About Harbor Treasures
Many generations before Winter Harbor was founded in 1894 the tides were creating wonderful treasures. Harbors throughout the world “collected” discarded china and glass of all sorts. Slowly they were sanded with each tide, buried in mud, ground down on granite, covered in barnacles and hurled around by countless storms. Downeast Maine harbors are certainly no exception to this delightful happening. Each piece of sea glass, pottery shard, and other “findings” has been collected and recreated for a cherished historic keepsake by Barbara Noel and Sonny Tagliarino. All of our pieces are original and one of a kind.
$350.00
Barbara Noel has been a producing artist for over 55 years. All of her various art pieces are of original design and composition. All of the beach findings including sea glass, pottery shards and weathered metals are personally collected by Barbara and Sonny, exclusively from Down East Maine beaches and harbors.
They begin their search in early spring when the ice has pulled back from the shoreline and reveals their little treasures. On rare occasions when a beach piece is found by not quite aged enough, Barbara will finish the process. Only the finest sterling silver, vermeil and 14K gold are combined with sea glass sin each unique piece of handmade jewelry. Acrylics and plastics are never used unless otherwise noted for children's pieces.
Sonny performs all welding and frame making work. All mirror frames are made from old lobster crates, as is the backing for hanging collages. Each piece of Barbara's brass and copper sculptures are worked by hand.
Barbara develops new art each year that will excite the visitors that come to the shop. In 2010 she is introducing the "over the top" cuff bracelets made from semi-precious stones, sea glass and metals. In addition, she has created a variety of brass and copper chimes which are a combination of semi-precious stones, sea glass, silver, copper and brass. They look beautiful and sound lovely. Both of these are heirloom collector items and are moderately priced.
Barbara and Sonny love what they do and would like to thank each person for showing interest in their work. Don't hesitate to ask questions about the history of any piece you see.