Nostalgem - Miniature Shell Jewellery from New Zealand

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Nostalgem - Miniature Shell Jewellery from New Zealand Rina Ward - Beachcomber & maker. I turn shells & shore finds into jewellery that carries a piece of home and everyone in it.
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Sometimes my water therapy comes with a surfboard. Sometimes it’s a walk to the falls. 🌿On this particular weekend, I co...
18/10/2026

Sometimes my water therapy comes with a surfboard. Sometimes it’s a walk to the falls. 🌿

On this particular weekend, I couldn’t get out for a surf, so I swapped my workbench for a walk to Wharepuke Falls here in Kerikeri.

Then it was back to the bench, with a little spread of shells to tinker with. Some familiar, some a little different.

A small page from my studio diary. Where do you go when you need to clear your head?

Rina

18/10/2026

You know sea glass? Japan has its own version. Old blue and white china, worn soft by the sea. Here’s a bit of trivia: look at a piece under a magnifying glass. Brushstrokes mean someone painted it by hand. Tiny dots mean it was probably printed. What would you make with them? Earrings? Pendants? Mosaic

A brief stop at Taipa beach, just before the rain, turned up this beautifully bioeroded slipper shell. 🐚Look closely at ...
17/10/2026

A brief stop at Taipa beach, just before the rain, turned up this beautifully bioeroded slipper shell. 🐚

Look closely at those little hollows and irregular markings. The shell has changed over time, and that’s exactly what caught my eye.

Very much my sort of wabi-sabi: finding beauty in things that are imperfect, weathered and shaped by time.

It hadn’t made it onto the bench when I wrote this diary entry. Meanwhile, the bench was already full of little shells, unfinished settings and half-formed ideas.

Would you have picked this one up too?

Rina

He used to be my little shell… and now he’s definitely outgrown me. 😂That old photo of me with my youngest says quite a ...
16/10/2026

He used to be my little shell… and now he’s definitely outgrown me. 😂

That old photo of me with my youngest says quite a lot about why I love pairing two pāua shells.

One larger, one smaller. The difference is intentional. For me, they tell my story as a Mum.

But the two shells could be sisters, best friends, partners, a grandmother and grandchild—or simply two people who belong together.

Who would your two shells represent?

Rina

I thought I had quite a collection of curious things… then James showed me his. 😄He’s a young diver who occasionally sup...
15/10/2026

I thought I had quite a collection of curious things… then James showed me his. 😄

He’s a young diver who occasionally supplies me with juvenile kina. His shelves held shells, cow bones and teeth, bird skulls, a crayfish body and all sorts of other finds.

Of course I had to take a closer look.

It reminded me of a snapper jawbone I once found while beachcombing and turned into a gold-plated necklace. A crayfish pincer became a pendant too. Both have since found new homes.

There are still a few non-shell treasures waiting for attention on my bench. I’m curious to see what they’ll become.

What’s the strangest thing you’ve brought home from a beach?

Rina

Still shells… just a different sort. 🦀These little beach-found characters have become my Clawed Creature Charms. Wear on...
14/10/2026

Still shells… just a different sort. 🦀

These little beach-found characters have become my Clawed Creature Charms. Wear one on its own, or gather it with shells, pearls and stones into your own curious little cluster.

There’s even a claw for your favourite crabby person. Perhaps yourself. 😄

Dropping 16 October, VIP members first.

I was supposed to be tidying my studio. By “tidying”, I mean moving piles from one side of the desk to the other. 😄Then ...
14/10/2026

I was supposed to be tidying my studio. By “tidying”, I mean moving piles from one side of the desk to the other. 😄

Then I found these tiny sterling silver mānuka flower studs. I thought I’d sold every last pair, but a few had been hiding in the mess.

They came from Rommel, a Filipino silversmith whose studio I visited in Baguio, up in the mountains of northern Luzon.

I love that they carry two homes. The flower is from New Zealand. The hands are from the Philippines.

A little find from my studio diary, and a lovely reminder of that visit.

Rina

Our best sellers—or best shellers 😄Two tiny real shells, with room for your own story. One is you. Who’s the other? 🐚
13/10/2026

Our best sellers—or best shellers 😄

Two tiny real shells, with room for your own story. One is you. Who’s the other? 🐚

11/10/2026

They may be tiny, but they make the best keepsakes. They may take you straight back to those summer days at the bach, diving for kai, nobody checking the time. So they’re your “precious gems”. I give them a little shine: a touch of resin, then into my wee UV pizza oven. What story can you find with these little treasures? 🐚 follow me if you like mini shells turned into wearable stories.

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Kerikeri

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 5pm
Saturday 9am - 5pm

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