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Home - What is Sea Glass What is Sea Glass?When you are first starting to collect beach glass or sea glass, you might have questions about what you've found. Even those with more experience might have trouble telling if a certain object is beach glass or not.We'll answer the main questions and also related questions about what is beach glass and sea glass.
First - Sea Glass or Beach Glass?
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Beach glass is glass that has been discarded and ends up on a beach.
Then, wave action on a sandy or rocky shore tumbles, rounds, and etches the glass.
Sunlight reacts with elements in the glass, contributing to an etched surface and sometimes a change in color.
Chemical composition of the water also dissolves (leaches out) certain substances of the glass, contributing to very tiny pitting or etching of the surface of the glass.
The differences between freshwater beach glass and saltwater (sea) glass are so slight that in many
| Where "beach glass" refers to that found on freshwater or ocean shores, the term "sea glass" is beach glass specifically found only on saltwater beaches |
cases no real differences are noticeable.
However, most freshwater lakes lack enough wave action to tumble the glass. That and the fact that there are so many more miles of saltwater beaches in the world means that most of the beach glass that you will see is from ocean beaches; it is more specifically sea glass.
Usually, if a piece of beach glass has been found on a lake, that fact will be mentioned.
It is beach glass if:Hold it in front of a bright light.
Definition -
- A piece of glass has been tumbled
by natural wave action to the point where there are no
sharply-defined edges or corners, and |
So, I'll say,
"Sea glass," and see how they respond. Some will ask
right off, "What IS sea glass?" Some already know what it is.
On the other hand, some are hesitant to let on that they don't know
what sea glass is, so then I'll usually ask them if they know what sea
glass is.
If they don't
know what sea glass is, I'll say something like:
"You know, when you're walking along the beach and you find little
pieces of glass of different colors.
Those are from busted up bottles and glassware that have been in the
salt water for a long time and because of the currents and the sun and
the waves and the sand, they turn out really frosty."
Or, if I'm
wearing a piece of sea glass jewelry, I will show them
that.
Then, it's like, "Oh,
wow!"

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| Photo of the Month Winner Mayl 2013 "Bottleneck on Assateague" by Carie Teller of Allison Park, Pennsylvania, USA |
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“Hi David,
I received your sea glass hearts and I LOVE them all.
Thank you so much for sending the extra hearts.
I was so touched by your thoughtfulness and I appreciate you sharing these special gifts from the sea! Hope to see more of your sea glass soon!
Thanks again,”
Diane
“Hi David,
Just wanted to tell you thank you for the monthly sea glass newsletter. I love it, and look forward to it.
Thanks again to you and your wife.”
Judi
“Hi David,
I just wanted to let you know I appreciate receiving my sea glass order so quickly.
Love the flowers, wave crest & rare pastels and the little extra surprise....you made my day!!”
Diane
“I am so fascinated by sea glass - I can’t believe at 70 I found a new hobby.
Thanks for the opportunity to search and read up on this!”
Sonja
“Your site made me so happy tonight! Why?
Many happy memories swirled back into my mind when I saw your pictures. I spent my childhood on the beaches of Cape Cod and we spent many happy hours looking for sea glass.”
Candee
“It is a pleasure and refreshing to meet people in the sea glass community that are willing to share! I got some great tips from your site. It was wonderful not to spend my entire vacation looking for a beach. Thanks again!”
Maryanne K.W.
“Hi David and Lin.
Love your sea glass web site. I enjoy your picture of the month and intend on winning at least once.
I have been collecting and creating things from sea glass for over twenty years. I find my sea glass on the beautiful shores of Lake Erie in Cleveland Ohio.
Thank you for sharing your treasures with me.” Yours truly,
Cathy Lincks
“What an AWESOME site! I love reading about it, looking at all of your pictures, and planning my next vacation to the perfect beach.
Keep up the great work!”
Paula
“I’m a new subscriber to your newsletter and I love it!”
Rena
“Hi David and Lin - I love your website! Thank you for sharing info...”
Teryl
“Hi David. Its Bill and Joan Laverick, Durham City, North East of England. We love reading your posts. Keep up the good work!”
Bill & Joan
“I soo look forward to reading your blogs.”
Jacqueline Giguere
“Just wanted to let you know (since you were so helpful) that I won a blue ribbon (1st place) in Gifford Middle School Science Fair in the category of Environmental Science with my topic - Effect of a Florida Tidal Inlet on Wrack Line Sea Glass Volume.
Now, I will compete in the Regional Science Fair which will take place on Feb 2nd. My mom and dad and I had a lot of fun searching for sea glass.
Thanks,”
Mary Hyde
“I am beginning to be a typical sea glass hunter - always looking for fun places to find glass!
I think your site is great - very informative - thanks for the time and effort you put into it. ”
Karen
“I am beginning to be a typical sea glass hunter - always looking for fun places to find glass!
I think your site is great - very informative - thanks for the time and effort you put into it. ”
Karen
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