I’ll not soon forget the day I spotted my first pink sea glass gem. Walking toward the sea glass beach early in the morning, I was hoping to be the first one to find what the evening’s tide left at the high water mark.
Praying not to see footprints of an earlier riser, I scanned the beach from across the street as I drew closer. Then I saw it, a pink sea glass chunk, larger than a half dollar, resting there on the now drying sand.
Hastily surveying the area looking for interlopers and seeing no one, I broke into a run never taking my eyes off the pink sea glass gem that is now one of my most treasured possessions. And that’s when I began my love affair with the color I call, “the darling of the sea glass world.”
Believe in Pink! Why We Love Pink Sea Glass
One of the reasons I so cherish my collection of pink sea glass is that it reminds me of childhood summers spent at the shore with my Grandmother. She wore a soft, pink cashmere sweater. She served ice cream and cookies on her pink Depression glass dessert plates and it was she who introduced me to the joy of sea glass collecting.
There is something soft, warm and romantic about the color that is quietly comforting and nostalgic. Pink sea glass is a happy, sublimely pale color, subtle in its coloring and feminine in its fashion.
The educated sea glass lover who knows about its history, mystery and romance thinks of pink sea glass as “the darling of the sea glass world.” When you wear pink, especially pink sea glass, you can think like Audrey Hepburn, who once said this:
I believe in pink. I believe that laughing is the best calorie burner. I believe in kissing, kissing a lot. I believe in being strong when everything seems to be going wrong. I believe that happy girls are the prettiest girls. I believe that tomorrow is another day and I believe in miracles.
Where Does Pink Sea Glass Come From?
In general there are three likely origins of pink sea glass—Depression glass, sun colored glass and art glass.
Pink Depression Glass
Most of what you might find these days, if you can find it at all, could be a remnant of the popular Depression glass tableware made in the period from 1920 to the 1950s. Although highly collectible and valuable today, the original Depression glass was machine made, mass produced and inexpensive.
It was sold in the five and dime store and was given away as a freebie in cereal and soap boxes and even at the local movie theater! There were plates and bowls, platters and sherberts & pickle and nuts dishes galore in an array of pastel colors including our favorite pink.
Sun Colored Glass
Pink sea glass may also be derived from 100 year old clear bottles that turned pale pink with sun exposure. These pieces are also called “sun pink” or “sunshine pink.”
This happened because in the early 19th century selenium was added to a glass batch to offset naturally occurring impurities in the sand mix. Without this additive the glass would turn an unappealing yellowish/grayish shade.
Although adding selenium did produce a clear glass vessel, in the end exposure to the sun’s ultra violet rays caused a chemical change in the glass causing it to turn light pink! Generally this sea glass color is a lighter pink hue than that of Depression glass.
Pink Art Glass
A small percentage of pink sea glass of a deeper, more vibrant hue may originate from art glass—articles of glass designed primarily for decorative purposes.
How Rare is Pink Sea Glass?
Pink sea glass may still be found in small quantities along rough ocean coasts at old dump sites from the 1920s and 30s when pink Depression glass might have been tossed away because it was so inexpensive, even free in many cases, making it easily replaceable.
However pink was never a common color in glass making and was not used extensively for mass produced utilitarian glass vessels such as bottles or jars and, as a result, its availability now as sea glass is very limited.
We estimate that most of the authentic pink sea glass we offer is 65 to 95 years old, adding substantially to its value.
Normally, broken glass tumbles in the ocean for at least this period of time before it becomes sea glass. During this time the glass is being smoothed and polished by rocks and sand and conditioned through a natural dehydration process, actually a chemical reaction between the glass ingredients and the salt water.
Only Authentic, Unaltered Sea Glass in Our Pink Sea Glass Jewelry Collection
Real pink sea glass is rare to extremely rare, depending on its size, condition, hue and origin. Finding jewelry quality, pink sea glass is extremely rare because it must be free of chips & nicks as well as being nicely shaped.
We use only jewelry quality, authentic sea glass in our pink sea glass jewelry collection and we never alter, fix, reshape or resurface our sea glass, making it even more challenging to build our small, but beautiful pink sea glass jewelry collection.
We invite you to shop our pink sea glass jewelry collection of one of a kind designs.
