Description: I make hearts out of glass. It's the only shape I make. I make hearts every day before work. This heart is made from PURE SEA GLASS. I took photos specifically so that you could see both the surface texture and the internal structure of the heart. For size comparison, see one photo with quarter in it. About my Sea Glass Hearts: Real sea glass takes 50-100 years to look the way it does. Sun and water leach the soda and lime out of the glass. The process leaves the glass with what collectors call 'sugar' on the surface and little internal 'C's in the structure of the glass. I have made thousands of pounds of 'cultured' beach glass for artists and jewelers. I have tried to get to the look and feel of real sea glass and never succeeded. I have included some photos of the intermediate steps so that you will get the idea. These hearts still go in the tumbler, but for a much shorter time than my art glass hearts. Sourcing the glass is the biggest difference. I can buy big pieces of art glass at Home Goods or Goodwill, cut it into 50 hearts and thrown them into the tumbler and a ten dollar vase becomes $150 in hearts. With Sea Glass, I deal with collectors. There are four major colors About my regular and art glass Hearts: The glass hearts have never been on the beach. I source the glass, cut it, grind it on a bench grinder and shape it with a hand grinder. Then I tumble 150 hearts at a time in a rock tumbler. Once I have four or five pieces of nice glass, the whole process takes about a week. All in, I can make about ten hearts in an hour. The tumbler finishes the glass so that it is smoother and more regular than most beach glass, but not as ‘sugary’ as pure sea glass. If you are looking for ‘made by nature’, don’t buy these hearts. It took the intervention of three power tools, silicon carbide in two forms, and diamond grinding bits to get to my approximation of beach glass. I do make hearts out of pure sea glass, they are ten times the price for smaller hearts. About my rock Hearts: Every rock that I have ever carved into a heart has come from the beach. I am an avid beach collector. I wrote a book about beach rock collecting and polishing ten years ago and I am writing a book about California beach combing right now. I have carved jade, marble, California moonstone, root beer agate and the particular mix of jasper and quartz that geologists call jasp-agate. If you read about the power tool usage with glass hearts you can add a full size wet saw for the larger rocks. Some of the rocks go through three stages of tumbling and come out smooth, but natural. Some are taken to a high polish with cerium oxide. My approach to craft: I make what I like. I try to get better all the time, but I am NOT a perfectionist. I have strong opinions and artistic sensibilities, but they are mitigated by a real lack of artistic talent and ability. I made 1,000 hearts last month to fill a large order. My father, the engineer and artist, would have made one (but it would have been smokin’ hot perfect). I source amazing glass and pick up the coolest beach rock, because great ingredients are key to my ability to make a pleasing finished product. My work ethic is great and I have ten Dremels. My approach to selling: I’ve been on eBay for 20 years. I know how it works and I mostly trust it. I looked at Etsy but I don’t do social media. I have 10K followers on Instagram because I was in on the leading edge of some very specific long exposure photography 10 years ago. My photography is not about promoting my craft sales. I sell stuff because I make stuff. When an artist gets hooked on my stuff, I sell them a bunch of stuff. I have 1,000 pounds of polished beach rock in the garage. I sell about 50 pounds every year. If I wanted to actually make money doing this, my cheapest hearts would be $10.00. Since I often sell hearts in bulk into retail for $1.50, I ain’t getting rich here. My real job is the best one I could possibly do, my wife and daughter are nearly perfect humans and my dogs love me when I give them treats. If I can add small bits of beauty into the world, I’m on the right track for me.
Price: 25 USD
Location: San Diego, California
End Time: 2023-12-23T16:15:30.000Z
Shipping Cost: 0 USD
Product Images
Item Specifics
Restocking Fee: No
Return shipping will be paid by: Buyer
All returns accepted: Returns Accepted
Item must be returned within: 30 Days
Refund will be given as: Money Back
Handmade: Yes
Country/Region of Manufacture: United States
