My work is therapy – I get lost down on the beach and everything seems right with the world.
Amy’s Story
I have been beach glassing my entire life, learning from my mom on the shores of the Atlantic in Nova Scotia as a child. So, as you can imagine, moving to Mentor, Ohio and being right on our beautiful Lake Erie is right up my alley. I have been creating things from my “treasures” for over 20 years.
What motivates me?
My mom was a beach/water lover, having grown up on the Atlantic coast in Nova Scotia. So I was lucky enough to spend summers in Nova Scotia as a kid. She was so very cool in every way and would always take us on adventures to find treasures (of all sorts, not just on the beach), and sometimes mischief! One thing she liked doing was going into abandoned houses and buildings, which, of course, would be frowned on today.
So I suppose my mom motivated me as a younger person. Fast forward until about 9 years ago – I lost my wonderful husband of 30 years. So now maybe it’s a therapy of some sort. I get lost down on the beach, and everything seems right with the world there. It is one of my favorite places to be, finding treasures or not. I have said to people, if I stopped collecting today, which of course I won’t, I would have enough to make things for two lifetimes! I have also said that beach glass makes me smile, so that is why I love it when people like my things – and it makes them smile too.
While I love to create treasures from this “trash,” my primary intent is to turn other people on to beach glass. I would say in the last 10 – 15 years, it has become more popular, and there are more pickers. Some glassers won’t even share where they find the glass.
Following the Lake’s Legacy
I live in the Cleveland area, but was born in Ontario. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve made the trek, circling around the lake, to see relatives. As a result, I have combed dozens of beaches through the years, including the islands. Pelee is one of my favorite Lake Erie islands, and it is in the Canadian waters, which is cool.
Whether I go east through Buffalo or west through Detroit is dependent on my ultimate destination. In either case, there are many stops to choose from.
Remember that every household item was put in glass before the widespread use of plastic. I started an antique/vintage bottle collection to help me date some of the beach glass. Since I know that the thicker and cloudier the glass, the older it is, so the bottles give me a pretty good idea of age. Modern-day glass is thin, see-through, and shiny.
You know that adage – They just don’t make things like they used to!
Here is part of my bottle collection – notice the driftwood shelf!