Searching for Sea Glass

If you’ve been reading the blog for a while then you probably know my obsession with sea glass. Ever since our boys were little we’ve searched our local beaches for it.

If you follow along with me on Instagram, I’ll often post images of our sea glass hauls in stories. Many people ask me what we do with the sea glass and really I just like keeping in a bowl in our entry.

Would you like to start your own sea glass collection? Read on for more!

Searching for Sea Glass

Each morning we walk Max and Poppy, our two rescue dogs, on the beach and we search for sea glass. Most of what we collect we’ve found at Museum Beach – which is a beach on Jericho Road in Scituate. It’s in walking distance from our house, but we’ve also found some beautiful pieces at the Spit (off 3rd cliff) and other beaches in Scituate.

I thought I’d give you an idea of what we collected in 2023 –

We were we able to fill this J. Curtis bowl to the brim with our beautiful collection. This got me thinking about these sweet little pieces of glass and really how they’re a metaphor for life and goals.

Collecting Sea Glass – a Metaphor

Each morning we look.

Some mornings we don’t find any pieces at all.

Sometimes we find only one beautiful vibrant piece.

Other outings, we find a haul of sea glass and wonder, “how can we be so lucky!” The thing is, it’s persistence. Always searching. Always looking to find that glimmering glass on the sand.

Some days we find some. Some days we don’t.

But those pieces of sea glass really add up when you collect them. So perhaps, you have a goal and each day you chip away at that goal. Just doing one small task. Think of how much you could accomplish in one year!

The one piece of sea glass becomes reaching your goal just by doing one thing a day!

What is Sea Glass?

Sea glass is created by ordinary glass being tumbled in the ocean and becomes opaque and smooth from the salt water and rocks. It can take decades to become sea glass. I’ve always loved the look and feel of sea glass.

What color is rare?

We often find clear which goes opaque white and brown. Rare colors include – red, yellow, and orange. Red is from brake lights but they don’t really make them out of glass anymore. Red and green is also from boats.

My favorite color is this aqua blue. John found this piece on the Spit over Christmas break.

Tips for Finding Sea Glass

If you’d like to start your own collection. I recommend getting your kids hooked, too. The boys started so young searching.

A funny story is that I used to take them looking and one time they were trying to pick up glass up on the street and parking lots thinking it was sea glass.

Some tips for finding sea glass:

• Try to get to the beach early
• Often times you can find more after a storm
• Look in the rocks, sometimes it gets stuck there by the tide
• We take off our sunglasses to spot it easier

Home Decor & Sea Glass

I love displaying bowls and jars of sea glass through out our home. This was displayed in our guest room a few years ago.

This lamp from Boston Interiors is that perfect sea glass blue I love:

The bottles are from Home Depot and mimic sea glass while the bottle in this bowl is actually an old soda bottle that is sea glass! A gift from my mom!

It’s fun to make your own “sea glass”. I made these bottles with mod podge and food coloring. Get the tutorial here.

More Resources

A friend of mine, Ali Monger, creates Sea Glass Art. She’s made beautiful sea glass paintings. See her work here.

We love visiting Spectacle Island and have written more about it here on the blog. Spectacle Island is one of the Boston Harbor Islands and used to be a dump. There is loads of sea glass there but you’re not really allowed to take it. We’ve loved bringing our kids there since they were little.

This is glass on the beach at Spectacle Island:

They have beautiful art installations created with pottery shards and glass found on the island.

It truly is a magical place.

Let’s Keep In Touch

I hope you enjoyed learning more about collecting sea glass. I hope you find some amazing pieces for your home!

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