A great deal of preparation is involved in creating a saleable or trade-worthy sand sample. Assuming you’ve found some collectible sand samples, the steps for preservation are as follows:
The collected sand must be washed, picked through to remove anything noxious, then spread in the sun to dry. Keeping the sand samples separated is key, so a large picnic table is helpful. “Some sand,” says Mr. Beck, “is known for a particular feature, so you can tell right away where it came from.” You can’t fudge with a die-hard sand collector! Some sand is colored or has particular marine artifacts incorporated.
Store the dry sand in tightly closed bottles. Beck prefers the small, airplane-style liquor bottles that are better known for holding rum. He cleans and sterilizes the bottles, and removes their labels before filling them with the clean, dry sand. There is a little side bonus to using liquor bottles. “I’ve got a lifetime supply of rum,” he quipped.
Label the bottles carefully. The name of the beach, the location, and the date of collection are all important bits of information for a collector. If there’s a story that makes the sand more meaningful, include that as well. You may think you’ll remember forever that day on the pink sand beach on Bermuda, but as the collection grows, the memory dwindles.
Store the bottles in a dry location so the labels won’t peel and the appearance of the display will remain attractive. Though some collectors store in bulk then parse out the sand when it’s sold, Mr. Beck takes pride in his sand display cabinet. In fact, he arrived for our interview carrying a small travel-version of his larger collection, and regaled me for some time with the stories attached to each collection adventure.