Sea Glass Jewelry ~ How to Wire Wrap by Nightingayle

When I was learning to wire wrap about a year and a half ago I was scouring everywhere I could for information on how to and one of the videos I found was this on YouTube which really helped me to understand how to wire wrap my sea glass. I was mainly looking for how to finish the back because the first few pieces of sea glass jewelry I wire wrapped, the backs looked awful so if the pendant or earring back showed it didn't look very nice. I eventually learned and even developed my own signature wrap which my children lovingly call "Mommy's Slipper Wrap Style."

Sea Glass Jewelry ~ Wire Works Book by Dale Armstrong Coungar

Wow! I don't have this book but I would highly recommend it anyway just from the fact that I subscribe to these email updates of which Dale is the replier and what a wealth of knowledge in not only wire wrapping but jewelry creating period!

Sea Glass Jewelry by Natural Maui Ohana on Etsy

Sea Glass Jewelry ~ A Crystal Clear Wire Wrap Guide Book

Looks good and at an affordable price. This book can definitely be used as a guide to wire wrapping sea glass jewelry. What I did is I read books then eventually developed my own style of wire wrapping which quickly became dubbed by my children "Mommy's Slipper Wrap Style" which is now my signature style of wire wrapping. It's different from all other wire wrapping and I Love it because I was just trying to keep the sea glass from popping out since I was wire wrapping tiny pieces of sea glass.

Sea Glass Jewelry by Natural Maui Ohana on Etsy

Sea Glass Jewelry ~ Wire Wrapping Jewelry Studio Book

I'm trying to pick books that will help a sea glass jewelry learn to wire wrap their sea glass and this one has just what I'm looking for.

Sea Glass Jewelry by Natural Maui Ohana on Etsy

Sea Glass Jewelry ~ Artistic Wire 20g Argentium Silver Plated

I Love this wire and it's what I use all the time in different gauges. Something about the color of the wire brings out the color of my sea glass jewelry creations making it brighter in shinier no matter how small the sea glass.

Sea Glass Jewelry by Natural Maui Ohana on Etsy

Sea Glass Jewelry ~ Wire Wrapping The Basics Book

I have found this book an invaluable source for learning not just about wire wrapping but why and when certain shapes of wire and certain gauges of wire should be used for certain projects when wire wrapping my sea glass jewelry creations.

Sea Glass Jewelry by Natural Maui Ohana on Etsy

Sea Glass ~ A Beachcomber's Odyssey, Vol. I: Treasures from a Collected Past (Volume 1)

S. Deacon Ritterbush collects not only beautiful pieces of sea glass she also beach combs and collects all kinds of shells and other interesting items that can be found on the beach. She has an amazing collection of sea glass! She also has a lot of knowledge of where items found on the beach may originate from.

Sea Glass Jewelry by Natural Maui Ohana on Etsy

Sea Glass Treasures and Antique Opium Bottle

 Opium Bottle Circa 19th Century

When I started collecting sea glass about 2 years ago there were hardly any others collecting. In the 2 years since I started, the number of sea glass collectors has grown at an alarming rate. I know because I used to go every single day I loved it so much and just being at the beach is so healing for me because the mysteries of my life become small when I look out at the vast ocean and start to wonder about it’s mysteries. So, when I find an unusual, not to be found everyday, item like this, needless to say I’m elated and bouncing off clouds!

I’ve had this now for about a year. I remember posting about it on a couple groups I belong to. I remember one member replied that it was an ampule. Well, that’s correct but more specifically it’s an opium bottle. How I found out? I set up a booth at the Makawao Upcountry Fair and I always have a display of a few of my “treasures” that are not for sale. At the fair 6 people came to my booth and told me it was an opium bottle and one lady even made a suggested I make a sea glass pendant from it, after all I did make and sell sea glass jewelry. But no, I don’t make sea glass jewelry from my treasures, they stay just the way they are 

As soon as I got home though, dead tired as I was but so excited to see if it really was an opium bottle, I started to do some research on the internet and here are some sites I found:

Odyssey Marine Exploration ~ there’s a really good pic of the bottle        

The Museum of Drugs ~ Some history and also a good pic

Ed Welch Antiques, LLC ~ Some history and another good pic although this one looks like the bottle is clear

Reenactor Flea Market ~ If it’s still there when you click, click on the photo, it’ll take you to a larger photo. The bottle on the right most resembles the sea glass opium bottle that I found.

Here are some other pics of the sea glass opium bottle I found, different views ~

 This is the top of the bottle. I left the pebbles that was in it when I found it.

This is the bottom.

Cone Shells and Pieces, Mystery, Fractal, Fibonacci

 Cone Shell Top and Sea Glass Pendant

The above photo shows a pendant that is for sale at our Estsy store which I made from a really beautiful, made to be a pendant, top of a cone shell. If this were to tumble longer it would end up being a puka shell eventually I imagine. As it happens I found it as it is and have never found one exactly like it again.

I posted yesterday about the mana of sea glass and the mysteries of the sea captured in each piece of sea glass that’s found not only by me here in Hawaii Nei but around the world. Well, the same goes for each shell and shell piece we find. Here is a picture one of the cone shells my son found:

It’s not that great a photo of a cone shell my son found, he seems to find all the whole shells. This is a pretty big one. Somehow I think the Sea God and Sea Goddess really like my son because the shells almost just come to him, he’s not really looking and before I know it he’s handing me a whole shell. I don’t find whole shells :/

Here are a couple of useful links about cone shells here on Maui complete with photos:

Hawaiian Seashells 

The Beautiful Story of Snails ~ Maui News Article

Cone Shell ~ This one I like because it makes reference to the fractal pattern, a pattern found in all of nature, a very fascinating subject too!

Which brings me to the mysteriousness I feel whenever I’m at the beach. I’m sure some get it when they go hiking in the woods or mountain climbing, anywhere that nature is abundant and alive (as opposed to concrete jungles).

 Here is a video I watched this morning on geometrics in natural things ~

A beautiful display of numbers in nature.

I also looked up the meaning of fractal because I wanted to know if it’s the same as fibonacci. Here is the answer via another video I really like ~

Above are a couple of pictures of jewelry I made with the insides of cone shells I found. What really attracted me to these cone shell pieces is the spiral at the tip, it held some kind of deeper meaning to me then just oh, a shell piece I found while beach combing.

We’re going to the beach today for my nephew’s birthday. I’m going to snorkel, so excited about finding some shells now!

Sea Glass Jewelry and Kekoa

I am trying to make sea glass jewelry Kekoa! omg! he was just too cute today and it was so hard for me to focus on making jewelry I just kept watching him take pics of him and the whole room. This is Kekoa's photography :D He's pretty good for 2 years old :D Grandma is all smiles and I just have to chuckle everytime I look at these pics. The pics with his face all scrunched up? That's him when he's pushing the button to take a pic. He didn't quite have it figured out so sometimes he would press the side of the button then move his finger and press right on the button but he would be struggling...it's just too cute! I Love You My Kekoa!

Here he is on my lap, I'm posting my pics and some of the jewelry I made to our Etsy Store. Also, we had to watch a video clip I took of Elmo and Mr. Noodles. We went to watch Sesame Street Live for Kekoa's 2nd birthday so I took a few video clips of Elmo, Kekoa Loves Elmo! So we watched that about 50 times...in a row. This is why I like to work from home, I Love to spend time with my children and my grandson. They are my world!

Here's the video clip I watch with him *;-D

Extremely Rare Black Sea Glass Treasure

I feel compelled to share this everywhere I can. I believe that this extremely rare piece of black sea glass's origination can be found if I post it enough and enough people see it. I remember posting photos of a soft aquamarine blue cylindrical container which I had found about 1 1/2 years ago and nobody knew where it came from. That story is next :D

I look for sea glass for several reasons.
1. It gives me the time I need to be close to God. The feeling I have when I'm at the beach is hard to explain but I think that other beach goers, for whatever reasons they go, will know that feeling I'm talking about. When I get home I feel much more relaxed. While walking and collecting I can sort things out in my mind easier and I feel stronger spiritually.

2. I Love sea glass and shells too. And most recently I've also been collecting lava rocks, black, red, and orange. I get this high when I see a piece of sea glass, especially the aquamarine and the way it just glistens in the sun and the water on it makes the sunlight sparkle off of it. I get so excited and I run to pick it up before the waves wash it out!

3. I really and truly love to make jewelry out of sea glass and shells and now lava rocks. It's not just making jewelry that I get excited about, it's jewelry from those materials and also seeds, especially seeds from Maui, oh and feathers but feathers are more of an added detail rather than the main character.

I never needed an excuse to go to the beach. Our ohana were avid beach goers waaaayyyyy before I started to collect sea glass. So on this particular summer day, I took my children, grandson and nephews to the beach to refresh during the hot summer day and...I found this beautiful extremely rare black sea glass...read more here.

Celebration of Kekoa's 2nd Birthday!

Crisostomo/Kaiwi Ohana had an exceptionally wonderful day on Kekoa's birthday! I almost thought we weren't going to make it to Sesame Street Live but thanks to my daughter's persistence in going we did make it and it was soooooo wonderful to watch him. He so concentrated on the show, his eyes glued to the stage it was so cute!!! I shared a story and pics on Natural Maui's wordpress site/blog so just click on the link to read more.

Now it's time to get down to busy! Going to list charms "The Many Charms of Natural Maui' in Natural Maui's sea glass jewelry and shell jewelry Etsy store!

Have a wonderful day!

Natural Maui Ohana Etsy Store

When we first started collecting we did so to keep us occupied while my son bodyboarded. Sometimes we would be at the beach for 2 hrs. sometimes all day depending on the surf and whether or not we had something to do. On his bodyboard breaks my son would come and help us collect sea glass and he also is the one that found most of our whole shells. He just has a knack for it. Both of my children collected much of the sea glass we use in our jewelry and also many of my nieces and nephews would help out too so it really is an ohana affair. Now, when my older nieces and nephews go to the beach they collect for us.

Happily, my grandson, who will be turning 2 this Sunday, July 31st has also been blessed with the knack for collecting pretty shells and sea glass :D I enjoy taking him and looking at his face all concentrating on what he's picking up. He really looks and out of many shells he'll pick one and hand it to me. Oh that cuddly boy.

He'll be here in a few minutes and as soon as he comes, he, my youngest girl and I will be going sea glass hunting. My son is bodyboarding with his Uncle and cousin today so we'll probably meet up with them somewhere on Maui :D

After that, we'll come home and I'll be making some new jewelry for our new Natural Maui Ohana Etsy Store :D

I Love what I do,the whole of it!

Natural Maui Jewelry

What An Incredible Day!

It was incredible because I finally started to tie together all my site/blogs and coordinate so each compliments the other *:-D I'm so happy for that, and all of them under one email... naturalmaui@yahoo.com.

A feature we are really working on right now is our Jewelry Parties which can also be done online :D Hosting a jewelry party with us can earn you a free gift and free jewelry.

It's easy to get started. To get all the details visit our site/blog Natural Maui