For Sale: High Quality Sea Glass for Jewelry, Art and Crafts

Summer is here, and I have enjoyed quite a few nice trips to the beach since the days have gotten longer and the tides more "favorable" for being able to see what I am doing. Of course, that also means that there are many other people "out there" beachcoming... so there is less and less to be found.

I have recently added many new lots to the eBay shop... and plan to add beautiful new items to the Etsy shop over the coming weekend.

North Beach Treasures sea glass shop on eBay

North Beach Treasures sea glass shop on Etsy

One of my goals in creating and uploading "lots" of sea glass for jewelry making is to have "no waste." Hence, I am very particular about accurate grading and putting lots together by size and color, so you always know exactly when you are going to get, when you make a purchase.

Of course, the "popular colors" do tend to go rather quickly, but last I checked there were still almost 200 items listed on eBay and Etsy combined... so I encourage you to have a look while the selection remains good!

Of course, I am hoping to add more items later in the summer, after I finish sorting out what the tides have washed up over the next several weeks.

Genuine Beach Combed Sea Glass for Sale!

Recently, I have been spending quite a bit of time sorting sea glass from this summer and fall. As well as some of the really "old" stuff I found before we moved to our current house in 2011. Fact is, my "day job" (as a writer and as a rare postage stamp dealer for collectors) has been keeping me very busy... and is one of the reasons I haven't been posting here as often as I'd like to. During these difficult economic times, it seems like you must work longer and smarter in order to make the same dollars as before.

But that's besides the point!

100 pieces of Cobalt blue sea glass-- a lot now on Etsy

I finally got several of my bins sorted, and have finished the process of creating and uploading dozens of new lots to both the Etsy and eBay sea glass stores.

It felt rewarding to get this done, at last!

At the same time, I felt a bit of sadness at how much less glass I had available, compared to just five years ago. Sea glass truly is a "vanishing resource," as I wrote in a recent article.

A few days ago, I had a chance to get out for a four-hour walk, taking advantage of one of the few low tide afternoons we have, at this time of the year. In winter, most low tides here in the Pacific Northwest occur in the middle of the night when it it pitch black outside. Even though we have had several good fall storms, the pickings were pretty slim. It really drove home the point that we (collectors and artists) keep picking up sea glass, the abrasive action of surf and sand wears away sea glass... and "new" glass really hasn't been going into the ocean in any quantity since stricter environmental laws (and the advent of plastic containers-- yuk!) were enacted in the 1970's and 1980's.

A recent lot in the eBay sea glass store

It also made me stop and wonder about the future for those who make a living from making sea glass jewelry. What do you DO? Do you try to hoard now, so as to have supplies for your art at a later time? Or do you "cave in" and switch to so-called "man made" sea glass? Or do you completely change direction and start making jewelry with other kinds of material-- semi-precious stones and rocks, for example?

There seem to be no easy answers.

As I walked on the beach, a couple of days ago, I realized that my "gatherings" no longer come anywhere near being able to meet the requests of those who have used my sea glass, over the last decade or so. I feel a strange "guilt" about that-- people write to me and ask "when will you next be listing x,y,z?" A while back, I used to be able to say "next week!" Now? All I can say is "I have NO idea."

Anyway, enough musings for today! This is also meant to serve as an announcement that there are new lots available in both the eBay and Etsy stores-- and hopefully you'll find something to your liking:

North Beach Treasures Etsy Shop

North Beach Treasures eBay Store

In the meantime, I'd like to wish everyone a beautiful Holiday Season!

March 2013 Sea Glass Auctions now open!

The March 2013 sea glass auctions are now open for bidding on eBay!

This month there is a particularly nice selection up for grabs. Why? Not only have the last couple of months been fairly kind to me on the beach, I managed to catch up with one of my old "someday I really need to get around to this" projects. I had a big bin of sea glass that had been sitting-- pretty much untouched-- since we moved, late in 2010. Because the house was a mess of packing boxes at that time, the "results" from my beach combing were just put in a bin "to deal with later." Well, this month "later" finally arrived-- only took me 2 1/2 years to get there!

This week, 114 auctions went "live" on eBay. Of course, some are already gone, thanks to the buy-it-now option, but there are still well over 100 lots left.

The items for sale run the range from better individual rarities in colors like red, orange, yellow, pink and teal to really nice high quality "lots" made with jewelers and artists in mind.

There are always a lot of requests for aquamarine and blue sea glass, so I put a lot of effort into putting a large selection of these popular colors together.

UNfortunately, next month's offerings will be far more modest, as we will be traveling for part of the month, and recent beach combing trips simply haven't yielded a lot of really desirable material. Alas, that's how it goes with beach combing: You never know what you're going to get.

The link below takes you directly to the auction listings:

March Sea Glass Auctions: Bid until Sunday 3/24 at 7:30pm Pacific/10:30pm Eastern

A small selection of items from the March 2013 auctions

February 2013 Sea Glass Auctions

The February 2013 Sea Glass Auction is now running and accessible to be viewed on eBay.

Once a month, I offer some of my recent beach combings for sale at auction. Because I often-- especially during the spring and summer-- am on the beach up to 15+ days a month, I do tend to end up with more nice quality sea glass than I need for my own collection and projects. It seems only reasonable to me to help it find "new homes" with fellow sea glass enthusiasts, jewelers, artists and crafts people. During some periods of the year, these offerings are fairly modest; at others they are fairly impressive.

This month's offerings consist of 90 new auction listings with sea glass and beach pottery which went "live" on Sunday evening, February 17th. There's a broad mixture of "jewelry lots" as well as better individual pieces and rarities for collectors. There's a particularly nice selection of the popular blue shades, this month.

Click on the link below to see the current selection!

February Auctions: Bid until Sunday, February 24th at 7:00pm Pacific/10:00 Eastern

A sampling of lots that are part of the February 2013 auctions

All auctions were listed more or less "together" so as to end at approximately the same time. I do this in order for the "save on shipping when buying multiple items" option to actually makes sense. I find few things more annoying than eBay sellers who offer "discounted shipping," but never have more than 7 (often unrelated!) items for sale.

The "ending times" happen on Sunday, February 24th at 7:00pm Pacific/10:00pm Eastern time. Closing times for lots are spaced roughly one minute apart, to accommodate those who enjoy "live bidding" on sequential lots.

There is a "buy it now" option with all lots, but please keep in mind that this option does go away the moment someone places a bid.

As stated above, "combined shipping" is available. In spite of eBay's new rules for "trackable shipment," I still only charge $2.95 (in the US) for the first lot and $0.75 for each additional lot. That covers (barely!) the $2.07 for a first class parcel + $0.90 for delivery confirmation, which is now more or less a REQUIREMENT when you sell on eBay.

January 2013 Sea Glass Auctions

The January 2013 Sea Glass Auction is now running and accessible to all on eBay.

Once a month, I like to offer some of my beach combings for sale at auction. Because I often-- especially during the spring and summer-- am on the beach up to 15+ days a month, I do tend to end up with more nice quality sea glass than I need for my own collection and projects. It seems only reasonable to me to help it find "new homes" with fellow sea glass enthusiasts, jewelers, artists and crafts people. During some periods of the year, these offerings are fairly modest; at others they are fairly impressive. Click on the link below to see the current selection!

January Auctions: Bid until Sunday January 27th, 7:00pm Pacific/10:00pm Eastern

115 new auction listings with sea glass and beach pottery went "live" on Sunday evening, January 20th. There's a broad mixture of "jewelry lots" as well as better individual pieces and rarities for collectors. This selection is actually the largest I have had on eBay since 2009, and the quality is very nice! In addition, there are another 50+ new lots coming to the store later this week, for immediate purchase.

A sampling of the sea glass available in the January auctions. Click on the image to see a larger version!

All auctions were listed more or less "together" so as to end at approximately the same time. I do this in order for the "save on shipping when buying multiple items" option actually makes sense. I find few things more annoying than eBay sellers who offer "discounted shipping," but never have more than 7 (often unrelated!) items for sale.

The "end times" start on Sunday, January 27th at 7:00pm Pacific/10:00pm Eastern time. Closing times for lots are spaced roughly one minute apart, to accommodate those who enjoy "live bidding" on sequential lots.

There is a "buy it now" option with all lots, but please keep in mind that this option does go away the moment someone places a bid.

As stated above, "combined shipping" is available. In spite of eBay's new rules for "trackable shipment," I still only charge $2.95 (in the US) for the first lot and $0.75 for each additional lot. That covers (barely!) the $2.07 for a first class parcel + $0.90 for delivery confirmation, which is now more or less a REQUIREMENT when you sell on eBay.

If you'd like to keep up with my monthly sea glass auctions, I recommend that you use one of the "subscribe" options, in the right hand column.

Sea Glass Auction: Ending March 11th

After a rather long absence, I'm pleased to announce that I am having my first sea glass auction in almost a year!

As always, this is an "eBay event," with a nice range of high quality and rare individual pieces of seaglass, as well as "lots" assembled with artists and jewelers in mind.

My specialty is very high quality rounded and well frosted sea glass, suited for jewelry making, or in what I'd call "collectible quality." I always return the sharp, chipped and "junky" pieces to the ocean, so they can be collected by future generations of sea glass enthusiasts.

I just finished posting a total of 50 different lots-- I like to post sea glass for auction in large batches like this, as it gives potential bidders a chance to save on shipping costs, when they purchase multiple items at the same time. Once the "base" shipping charge has been paid, each additional lot only adds 75 cents to your shipping cost.

Every lot is listed with a low opening bid-- but if you're not into the "auction format," you can also purchase items you like with the immediate "buy it now" option. Just a reminder: buy-it-now only remains available until someone places a bid-- after that, it becomes "bidding only."

You're more than welcome to "mix and match," meaning that you can buy some lots up front and then bid on others-- and you don't have to pay for anything until after the bidding part ends... again, so you can save on postage. A lot of people like to do this, as you can make sure to get the "must haves" immediately and then place bids on the "maybes" and take your chances that nobody places a higher bid. Of course, some people just enjoy auctions!

Bidding/buying is now OPEN, and the sales run till Sunday, March 11th, 2012 with closing times in the late evening. Here's the direct link:

North Beach Treasures sea glass auctions

Hopefully, you will find something of interest! Pictured here are a few highlights from the current selection.

Sea Glass Auctions on eBay: Closing July 26th

New auctions with sea glass and pottery have just been listed on eBay!

Nice selection to choose from, with 65 lots available. You'll find a mixture of individual collector pieces, as well a jewelry and "bulk" lots for making glass mosaics.

Current auctions end on Sunday, July 26th, starting at 7:00pm US Pacific time/10:00pm Eastern time. All items are listed with a buy-it-now price, for those who'd like to purchase right away. The buy-it-now does go away, once the first bid has been placed.

Shown here: A very large and perfectly frosted piece of deep greenish aquamarine sea glass-- uncommonly deep color, and in super condition. Worthy of any collection, OR would make a beautiful pendant!

Click here to go look at the auctions!

I appreciate your interest!

New Seaglass Auctions Ending Saturday, February 16th

Although it is still cold around these parts, there are signs that spring is just around the corner, here in Western Washington. Just this morning, I noticed that the first spring crocuses were starting to bloom.

Spring means more "friendly" tides for sea glass collecting, and I look forward to starting a new season of beach combing. There have been some good large storms this winter, which means the landscape of the beach has been changed considerably, and some of the gravel (and sea glass) that once was several feet below grade has been brought to the surface. There are upsides and downsides to this-- the downside being that the rough surf (unfortunately) tends to put fresh breaks and chips into a lot of the glass.

In the meantime, I have been sorting more glass from the bins in the office-- mostly saved items from last year's beach trips. Yesterday (Saturday) I finished listing about 100 new lots on eBay, including both "bulk lots" chosen for jewelry and mosaics, as well as individual collector pieces and rarities. As always, auction lots are open to bidding, or items can be purchased immediately, using eBay's "buy it now" feature.

The current series of auctions are scheduled to close on the evening of Saturday, February 16th. At the request of a number of people, sales now close at one minute interval, allowing more ready participation for those who enjoy "live" bidding. In addition, I am hoping to add some new lots to store inventory by the beginning if this coming week.

Some highlights from the current group of auctions are shown here. This time there are some particularly nice REDS, as well as pink, turquoise, orange and other scarce colors. I am also offering a couple of very large "bulk" type lots with 100s of pieces.

eBay Sea Glass Auctions closing Monday, February 4th

It has been cold-- even snowy-- in Western Washington, so my beach combing has been limited. I may be quite "dedicated," but 27 degrees and windy is NOT my favorite kind of weather for going to the beach.

Instead, I have spent the last couple of weeks sorting two gallon sized (yes, I said GALLON) pickle jars full of unsorted seaglass from the last couple of years. The result is a new series of sea glass auctions, as well as many new items in the North Beach Treasures eBay store.

This time, I have listed over 110 new lots, including both "groups" chosen for jewelry and mosaics, as well as individual collector pieces and rarities. As always, auction lots are open to bidding, or items can be purchased immediately, using "buy it now." The current series of auctions are scheduled to close on the evening of Monday, February 4th.

Some highlights from the current group of auctions are shown alongside. There is a very nice representation of rare colors in the current set, including several shades of ultra rare ORANGE sea glass. Orange is widely regarded as the single rarest color in sea glass collecting, and many collectors will beachcomb for a lifetime, and never find a single piece.

Sea Glass Auctions: Group 1

My first group of seaglass auctions for 2008 are now listed on eBay!

North Beach Treasures auction listings

I like to group the glass together the way actual brick-and-mortar auctioneers do, so there are multiple "lots" all being offered with approximately the same end time.

The first sale of 2008 has a total of 30 lots, including both some individual better pieces that might be of interest to collectors, as well as some nice "groupings" that are more offered for jewelry makers or crafts people.

The highlight of the sale is the nice piece of bright turquoise, pictured above. Genuine turquoise is one of the rarest of all seaglass colors, and eludes many collectors, even if they have walked the beach for many years. Along with orange, turquoise tends to be the highest priced color in the collector market. A fairly large flawless piece of turquoise seaglass sold for $176.00 on eBay, in early 2007. On the rare occasions when high quality shards of this color are offered, the prices tend to reach $50+ very quickly.

eBay and Sea Glass

After poking around a bit with searches, I have created an eBay account to try to sell sea glass on eBay.

When I looked, it appeared that there are lots of people who offer sea glass, and quite a few of the listed items actually end up selling. From what I can tell, their glass isn't necessarily any better or different from what I typically find.

The spectacular emerald heart was what got the whole thing started-- it's flawless and large, and people seem willing to pay good money for sea glass hearts in almost any condition.

If I could use this to add a couple of hundred dollars of "pocket money" a month, it would not only answer the question of what I am going to "do" with the glass I am finding here (which is significantly more than I have found on other beaches where I have beach combed), it would bring some much needed supplementary income to the stamp business... which is not really going as well as I might like.

Fortunately, the new camera has a decent macro setting, so I should be able to present decent photos in my auctions.

As I pondered this (yesterday), I decided I am going to take the same approach I have always taken with stamps-- and anything else I have sold on eBay: Have better and more attractive photos and better descriptions than anyone else in the market. It either forces others to "snap to" and up their game... or their stuff will simply just not look as appealing.

I am thinking I will use starting prices of $2.95 for better individual pieces, and $3.95 for "lots." Some people seem to start all their stuff at 99 cents-- I suppose, to take advantage of eBay's lowest listing fee-- and some seem to have a horribly inflated sense of what their glass is worth. I guess I'll be going along the "middle way," until I settle into a pattern. I just can't visualize selling anything for 99 cents. What's the point? It's not that I'm trying to be greedy... but after eBay and PayPal and packing materials? That 99 cents would be eaten up. As Brian Hunt used to say "It takes no talent to GIVE away good material, it takes talent to SELL it for a fair price." Of course, he was talking about stamps... but still...

Wishing myself luck here, with this new endeavor.