What is Sea Glass? 2🏝️

In this article, I would like to delve deeper into the charm and trivia of sea glass that I couldn't fully cover in my previous post, "What is Sea Glass? 🏝️"✨

Sea glass is not just "pretty pieces of glass."

It is something created by nature and time, often called "jewels of the sea."


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What is sea glass?

Sea glass is glass that was originally bottles or glass products that flowed into the sea, and over many years, was worn down by waves and sand until its edges became rounded.


Its characteristics include:

・The surface is cloudy like frosted glass
・The edges are rounded
・No two pieces have the same shape

In other words, it is a "one-of-a-kind" item created by nature over a long period of time✨

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Why sea glass is decreasing recently

Actually, it is said that high-quality sea glass is much rarer now than it used to be.

There are several reasons for this👇

① The decline of glass bottle culture

In the past, glass products like juice bottles, milk bottles, and medicine bottles were the norm.

However, today, plastic bottles and aluminum cans are mainstream.

In other words, the "source glass" that washes up on the beach is decreasing itself.

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② Increased beach cleanup efforts

With growing environmental awareness, beach cleanups have become more thorough than in the past.

While this is a very good thing, it also means that glass shards that would have become sea glass are being collected beforehand.

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③ It takes many years to become sea glass

It is said that it takes several decades or more to become sea glass.

Therefore,

"picking up the legacy of the past"

might be a closer feeling than

"new pieces being created in large quantities"

🌊

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Actually, the "color" changes its value

The rarity of sea glass varies greatly depending on its color.

Common colors

・White
・Brown
・Green
・Light blue

These are colors that were commonly used for old bottles.

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Rare colors

・Blue
・Red
・Pink
・Orange
・Purple

Red and orange in particular are said to be "super rare"✨

Many of these come from old lamps or special glass, so finding them is said to be quite a joy.

By the way, I have never picked up a red or orange piece of sea glass myself.

I have a small dream of finding one with my own hands someday😊

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Actually, the "shape" is also important

Sea glass that is round and plump is popular.

Conversely,

・Sharp edges
・Too shiny

pieces might still be "young sea glass."

The cloudier the surface,

it is said to be "proof that it has traveled for a long time."

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Conditions for finding sea glass easily

Actually, there are tips for picking up sea glass👇

Best times to find them

・After a typhoon
・The day after strong winds
・During low tide
・Winter sea

The waves stir up the seabed, making it easier for new sea glass to appear.

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Best places to find them

・Pebble beaches rather than sandy beaches
・Places that have had ports for a long time
・Beaches near old towns

Areas where glass culture once flourished are especially good targets✨

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A well-known fact among sea glass lovers

Actually, sea glass is popular all over the world.

Overseas, it is sometimes traded at high prices as:

・Accessories
・Lamps
・Art pieces
・Collections

In the world of environmental art and handmade crafts, it is gaining popularity as a "material that has no identical counterpart."

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Will the value of sea glass rise in the future?

I have started thinking about things like this recently.

The fact that sea glass is decreasing also means that there is less glass waste in the ocean.

That in itself is a good thing.

However, on the other hand, other problems like plastic waste might be increasing.

If, in the future, we really can't find any sea glass anymore...

I feel that the value of the sea glass we have now might become higher than it is today.

Just as gold and silver are soaring in price now, perhaps in the future,

an "era where natural sea glass is traded at high prices"

might come✨

Thinking about that, could the sea glass works I make also become valuable in the future...!?

It's a dream, isn't it?😊

And if by sharing the charm of sea glass like this,

more people start thinking, "I should cherish the sea glass I have at home,"

I would be happy.

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Sea glass hunting might change the world

Actually, in the game my family plays, "Poco a Pokemon," it has become an era where you can pick up sea glass.

Perhaps that is how much the existence of sea glass is beginning to be recognized by people.

If everyone started going to the beach to collect sea glass...

It might even become a catalyst for cleaning up the ocean.

Through collecting sea glass,

・Thinking about marine environmental issues
・Learning about waste problems
・Connecting with nature

There is a possibility that such a positive cycle could be born.

Precisely because we live in an era with various problems like global warming,

I genuinely believe that

a future where the world becomes a little better through sea glass collecting

might actually exist.🌏✨

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Letters from the Ocean

Sea glass is sometimes called

a "letter from the ocean."

Fragments of bottles used by someone decades ago travel over a long period of time to reach me now.

When you think about it that way, it is not just a piece of glass, but something very romantic, isn't it?

And I believe that those "letters from the ocean"

also contain messages about the "preciousness of life" and

"trying to make the world a little better."🌊✨

If you have the chance to go to the beach, please try walking slowly while looking at your feet.

Perhaps there,
a one-of-a-kind "sea jewel" that has traveled through decades of time
might be sleeping.

And that small encounter

might become a gentle catalyst for thinking about
the ocean, the Earth,
and the importance of life.🏝️✨

I hope to continue
sharing the charm of these "little letters" from the ocean
with you all, little by little.💌

Click here for my past article on what sea glass is🏝️💁

Click here for my original sea glass creations💁‍♂️

I am currently participating in the Creative Awards 2026

I would appreciate your support🙇‍♂️