 One of nature's best gifts from the Cape is sea glass. It is the ultimate in recycling as sea glass is old discarded bottles that the waves in the ocean have tumbled over and over on the sand and rocks to create smooth-edge gems. And, gems they are ~ once found all over Cape beaches - they are now quite hard to find. This is mostly because we have done a better job of recycling our own bottles and not throwing them overboard and because most soft drinks are now sold in cans or plastic instead of glass bottles, but it is also because many people coming to the Cape love to find and collect them. When I am on the Cape - it is a daily morning meditation, walking the long expanse of the beach - head down looking for that glint in the sand. Genuine sea glass - also called ocean glass or mermaid's tears comes in many colors ranging from common to very rare. Below are some of the colors and the types of bottles they have come from. White - Variety of clear bottles - most common Brown - Various beer bottles - common Olive Green - Various wine bottles - common Kelly Green - Various beer bottles - fairly rare Blue-Green - Old Coke bottles - fairly rare Cobalt Blue - Old medicine bottles - very rare Lavender - WWII window glass - very rare You will find many shops on the Cape that sells sea glass but be warned ~ much of it is fake sea glass made by modern glass tumbled in a glass tumbler or worse - plastic. Search out for the real thing which is frosted glass, smooth edged and always irregular-shaped. When my aunt passed away 15 years ago, she left a 50–year collection of Cape Cod beach glass. Though intrigued by the worn beauty of the pieces, I was not sure what to do with the buckets of genuine seaglass. But years later, the simple gift has turned into two collections of sophisticated jewelry that have gained critical aclaim (New England’s Finest in Yankee Magazine) and have been featured in over 20 museums and fine galleries across the country, including the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, the Smithsonian, and The American Museum of Natural History. I like the statement it makes on many levels about recycling and the simple beauty in nature, mixed with sterling silver to create an elegant piece of jewelry. I love helping nature recycle these ocean gems…what once was rejected is now revered and we get a second chance to see its beauty. The Nauset Collection and The Nobska Collection of SeaGlassWear, are only handcrafted from genuine sea glass and can be found here: http://www.seaglasswear.com
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I often get this question from incoming renters of Summer Pines Cottage so I thought this would be a great first post on our new blog.
One of the best things about getting away on vacation is the chance to live more simply that you do at home and renting a cottage with just about everything you need and a washer and dryer allows you to pack lightly and re-evaluate our very American fixation with "stuff". I have found that after a week or two of living with just a couple of outfits, I don't miss all the stuff from home and feel lighter, happier, more mobile and open to experiences. This positive feeling of living with less is helping fuel the "tiny house" phenomenon that is sweeping the country these days and it is no wonder as it is a very freeing feeling to know that we all can very happily live with less. Summer is the perfect time to live with less when all you need to walk out the door is shorts and t-shirt or shift dress and flip flops and luckily, the Cape is a pretty casual place where you can get away with wearing a sundress and flip flops in most restaurants for dinner. Of course, everyone may want to add some "can't live without" items, but I thought I'd share my packing list of what I bring for a stay at Summer Pines Cottage to get you started: sundress flipflops sandals wedge high heels dressier dress for dinners out two skirts two pairs of shorts three t-shirts sneakers and two pairs of sport socks hat bathing suits (2) bathing suit coverup nightgown bathrobe for going to outdoor shower sweater sweatshirt sweatpants windbreaker pair of jeans laptop and charger camera and charger phone and charger two good books toiletries and makeup sunscreen sunglasses rucksack or backpack Happy planning! Valerie PS: if you find after living with less for a week or so, you want to implement this at home - check out this cool project on how to live with 33 items in your wardrobe: http://theproject333.com/about |
CategoriesAuthorI am a designer and Cape native who loves cottage style, simple, small house living and guiding people to the hidden treasures Archives
January 2019
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