FAQ's About The Jewelry And Sea Glass
Is The Sea Glass In Your Jewelry Genuine Sea Glass?
Yes, our jewelry is only made with genuine sea glass that was collected on a beach and was worn smooth naturally in the sea. We have never and will never be involved with creating or selling imitation sea glass. We consider glass that has been machine tumbled to be craft glass that has no relation to sea glass whatsoever. If glass was not worn smooth only by the sea or a natural body of water ( such as one the Great Lakes ) then it is not sea glass, seaglass, beach glass or beach glass - it is craft glass.
Do You Alter The Sea Glass In Anyway?
I am inspired by the beauty of natural sea glass. I never shape, sand, color, polish or artificially tumble it, and I never cut it to fit a setting. The only permanent change I make is a drill hole. Many of my jewelry pieces are made with drilled sea glass which gives the jewelry an ancient look and feel.
Do You Collect The Sea Glass Yourself?
My husband and I collected most of the sea glass ourselves from the beaches of Puerto Rico, Costa Rica, Bali, Italy, Canada, England and the Outer Banks of North Carolina. The sea glass from the Pacific Northwest, California, and Hawaii was collected by friends and professional beachcombers.
Where Do You Collect Sea Glass?
I lived in Puerto Rico for fifteen years and have collected sea glass on beaches all over the island. Beachcombing is my passion. In addition to the beaches of Puerto Rico I have spent months on end wandering the beaches of the Eastern Caribbean, Costa Rica, Europe, Bali, Australia, New Zealand and the Society Islands. I also love to collect seashells, never living shells, and sometimes incorporate some of my more durable seashells into jewelry pieces.
Made By Hand?
Our jewelry has a rustic, organic elegance because it is actually handmade! I make every ear wire by hand with sterling silver wire. I also make all of the bracelet/necklace chains and pendant bales by hand as well. In other words I do not purchase mass produced pre-made chains, bales or ear wires etc. and then attach sea glass to them. I make jewelry from scratch. Using ancient jewelry techniques and simple hand tools I shape and form precious metal wire into elegant ear wires, chains and bales that are much stronger than the usual commercial fare. Inspired by the ancient world I strive to make jewelry that not only has the potential to become an heirloom but looks to have emerged from antiquity. Out Of The Blue is a vestige of the truly handmade. It is an honor and an adventure to be one of the few still keeping these age-old traditions alive. We are one of the very few that can actually say that our jewelry is truly handmade.
Out Of The Blue Seaglass Jewelry offers the world's largest selection of sea glass jewelry that is entirely made by hand
What Criteria Do You Use To Select Sea Glass Pieces For Use In Jewelry?
I rule out sharp or cracked pieces. I then look for what is beautiful, striking or interesting. Most of the seaglass in my jewelry is fully frosted but there are times when a flaw is what makes a piece interesting and that is pointed out in the description. A piece may be nearly completely frosted with a shiny spot in recessed areas. This can make an interesting contrast especially with bottle rims.
How Do You Determine The Price Of A Piece Of Jewelry?
Jewelry prices are based on the following:
- Sea glass rarity
- Sea glass condition
- Sea glass size
- The amount of sea glass in a piece of jewelry
- The quantity of silver used
- The work and time involved in creating a piece of jewelry
For the quality of our work we feel that our jewlery prices are very reasonable. Even our lowest priced earrings with common sea glass colors such as amber or white sea glass have that expensive rustic look because we make our own ear wires. Jewelry made this way is often outrageously expensive in your higher end boutiques and catalogs that carry truly artisan made jewelry. Hardly anyone makes jewlery in the truly handmade way that we do. The few that do charge quite a lot of money for it. If you are looking for something very special with that certain "je ne sais quoi" then you have scored. We are also able to offer our jewlery at reasonable prices because we have collected most of our sea glass.
Do You Use Any Glues Or Adhesives In Your Jewelry?
Never! All of our jewelry is made without glues or adhesives. A jewelry setting should hold an object securely in place without the use of glues or adhesives. Over time glues and adhesives break down when used with sea glass. Sea glass that is glued into a setting will eventually fall out of it's setting.
Where Did You Learn To Make Jewelry?
When I started making sea glass jewelry in Puerto Rico there were no jewelry making classes available locally and the internet did not exist. In the beginning I learned by trial and error. Since moving to the states I have been taking classes with Connie Fox, a renowned jewelry artist and teacher, in San Diego, California on a continuous basis. It is her I credit for my latest direction.
What Is The History Of Out Of The Blue Sea Glass Jewelry?
I have been making sea glass jewelry since 1987. I started this adventure in Rincon, Puerto Rico shortly after finding my first piece of sea glass there. In the beginning I sold by way of the coconut telegraph and from a table on the beach. There were very few tourists then but I was able to make a living as Rincon was an undiscovered poor man's paradise. While selling on the beach The Lazy Parrot Inn offered me a gallery space. The Parrot was the home for Out Of The Blue Seaglass Jewelry for many years. At one point my sea glass jewelry display there was the largest in the Caribbean and possibly the world. We had well over eight hundred pieces of sea glass jewelry on display there on any given day.
Out Of The Blue Seaglass Jewelry has been on the cutting edge of sea glass jewelry production and design for nearly twenty five years and is considered to be a pioneer in the art form. When I first moved to Rincon there were already a few people there who had been making sea glass jewelry since the 1960's. There were also several other sea glass jewelry artist in other parts of the world as well. However, Out Of The Blue Seaglass Jewelry is the oldest large scale full time sea glass jewelry business in the world that I know of. Out Of The Blue Seaglass Jewelry has been able to produce sea glass jewelry on a large scale using only genuine sea glass since the beginning due to the abundance of sea glass in Rincon, Puerto Rico at the time.
