Growing up on the coast of Massachusetts, I started collecting sea glass as a young girl with my grandmother, who lived in "Gull Cottage." She was legally blind, but I would describe to her all of the different colors and patterns of the glass and pottery that we found. She would frequently recognize the name of the manufacturer or local bottle company embossed on the glass. She would tell stories about drinking soda pop out of glass bottles, putting the empty milk bottles out on the front stoop for the milkman to take, and "recycling" broken glass and china in the local waterways. When she passed away, I looked at those cherished pieces of sea glass as little pieces of her.
Many years later, I took a class in stained glass and began to think of ways to use some of these special pieces of glass to create lasting memories. By using the Tiffany copper foil technique, I realized that I could wrap the sea glass and pieces of pottery to combine them with the color and beauty of traditional stained glass. I started designing around the colors, textures, and shapes of the glass, letting the sea glass itself speak to me.
Today, I create original pieces of art that showcase the unique qualities of the sea glass and pottery shards that I collect. Each sea glass and pottery shard holds such intrinsic beauty and mystery that one single piece can be the inspiration for a new design. I now live in my grandmother's cherished Gull Cottage, and I continue to collect sea glass and beach pottery with my own three girls. Weekend sea glassing excursions are planned around tide charts and the cycles of the moon. When there is a big storm, our first question is "What time is low tide?" We have a secret celebratory dance that we do when we find a special piece, and we keep our treasures in our own "family collection" box that I often bring to sea glass shows.
I hope you enjoy viewing some of my creations. I am constantly thinking of imaginative ways to combine sea glass and stained glass to create one-of-a-kind works of art. I never know when the tide might wash in my next inspiration!