Whats not to treasure - Joanna Weafer

I'm Jo, a 33 year old mum of two from Cumbria. I'm a creative type, studied music and have always been into arts and crafts. Life keeps me very busy but I try to find beautiful things in the ordinary day to day, it helps keep me grounded.  I love exploring remote places, foraging in the wild, quiet time in nature and finding hidden gems. 

Have you always created this genre of collection or has it evolved over time, what influenced the start of the collecting, and how long have you been collecting?

I started collecting from a very young age. My mum still recalls little piles of stones I'd brought in from the garden, and would get really annoyed if anyone took them back outside! I grew up on the Solway coast, so I would spend lots of time on the beaches mostly with my dad, and would entertain myself while he fished/flew kites by searching in the sand for treasure. The older I got, the more 'refined' my collections became. I would seek out the fanciest looking shell, the most complete ones with no cracks or holes, the most interesting markings or colours. Only my favourites made the permanent collection. One of my fondest memories is of a school trip I went on to the Wanlockhead lead mining museum. We were lucky enough to have a few hours of rock hunting in the quarry's rock pile, where I learned that lead = quartz, and thus began my obsession with gemstones and natural crystals. 

Did you understand the process of collecting from a young age?

While I understood that I wanted to keep things that I liked, I don't think I really knew what I was creating was a collection. I couldn't explain why I wanted to keep them, I just knew that they were important to me. We didn't have much growing up, so I think I became attached to attainable things that cost no money. Nowadays I see the collections as a map of where I've been and the places I love. 

Is this a lifelong road or do you think you will stop at some stage - is there a goal?

I don't have a goal as such, but I like to be able to involve my kids now that they are old enough to come on these adventures with me. We collect shells from every beach we go to, just a few at a time, and display them as a family momento. 

How do you store your collection and is it displayed?

I store things in various ways. Our shell collection is mostly in a large box frame which hangs on our hallway wall. It gets fuller every year and it's so nice to see it growing and evolving after every beach visit. It contains shells from both the UK and abroad which makes for a really interesting mix. 

 As for rocks, thanks to the kids these are displaced all around the house! The "coolest" ones get pride of place on a windowsill, or a shelf, or in a glass jar. Others are hidden in drawers or baskets. I try to keep them in loose categories; rocks with interesting markings, ones containing quartz, some that happen to be perfect circles etc etc. 

Seaglass goes in its own little jar - some of this goes on to make jewellery.

Does it influence your career or is it totally separate?

No, my collection has nothing to do with my career! I work in a very clinical hospital environment, no rocks allowed!

Do you socialise or engage with other people about your collection?

Sadly I haven't found many people to socialise with about rocks and shells. However I do enjoy searching social media (eg Pinterest, Instagram) for ways to use/display my collection. For example there is a very talented creator called Oxana Crafts who does wire wrapping of rocks, gems and seaglass, and I've loved having a go at this. I also enjoy learning about what I've found, the composition of rocks and how they form - there's a few informative channels on Youtube etc. 

In the mid century "swapsies" was a thing where you traded your collection - is this still something that happens

I've not found any reason to trade my collection really. I'm quite protective of my things, so probably wouldn't want to let other people have them! 

Do you feel that collecting is a postive experience for you?

Collecting definitely has a positive impact on me, but I don't really know why! I think the notion of having "something for nothing" is really appealing to me, like I've literally found some valuable treasure. When we make trips to the beach my husband and I jokingly call it my "dopamine hunt" but I think this describes it perfectly. It gives me a similar feeling to foraging - when we find an apple tree, a blackberry bush or a patch of wild garlic and go home with some lovely things that cost us nothing but time. 

Any downsides?

The downside is that I'm a really annoying person to go to the beach with! No sunbathing for me, I'll be slowly walking up and down crouched over staring at the sand. Quite literally for hours on end if not stopped. Now that I have kids to watch out for, I can't really pull this off. I also have to plan ahead and make sure I'm wearing something with big enough pockets. Also back pain is quite common from walking with such a terrible posture. 

Is there a specific place you collect - online, forums, markets, location?

My location is nature! Usually a beach. I've also had a few lucky finds from the most unexpected places - like a really pretty rose quartz I found on my parents' gravel driveway, or an ammonite fossil in a piece of slate from a river,