewellery making career.
I finally made my first necklace by drilling a hole in the sea glass, inserting a sterling silver jump ring and hanging it from a sterling silver chain. It looked great. I was thrilled to bits that my idea had worked. The necklace was gorgeous and I got many compliments when wearing it.
I love making the jewellery, but you can’t just keep making stuff and not doing anything with it so I went back onto the internet to find a marketplace and that’s how I found Etsy in November 2010 and soon after created my own website 'The Strandline'.
The Strandline has a feel of the sea. The name describes exactly where I find my jewels (on the strandline) and also connects with the on-line nature of the business. The Strandline banner is a photo I took of my local beach with a logo that conjures up the colours of the ocean. I like simple and elegant, nothing fussy, and my shop and jewellery designs reflect this.
Eventually, what started out as a chance encounter with that first piece of sea glass has turned into a near obsession (a common occurrence to which most sea glass collectors will attest).