What is seaglass?

Seaglass lined up on a table after a beach combing trip.

Seaglass has been part of the ocean, tumbled, smoothed and changed with time and tide.  Each piece is therefore completely unique and cannot be replicated.   Imagine where it could have started off: a bottle tossed overboard by a sailor; an old glass fishing buoy; the fragile remains of past Cornish industries or even the result of a shipwreck.

Custom orders are welcomed to produce bespoke jewellery using either a special piece of seaglass from the customer or using glass I have collected whilst beachcombing the shores of Cornwall.  I also make silver jewellery to sit alongside the glass pieces.

Where does the seaglass in Porth jewellery come from?

My seaglass is collected from beaches, harbours and estuaries in Cornwall and sometimes further afield. Each piece is carefully recorded so I can trace it back to its beach for provenance.  Sometimes Porth jewellery is chosen for the colour, shape, size or purely for the beach on which it was discovered.

 

Porth is Cornish for harbour – good places to search for seaglass treasures.

Porth beginnings…

Photo: Emily Silkstone

“I have always loved the ocean.  As a child I spent a lot of time in Pembrokeshire and moved to Cornwall when I came to study at Falmouth College of Arts.

After 13 years as a Primary School teacher I decided it was time to unleash my creativity again and after many hours ‘playing’ with my friend in her silversmith studio I fell in love with making jewellery using the specially selected seaglass from many happy beachcombing trips.

Porth Jewellery was set up in Summer 2018 and I now sell my work online, in shops and run workshops to share my love for making jewellery.  I now work from my own studio at home and I love creating each unique item knowing that the journey of each piece of seaglass continues.”

Laura