Seahorse obsessed.

One summer when I was about 8 our family went to the beach. 
My mom found a seahorse in a little tide pool and we tried to keep it alive in our cooler and bring it home!  Unfortunately that didn't work out and the poor little thing died.  (I now never take live things from the ocean, promise!!! not even sanddollars)
Anyway, this spurred my fascination with seahorses.
They are so cool... wouldn't you agree??

Here's a look back at some of my seahorse antics.

Kissing a seahorse at the Ice sculpture show Lee and I froze to death to see :)

Seahorse I drew when we lived in Grenada.... which reminds me I should find this and frame it!

Read about the others in this "collection" here. 

A couple little guys I made also while living in Grenada.

I turned the white one into a necklace and the sea glass one I just have sitting on my dress to admire.
It might be one of my most favorite things I've ever made, read about it here.

 And now thanks to Stella & Dot's Sunset Beach Charm necklace I get to wear another, somewhat upgraded version :)  Love this little guy.

Read more about my business with stella & dot here.

Honestly though, I think I just love anything that has to do with the ocean.

I'm trying my hardest to get back to the sea....

Polishing Sea Glass

My stockpile of sea glass was looking a little cloudy so I went to the internet to find out how to "polish" it and found that it's pretty darn simple.
Vegetable oil and an old rag is all you need!
It turns white-ish because of the salt that is still on the glass, but the oil removes it and lets the true color show!
I think sea glass is more and more beautiful every single day.

Before

After!

These are all the colors I've found so far... still on the hunt for something red or pink!

Here are a few projects I've done lately with my sea glass, the easiest being my new ring.
I found out that my finger is exactly the size of a pop or beer bottle top.  amazing!

A necklace!

And a new wind chime!

it sounds so beautiful! 
I'm thinking about doubling the size of it... and I'm searching for an awesome piece of driftwood to attach it to!


Are you guys sick of my beachy/summery posts??
I only have 2 months left on this gorgeous island... and then I'll be posting all about winter and snow. trust.

Sea Glass Jackpot!

The other day my friends and I went snorkeling at a secluded area called Flamingo Bay. 
The reason we made the trip was the awesome snorkeling - a rainbow assortment of fish, coral, sea fans, and urchins galore... but our eyes soon became fixed on the sand and the incredible amount of sea glass!

There were 6 of us and I think we all left with at least a zip-lock baggie full of glass!
In December I get to take two 50lb suitcases home with me... one just might be full of sea glass.

My stash!!
In the bottom of this bowl there are tons of small pieces that I plan on making some sort of mosaic out of !

Here are a few sea glass projects from pinterest that I'll be trying soon!

Source: bystephanielynn.com via Susie on Pinterest

Source: ecstasea-at-etsy.blogspot.com via Nikki on Pinterest

Source: etsy.com via Carrie on Pinterest

Source: masterpieceonanapkin.tumblr.com via Luinielle on Pinterest

Nautical Knots

admit that title made you want to sing the Spongebob theme song please.

anywho.
I have a mason jar full of sea glass I've been collecting and while it is beautiful all on it's own.... I'm not a minimalist, more is more! So I added my favorite go-to-Grenada crafting supply - jute twine!

before

Cut a very long piece of jute, more than twice the length of the mason jar.
Tie it around the rim of the jar and allowing the strands to hang down about twice as long as the jar.
Cut 5 additional pieces of jute and tie in evenly spaced out knots to the original piece of jute around the rim allowing the strands to hang down.

Gather a strand of jute from each adjoining knot and tie together creating a triangle or diamond shape.

Continue tying knots until the entire jar is covered and secure the remaining twine on the bottom of the jar with hot glue.

If I don't get out of Grenada soon my entire house and jewelry collection is going to be covered in jute twine!!!

sea glass seahorse

I think that's the start of a fun tongue twister.

Yesterday I saw this print on pinterest (see I'm not really over it.  there is still good to be found)

Source: printshop.urbanoutfitters.com via Angela on Pinterest

I absolutely fell in love with this seahorse.  Isn't it beautiful??
I knew I wanted to try to re-create the print, but wasn't feel in the drawing mood just yet, so I got my sea glass and some wire and went to work.

As per usual, I don't have an awesome how to tutorial.  I didn't know what I was doing.  I just shaped some 20gauge wire into a seahorse and then attached sea glass to the frame with 24gauge wire.  Which were the only two types of wire I have here in Grenada.  So you could use different sizes.  I however wouldn't go any smaller than 24 gauge, it might break easily.

The only problem is, I made this way too big to be used as a pendant for a necklace, it just kept growing!
My husband had the genius idea that the sea glass seahorse would be a great centerpiece for a sea glass wind chime! He is so useful to have around.

But I still wanted a necklace so I made another one, a beaded one.

and I'm not convinced I love this one for a necklace either.  but with limited bead supply this is what I came up with.  I think I'd like it better in gold. 
but I'm sure I'll find something to do with the little guy.

size comparison.

So... I have seriously decided to step up my sea glass finding capabilities.  I need more sea glass creatures!!

linking up with:
http://www.katiesnestingspot.com/
http://alliemakes.blogspot.com/
Somewhat Simple,
Paisly Passions. 
http://chiconashoestringdecorating.blogspot.com/
http://itsahodgepodgelife.blogspot.com/
http://justagirlblog.com/
http://www.bedifferentactnormal.com/2011/08/show-and-tell-saturday-080611.html