‘I find pieces of sea glass and turn them into jewellery’
Living by the sea inspired beachcomber Fiona Petheram to create beautiful pieces.
I’ve always loved being by the sea; it gives me a calming energy that I can’t get anywhere else. As a child, I’d spend the summer at my grandparents’ house by the beach in Devon. I was a compulsive beachcomber and would spend hours searching for washed-up treasures. I’d come back with pockets full of shells and pebbles, but pieces of sea glass were my favourite.
As an adult, living and working in London, I missed spending time by the sea. So, in 2006, when my husband, Douglas, a property broker, suggested we move to Spain with our children, I thought it was a wonderful idea. One day we loaded up our car and drove to Tarifa on the Costa de la Luz, which is renowned for its unspoilt beaches. We lived in a house near the beach, with the mountains behind us and the sea in front. I’d get to walk on the beach every day and it wasn’t long before I fell back into my beachcombing mode. I’d find lots of pieces of sea glass and, as I laid them out on my porch one day, I thought about how they’d make a beautiful necklace.
TOP OF THE GLASS
I began researching how to turn glass into jewellery and watched tutorials online. Determined to give it a go, I ordered a £50 craft drill and pebble tumbler. At first, there was lots of broken glass, but after several attempts, I finally made my first piece: a lariat (loop) on a twisted silk cord with 12 delicate pieces of glass.
After that, I began to make necklaces, offering them to friends and local boutiques. The pieces sold and friends started bringing me their own sea glass, asking if I could make gifts for them. One of them encouraged me to set up a website and Douglas suggested the name ‘Drift Jewellery’. My childhood hobby had grown into a business.