Beach glass is slightly different than sea glass, but not by much. My beach glass comes from the fresh water shores of Lake Erie on the north coast of Ohio.

Lake Erie is the shallowest of the Great Lakes and has the highest pH level of water as well. Why is this important? The rolling, often treacherous waves, combined with the high pH level of the water, provide just the right amount of natural tumbling to produce these beautiful and historic gems.

Lake Erie washes ashore some of the most interesting pieces of glass and pottery in the world. Lake Erie can claim stake to thousands of ships that have been lost to the bottom of the lake dating back to the early 1800’s. I often wonder, is that pottery piece from a civil war ship, glass from a sunken ship’s port or starboard lantern, medicine bottles from an apothecary, depression glass that was given away at a movie theater or grocery store, or a mason jar that was once used in someone’s kitchen for canning.

Each piece that I use in my design is exactly the way it was given up by Lake Erie. No piece is ever altered in shape when I’m creating as I am a professional member of the International Sea Glass Association, and that is strictly forbidden.