How to Drill Sea Glass

Drilling Sea Glass using handheld drill

Sea glass are shards of broken glass that have been abandoned in oceans and other waterways and worn smooth by exposure to water, waves, rocks and sand. It is a natural material used to design jewelry and other handcrafted decorative items. Artificial or imitation sea glass that is processed in a rock tumbler to to give it a smooth surface, is also used for crafts. Artists glue and wire both genuine and imitation sea glass into designs.They also drill holes into the glass and use it in strands or as dangling elements. The skill of drilling sea glass takes time and practice to master. You have to find which tools feel the most comfortable in your hands, and which allow you to accomplish what you need for your designs.

Things You'll Need

• Dremel rotary tool
• Diamond drill bits
• Clear and shallow plastic dish
• Water
• Styrofoam or putty
• Permanent black ink marker
• Sea glass
• Safety glasses

Instructions

1. Choose several pieces from your sea glass collection that you are willing to sacrifice while learning to drill. Try to find pieces without any signs of internal cracks or flaws since those are more likely to crack during drilling. Make a small black mark on both sides of the piece at the point where you want to drill. Do not drill too close to the edge of the glass because it's more likely to break.

2. Press your sea glass into a piece of Styrofoam, floral foam or putty. You can also secure it with wire on a piece of wood. Place the secured piece of glass in the clear plastic container and add enough water to just barely cover the glass. Water cools both the glass and the drill bit and prevents the piece from cracking.

3. Choose your drill bit. There are many different opinions about the best size and shape bit for drilling glass. Try both a 1/8-inch cylinder diamond bit and a 3/32-inch sphere diamond bit to see which works best for you. Turn your drill to a slow setting and put on your safety glasses. Hold the drill at a 45-degree angle and bite the spot you've marked for your hole. Once you've made a small cut, hold your drill up at a 90-degree angle and continue drilling.

4. Drill slowly and patiently. If the drill is working, you will start to see clouds of glass dust in the water. Hold the drill steady with light and even pressure. This type of drill works with speed instead of force and too much pressure may break the glass. Increase the speed gradually on the Dremel setting if you are not making progress. Change the water if it gets too cloudy.

5. Drill roughly three-quarters of the way through your piece of glass and stop. Turn the piece of sea glass over, making sure again that it's secure on its base. Follow the same steps and finish drilling your hole on the opposite side. Drilling from both sides helps you avoid breaking through the back side of the piece and chipping the glass.

Tips & Warnings

• If your first couple of attempts at drilling sea glass are not clear successes, do not give up. Drilling glass is a skill that requires time and practice. You can buy sea glass with drilled holes and some sea glass artisans will drill your pieces for a fee. But ultimately, it's more satisfying to do it yourself.

• Sea glass artists hunt for glass along shorelines and waterways but you ca also buy sea glass in craft shops and festivals and online on Etsy and eBay. Packages of artificial sea glass are also available and are less expensive.

• If you do not want to practice on any pieces in your sea glass collection you could try drilling some artificial sea glass or plain glass. However, exposure to natural elements triggers a chemical change in sea glass by leaching soda and lime from the material. That change can give genuine sea glass a unique frosty or textured surface for drilling.

• Some instructions for drilling sea glass tell you to hold the piece steady with your fingertips as you drill. This is never a good idea no matter how much experience you have.

References

• Sea Glass Dreams: How to Drill Sea Glass
• Drill Glass: How to Drill a Hole in Glass...
• Red Row Studio: How to Drill Holes in Sea Shells or Sea Glass
• How to Drill: Helpful Hints Drilling Guide
• North American Sea Glass Association: Genuine vs. Artificial
• Washington Post; "Look What the Tide Brought In;" Jura Koncius; Aug. 11, 2005

Resources

• Read this Article in Spanish
• Texas A&M University; Conservation Research Laboratory; Conservation of Glass