How I got started making sea glass jewellery

This photo features the lavender I found at Shelley Beach which changed everything

How I stumbled across sea glass

I remember collecting shells and sea glass as a kid, but I hadn’t found any in years. I guess once you grow up, you kinda lose that sense of wonder.

Then one day, down at one of my local sydney northern beaches, I spotted something that stopped me in my tracks. My eyeballs practically popped out of my head.

There she was — a perfectly frosted, lavender sea glass gem just sitting there in the sand. I couldn’t believe it. I had no idea how rare that colour was to find in Sydney. But there she was, in broad daylight, waiting for me. No one else had picked her up. Incredible.

And just like that, my child-like wonder for sea glass and picking up treasures off the beach came rushing back.

Right then and there, I knew it was a sign. The universe was nudging me. Time to start making sea glass jewellery. What were the odds? Seriously. So rare, so meant to be.

My first Sea Glass ring collection

I launched my very first sea glass rings collection in 2023.

Making it took agesssss! Forming silver around unique shaped sea glass gems was new to me and took time to get perfect and learn how to a custom bezel setting for each piece of sea glass.

I posted the photo above in a local Facebook group asking how much I should charge for a ring and the post went viral! Again, another push from the universe into the right direction.

And then I had something phenomenal happen!

A fellow Northern Beaches sea glass collector reached out and ask if I wanted all his sea glass. He said he had two big tubs of sea glass he and his wife had gathered over many years, combing the shorelines between Collaroy and Shelley.

For decades, their treasures had been sitting in the garage gathering dust, and he asked if I wanted them. My response? A very enthusiastic “YASSSS!” This time is was a massive nudge from the universe!

Spooky, right!!!

And he didn’t just give me the sea glass. He also shared his best tips on where to find more along the northern beaches. That generosity gave me the push I needed to make Australian sea glass the heart of my jewellery practice (up until then, I had only been working with pearls, shells and gemstones).

The day he delivered those two buckets, I poured through them in awe. In that moment, I just knew: sea glass was going to become the most meaningful and coveted part of my designs.