We were blessed with plentiful Seashells at the beaches we walked the dogs on.  And very large ones at Walton Rocks, this fairy is at least a foot tall. 

Some that I found there were huge.

And one afternoon, Jupiter beach was carpeted with shells.

Most were full, little round ones, but within the mix, I could find plenty of broken shapes to make a sprite.

She is a larger one too, with her long, elegant oyster shell skirt.

This is a rare find for me- Sea glass!  I hope to drill a tiny hole in it to make a necklace.

There were multiple hearts scattered across the sand.

This one was tucked into a nest of seaweed.

Most of the hearts I found were rocks, not shells.

This heart rock looks like it is camouflaged and hiding in the shell pile.

Tiny Dorothy even found one for me.  Thanks, Dot!  It’s as sweet as you are.

There was a funny rock that caught my eye, I thought it looked like a full body.  She is very different than most of the beach fay I leave on the shore, but I thought she was cute.

Not all hearts are solid bits, this floral-y sprig of seaweed is a lovely shaped one.

And some are a little wonky, but still count.

Most are left where I see them, but every once in a while, one goes into my pocket  I kept this one.

Typically, the ones I find are flatter, this puffy heart was a special one too.

Walton Rocks was a great beach for finding hag stones. This one not only kinda looks like it has a face, its “eye” was extra large.  A good one to look through for spotting mermaids out in the surf.

Both of these beaches had unique personalities.  I love the way various shorelines offer differing loot.  Even along the stretch of a single beach you can find variety.  I studied one patch of Jupiter where many of the shell fragments were worn as smooth as worry stones.  My guess is that there were rocky areas off shore where they tumbled themselves smoother than other parts of the beach.  

Each step is the possibility of a new discovery that I never tire of.  I’ll miss my walks in the sand, it has been a beautiful break from the iciness we left behind.

 

2023 was a light year for sea shell fairies, at least compared to other ones.   I was very lucky to have lots of trips and family visits, but only a couple were beachy. This sprite is from my impromptu visit to see my sissies on the gulf coast.

 Over the years, my sisters and I have gotten into the groove of planning an annual trip to the seaside each fall.  Then, they started sneaking in an extra visit in the spring.  Which I’ve partially joined in on, but have not been able to stay the full amount of time they’ve gone.  For this one, I knew I was just too busy.  After bonking my head again, I’d taken a lot of time off work and needed to catch up.

Then, the day they left, I decided to go anyway.  I just packed up, got a Southwest ticket (free with points, but still more points than I’d have used if I planned ahead) and told them I was on my way.

What a fantastic idea!  And I loved every single moment of the trip, even with post concussion syndrome, and being behind on work.  Looking back, I wish I’d just said screw work and stayed the whole week instead of a few days.

And for such a home body, I LOVE travel.  But taking on this booth at Good Juju has stolen some of my flexibility in getting away.  6 weeks in an RV full of dogs to get away from winter and do some beach hopping didn’t happen last year. 

Funny, the sale is only two days a month, so it sounds easy to get away.  But I have to put so much time into shopping, cleaning, repairing, tagging old stuff, then crafting new things, plus setting up displays, that I am constantly working.

We’ve managed to get around that by taking smaller trips in the middle of the month.  Where I can be at First Friday weekend, then flip the space in the next few days.  

So we were able to visit our North Carolina family and spend some time in the mountains.  And I’ve had a couple of trips to Indiana to see my family there.

Then October our sister trip was even more special with nieces and aunties. I saw the Guncles, and snuck in a Disney adventure with Terry, all in one, tight week.

 I made this fairy on Venice beach while we were shark tooth hunting.  I feel very blessed for the getaways I’ve managed to tease out of my time.

And after a year and a half of getting back into the swing of being a dealer and building up some inventory, I’m feeling like I can squeak out even more time.  I have plenty of small crafty items to work on while on the road, too.  We are planning a January camping trip right now, where I’ll be away most of the month.  Taking off right after the Juju sale and just scooting back in time for the next.

My business income would suffer if I made this a regular practice, but for a couple of longer stretches I can pretend to be retired like my husband is and head to the shoreline.  I think it’s doable.

I need more beach fairies in my life!  Thank you, 2023 for the loving family visits, and the beautiful views.