Beach Bean Jewelry

I've been polishing lots of the beans I have accumulated over the past few months and have contemplated several ways to put these little gems to work.

Since I have also been spending some quality time volunteering at the Matagorda Bay Nature Center, one idea was to craft some simple beach jewelry and offer it up for sale at the center.

The details have been worked out and soon there will be some key chains and necklaces available for sale. One of my goals in volunteering is to find as many ways as possible to help students participate in the classes offered by the staff at the nature center so all the proceeds I get from the beach bean jewelry will be donated for student scholarships. My donations will also be matched by my company so there will be a double benefit.

I really appreciate the cooperation of the folks at the nature center and it will be pretty cool to know that folks will learn about the beans when they visit the display and that they can take one home as well. It seems natural that these should be pretty popular. Most folks are willing to buy a seashell necklace or a shark tooth on a chain so these unique items should fit the bill as well.

You've heard of Johnny Appleseed - How about Johnny Sea Bean?

Here is a variety of key chains made with hamburger beans, sea hearts, and palm seeds.

These sea heart necklaces are simple but the silver accent beads add some style.

I used some colorful pvc cord on these single hamburger necklaces. I'm thinking this will be popular with the younger crowd and will be good for the beach as they are waterproof.

This is a one of a kind creation using two matched sea purses.


These are some of the larger hamburger bean necklaces. These are some of the more unique hamburgers and will bring a slightly higher price.


I used some hemp cord with a sliding knot on these single hamburgers to make the length adjustable.


Starnut Palms make an interesting pendent for these simple necklaces.

I strung three small hamburger beans together on these models.

Polished prickly palms create a sharp contrast with the light colored wooden accents.

I'm having fun finding and identifying sea beans. It has been a real education and, like any treasure hunt, you never know when you will find a new specimen to figure out.

The cleaning and polishing process takes some time and energy but the results make it worth the effort.

I'm glad that this new phase of the sea bean project will provide opportunities for kids to get some exposure to the Texas Coast, to its beauty and uniqueness, and to the responsibility we all have to keep it that way.