Jade Milk Glass – Beachglass Necklace & Earrings

Finding these pieces of Jade on the beach are fairly rare.  To be able to match 2 pieces well enough to make earrings is even more difficult.  I have a few pieces that are more chipped looking and less well worn.  All of these edges are very smooth.

Jade or Jadite Milk Glass is very collectable in it’s man made form of dishware and bottles.  These shards that made it into the trash… out to the lake…. have been molded and softened by Lake Erie’s wave action and rough sand.  Amazing to be able to reuse the discards of past generations and make these very wearable pieces of jewelry.

I like the post earring style.  Up until very recently I only had fish hook earrings, so these are special for the style also.  The pieces are about 3/4″ high.

The matching necklace is over an inch tall, wrapped in silver wire.

Again this is a rare find indeed.  A jewelry size piece and very nicely worn.   The color matches the earrings perfectly.

Check out my other pieces by clicking on the box to your right.

Bottle Jewelry

Made as a gift for a friend.

I made this last fall to celebrate the birthday of a very good friend.  I took small pieces of beach glass that we had collected on the beach over the years and wired them onto a base of heavy wire and forming a spiral around the bottle, so it can slip on and off.  I incorporated driftwood and shells from the days my friend and I walked the beaches together.  The idea had actually come from the amazing piece of pottery that I found on Walnut City Beach in Ashtabula, Ohio.  The plate or bowl this pottery came from appears to be an old pattern of china.  Amazing to think these acorns survived in the action of the water and ended up on the beach the day I went looking.  What was once a dangerously sharp piece of a broken dish is now smooth and polished.

It turned about to be very pretty and vibrant.

 

Pieces of clear glass…fascinating

Pretty closely matched

wrapped with silver wire

On the beaches of Lake Erie frosty pieces of white glass that were once clear bottles, litter the sand.  It’s not uncommon to find pieces that have ridges where a metal cap used to screw on the bottle to keep it’s contents inside.   Ball jars have been a common container found along our north coast for years, where fall harvest was a bounty to be canned and saved for the winter months.  When the bottles were broken, thrown in the trash, they then made it’s way into the lake.  Now the sharp edges are softened and the glass has become part of the lake’s environment.

I love the pieces in these pictures.  Against a dark sweater they stand out and their uniqueness is revealed.  The earrings are a nice size but are very light weight and easy to wear.

 

The precious BLUE beachglass

Rare piece of blue glass

When you see one of these unique colors on the beach it is a “WOW” moment.  It is such a contrast to the surrounding sand, stone and shell fragments you see on the beach.  Even more than finding a rare Red piece, the blue color just pops out.  This is the second largest piece of blue that I have found.  On any given trip to the beach I might find a few little fragments of blue, but to find a piece this large is amazing and exciting. 

Of course you can buy this piece, just let me know.

Jewelry to Order

A beach treasure to keep.

I have always loved the beach.  So many interesting things to find.  So many different types of beaches.  Some with big shells, all with pretty rocks and of course the best treasure of all, for me, beach glass.

When my 2 oldest grandchildren were little, we spent one cold fall day making driftwood art with treasures from Red Bay.  Shells and pressed flowers were glued onto interesting pieces of wood that we found on the beach.  I loved that time with them.  First on the beach and then making something to save our treasures.  I will always keep those little pieces of driftwood to remember.

This is a stone of some kind that was found on the beach of North Carolina by a co-worker.  She handed it to me and said “see what you can do.”  I think she does really like how it turned out.  For me, it was especially fun to try something new and to feel that it could be wearable art that carries memories and the feel of walking on the beach everytime it is worn.

Stretchie necklace slips easily over your head.

Mesh beach glass necklace

Used a worn shell as the bail.

I found the shell and the glass at Haulover Bay in St. John.  I loved the shell.  It was on the coral rubble beach.  All the edges were soft and had been worn leaving the whole little shell open.  It is such a fun necklace to wear with the turquoise mesh necklace and the matching little piece of glass wire wrapped to the shell. 

 

The sea turtle on St. John

Sea turtle charmSea turtle charm

This is one of those old pieces of green glass.  Worn against the skin it is very dark,  but in the light it is so pretty and the sunlight just glows through the glass.  You can see bubbles and imperfections within.  It would be a great ornament to hang from your rearview mirror in the car & wait for the sunlight to flash green behind the turtle.  Snorkelers often swim with the turtles off the beaches of St. John, USVI.  If you are lucky you might see them come up from their jellyfish hunt to grab a breath on the surface.  Always exciting and an unexpected pleasure to share some time with them.  Pairing the turtle & this old piece of glass just seemed like the right thing to do.

Special pieces

Special piece

The best part of my hobby is the hunt for the treasure.  I remember climbing over some big rocks and stepping onto the next little beach.  Right in front of me sparkling in the sun was this large green piece.  So unique and so special, that I am sure I will never find another piece like it.

That kind of discovery is awesome.  Of course the color is amazing against the sand and stones at the water’s edge.  And laying right in front of me, it seemed like it couldn’t be real.

 

I struggled to decide how to create a piece of jewelry with this glass, because I didn’t want the wire to take any thing away from the wonderful pattern so deeply visible on the surface.

 

Black Seaglass, centuries old

Hold this up to the light and it turns green

 I have found beach glass along the shores of Lake Erie for 30 years.  (I started collecting more recently.)  The glass I found while on vacation in the Caribbean seemed totally different.  The pieces for the most part weren’t worn as much as the Lake Erie glass, even though I am sure it has been in the ocean longer.  I am not sure what the difference is, but it probably has a lot to do with the shallow lake with alot of sand and good wave action.  I also read somewhere that the ph of Lake Erie is close to that of the ocean.

The piece in the picture looks very black, except (as in this picture, the sun reflects back it’s true color.  On the beach these pieces of glass look like black stones.   The first piece I saw made me think of charcoal.  But not leaving any stone unturned, I had to pick it up and see.  Then I took a trip back down the beach and found quite a bit more.  The glass comes from bottles used to transport wine, spirits, medicine and anything that might spoil in the sun centuries ago.  I found it on the beach in Hurricane Hole, which was a place for sailing ships to find safe harbor during storms.  I found some very large pieces that as a necklace would be like carrying the weight of the world around your neck.  I just couldn’t leave them behind.  Very interesting stuff.

Seaglass from the Bahamas

I am having fun making necklaces in this new way.  The nylon mesh cord is so comfortable around your neck.  It is like a choker size, but feels feather light.

I have also done some with pretty glass beads instead of seaglass.  I get many compliments when I wear the necklaces, so I think people will buy them.  My granddaughter has hers on now.  Purple mesh necklace with a crystal purple bead.  Her favorite color.