Blooming Shells Sells Sea Shells By The Sea Shore

Sitting on the beach last week, I was caught up in a familiar scene. A father was putting a shell to his young son’s ear, and the boy’s face showed the amazement we’ve all experienced the first time we hear the sound of the ocean in a shell.

I know it’s a fascinating discovery to hear the ocean in a comparatively little object, as is the habit, usually introduced in childhood, to pick up shells and save them as mementos of a summer at the beach.

Collecting shells—then cleaning them, and maybe adding a little paint, or arranging them in bowls or on desks or shelves—is a time-honored tradition, and one that can be seen being passed on to future generations every time one sits on a beach anywhere in the world. You see the same scenario play out on Mediterranean beaches, in the Caribbean and South America, and at every beach in the Hamptons.

However, being the intrepid investigative type in my role as “The Collector’s Eye,” I decided to confirm my suspicions of why and who collects shells.

As I’ve noted before, when you have a question about a collectible thing, go to an expert and get their advice and counsel.

Taking my own advice, I entered the realm of the sea, disguised as a shell shop in Sag Harbor aptly named Blooming Shells, and began a conversation with the owner, Debbielou Houdek.

At first, she was as quiet as a clam as I peppered her with questions about customers, trends in shells, what’s the most popular shell, etc. Gradually, as she opened up, I knew I was in the presence of a shell-lover extraordinaire, a collector of both common and uncommon sea life, and an expert in the art of the shell.

Confirmed was my notion that shell collecting is passed from one generation to another, usually by a close relative, grandmothers being natural enthusiasts at encouraging their grandchildren to find interesting shells while they’re at the beach.

Ms. Houdek also identified a second type of shell enthusiast in the form of decorators and designers who buy shells to be used as impressive decorative statements. An otherwise clinical interior can be accessorized with shells—so that the renters know they’re at a beach house.

Both the casual shell collector and the professional decorator will find literally hundreds of beautiful and unusual types of shells here; in fact, the shop resembles a kind of “20,000 Leagues Under the Sea” diorama, minus the giant squids.

The empty shells we find washed up on our beaches are the remains of a dead sea animal whose soft parts have been eaten by another or have decomposed. But this simple thing has been used at various times and in different cultures as money (wampum), as musical instruments (the conch and large sea snail), in religious iconography (in Christianity, the scallop shell is associated with St. James the Great), clothing and adornment (mother of pearl jewelry, belts, necklaces and belts) and tools (giant clam shells as canoe bailers). Giant clam shells are sometimes used as sinks or baptismal fonts as well.

What I enjoyed about my visit to Ms. Houdek’s shell emporium was the sheer variety of shells. There’s literally something for everyone, from seashell mirror frames to delicate earrings.

But the tour de force for me was her patient explanation and demonstration of the inner workings and “golden spiral” formula for the iconic nautilus shell. That is, a golden spiral gets wider by a factor of phi for every quarter turn it makes. Who knew?

And I learned that Gigas tridacna means “giant clam shell,” of which Ms. Houdek has a beautiful example for $2,200, the most expensive item in the stop.

Another interesting note for those who may see these elsewhere is that the bottom half of the clam shell is considerably heavier than the top, which opens. If you come across one for sale and the two sections weigh the same, it means you don’t have a complete clam shell: You have two tops or two bottoms.

I also came across a clam shell purse, which Ms. Houdek told me is a favorite for men who are about to propose. Apparently, one or two gentlemen couldn’t wait until the candlelit dinner later on and dropped to their knees right there in the shop and proposed, much to the amusement and joy of the other shoppers, and Ms. Houdek herself, who always likes a good story.

But perhaps the most touching anecdote she shared with me was in regard to Ovula ovum, or egg cowrie. One day, a young woman was asking about some of the crystals for sale. When Ms. Houdek discreetly asked the reason, the young woman replied that she and her husband couldn’t conceive, and the next step would be of the medical type, which she wasn’t keen on.

She was willing to try anything before that—even if it was an old wives’ tale. She bought the Ovula ovum and was instructed to merely put it under the bed.

A few months later, the same woman came into the store and asked Ms. Houdek if she remembered her. Ms. Houdek didn’t initially recognize her—but when she patted her stomach, it all came back to her. Yes, the young woman was indeed pregnant.

The lessons and secrets of the sea and the creatures that reside there are both bountiful and mysterious, so one never really knows what a shell will impart, from the sound of ocean waves to the sound of a trumpet, or the beauty of the golden ratio, or the sound of joy over an engagement, or, in some cases, the sound of new life.