(May 5, 2016) There are many ways to connect to sea glass: to some it’s trash — a relic of a less environmentally conscious time, and to others it’s treasure — to be sought after, puzzled over and perhaps used to make something new.
For Carrie Samis, curator of community and creativity at the Delmarva Discovery Center and Museum in Pocomoke City, and half of the team leading the classes, it’s part hobby, part obsession and part business.
“When I started finding glass on a beach or at a location special to me, I found I developed a better connection to that place,” Samis said.
Apparently, the connection of another sort is strong as well. An initial sea glass workshop was sold out, and now a second class has been scheduled from 4-6 p.m. on May 14. DDC members’ admission is $40, while non-members are charged $45.
Samis began collecting glass, pottery shards and anything else she thought was interesting and invited an archeologist friend for a drink or two at the Harborside Bar and Grill in West Ocean City to comb through her discoveries.
“I would think about the family that ate off these plates. I started to learn the history. All the glass I have is from the Chesapeake Bay — there are mystiques and appeals to the Chesapeake,” she said. “People used to dump their trash in the water, and it’s been my observation that they’d done it for years.”
What goes into the water as garbage comes out as something else, as sharp and ragged edges are ground down over time, shapes are softened and colors are muted.
“It’s beautiful and it sparkles. I got obsessed quickly and still get very excited when I find something rare,” Samis said.
In terms of sea glass, rarity is primarily a function of color, and the common colors are the familiar tones of the liquor store: browns, greens and clear.
“You can find cobalt blue. Oranges and reds are seen much less frequently. They’re more special,” she said.
Samis will be opening up her own personal stockpiles of sea glass to attendees, though she said participants are welcome to bring their own. Each participant will learn to make jewelry from the glass. Samis and her cousin, Karen Maher, run Natural Elements Jewelry, which sells the products of Mahers’ and Samis’ shared obsession.
“It became our thing. We’d go to the beach, collect glass and come home to use it. We thought we’d like to host a workshop — and it filled in four days,” she said.
Though not part of this seminar, Samis said she’s seen plenty of other crafts containing sea glass apart from jewelry. Some examples include mosaics, candleholders and wreaths.
“So far what’s happening is we’re gathering people who want to feel creative — this is obviously not fine art — but it’s not intimidating. They want a creative outlet to make something they enjoy,” she said. “People don’t look at it and say, ‘Oh, I can’t do that’ — it’s possible. There’s no right or wrong, and that’s the cool thing, but we have found some techniques to make things in a more finished way. That’s the goal.”
For Carrie Samis, curator of community and creativity at the Delmarva Discovery Center and Museum in Pocomoke City, and half of the team leading the classes, it’s part hobby, part obsession and part business.
“When I started finding glass on a beach or at a location special to me, I found I developed a better connection to that place,” Samis said.
Apparently, the connection of another sort is strong as well. An initial sea glass workshop was sold out, and now a second class has been scheduled from 4-6 p.m. on May 14. DDC members’ admission is $40, while non-members are charged $45.
Samis began collecting glass, pottery shards and anything else she thought was interesting and invited an archeologist friend for a drink or two at the Harborside Bar and Grill in West Ocean City to comb through her discoveries.
“I would think about the family that ate off these plates. I started to learn the history. All the glass I have is from the Chesapeake Bay — there are mystiques and appeals to the Chesapeake,” she said. “People used to dump their trash in the water, and it’s been my observation that they’d done it for years.”
What goes into the water as garbage comes out as something else, as sharp and ragged edges are ground down over time, shapes are softened and colors are muted.
“It’s beautiful and it sparkles. I got obsessed quickly and still get very excited when I find something rare,” Samis said.
In terms of sea glass, rarity is primarily a function of color, and the common colors are the familiar tones of the liquor store: browns, greens and clear.
“You can find cobalt blue. Oranges and reds are seen much less frequently. They’re more special,” she said.
Samis will be opening up her own personal stockpiles of sea glass to attendees, though she said participants are welcome to bring their own. Each participant will learn to make jewelry from the glass. Samis and her cousin, Karen Maher, run Natural Elements Jewelry, which sells the products of Mahers’ and Samis’ shared obsession.
“It became our thing. We’d go to the beach, collect glass and come home to use it. We thought we’d like to host a workshop — and it filled in four days,” she said.
Though not part of this seminar, Samis said she’s seen plenty of other crafts containing sea glass apart from jewelry. Some examples include mosaics, candleholders and wreaths.
“So far what’s happening is we’re gathering people who want to feel creative — this is obviously not fine art — but it’s not intimidating. They want a creative outlet to make something they enjoy,” she said. “People don’t look at it and say, ‘Oh, I can’t do that’ — it’s possible. There’s no right or wrong, and that’s the cool thing, but we have found some techniques to make things in a more finished way. That’s the goal.”