My name is Trish Mireau and I am a local Airdrie artist who specializes in sea glass art pieces. I often get asked how I got started into sea glass art. Well, it started with this lovely lady in the photo with me . . . Joanne, my boyfriend’s mom.

Joanne was born on PEI and was raised in Souris, a small coastal town on the island. She has 7 sisters and they all share the love of the ocean, spending their summers at the family cottage.

In the summer of 2024 I had the opportunity to spend some time with Joanne, visiting beaches and enjoying the ocean. I noticed on our adventures she would be looking down at the sand as she walked, picking up little pieces of sea treasures as she went.

Curious, I asked her what she was collecting and she smiled and opened her hand…seaglass!

Small pieces of broken glass that had been ground up by the sea. The salt water, sun and minerals in the sand had frosted and smoothed the surfaces and edges of the glass over decades. The glass came from beer and pop bottles, broken windows and wine bottles that were discarded many many years ago.

We spent the rest of my time on the island beach-hopping, searching for sea glass. She told me that some of her sisters have been collecting sea glass for over 40 years. I was lucky enough to visit one of her sisters who gifted me jars full of sea glass from her collection, encouraging me to create something beautiful with it. And so I did.

That is how Art by Trish Mireau came to be. It all started from a walk on the beach.