ABOUT US
Welcome to Kiya Marie Designs! Growing up in Massachusetts, I am 100% a New England girl. I am now lucky enough to live on Cape Cod, surrounded by the ocean. I love every season, especially winter. Growing up, I often heard that you could catch a million snowflakes and not one would be alike. I already loved snow, but this sparked an interest in something else that is unique in itself; sea glass. Like snowflakes, you could collect a million pieces of sea glass and not one would be like another. Even if they are almost exactly similar, each piece has unique markings, shapes, color, and history. Sea glass has journeyed through the ocean for decades to become the gems I use for my jewelry. Each piece of jewelry is a piece of history, and is as unique as the wearer!
I began making jewelry in 2013 when a friend taught me to wire wrap. I wasn't great at it, so I decided to research drilling sea glass. Once I had mastered drilling, I wanted to take my work to the next level. I decided to buy a basic soldering kit, and I watched as many videos as I could find. When I was ready to purchase my first materials, I went with Argentium Silver. Many will say start with copper in case you fail, but I had seen this silver in multiple videos and it intrigued me (and I'm impatient)! I had success with it and have been using it ever since. It is 100% recycled and fuses to itself, so no solder is needed. Many who may have an allergy to sterling can wear Argentium. Argentium silver contains more silver than traditional sterling silver, and contains germanium. This puts a tarnish proof protective layer over the metal, so Argentium Sterling Silver will not tarnish like traditional sterling silver. It is made from recycled silver, so it is eco-friendly, just like my sea glass! I also use sterling silver, fine silver, and gold fill and gold in my designs. I was fortunate enough to travel to Italy in 2016 to take my first ever class, in goldsmithing. I went again in 2017, and 2018 to further expand my skill set!
I collect a lot of my sea glass myself, but it is becoming more difficult to find these days. To supplement my supply, I purchase sea glass from reputable and trusted sellers around the world, and have amassed quite the collection of rare glass over the years. Someday I hope to take a trip to Seaham Beach to collect my own glass from there. I love using English sea glass the most because the colors are so rare, especially multi-colored pieces of beach glass. England has some of the most beautiful and treasured sea glass in the world. My shop has a large selection of this rare and sought after sea glass. If you would like the story behind a particular piece of glass, please ask! Even if it wasn't collected by my own hands, I can give you the place it was found, what kind of glass it may have evolved from, and how old the piece may be.
Each piece of sea glass holds it's own story, and the beauty cannot be duplicated by man-made tumbling techniques. I use 100% genuine sea glass, always. You can be confident that you will be getting a beautiful ocean tumbled gem with every purchase. Beach glass jewelry is an eco-friendly choice, because it is essentially recycled glass from years ago. Combined with my use of recycled metals, you can feel confident that you are purchasing eco-conscious wearable art.
