Buoy Buyer’s Bracelet

Buoy Buyer’s Bracelet

It was the summer of ’58.

It was the summer of ’58. We were beach kids, always looking for a way to make a buck. We never forgot the Buoy Buyers: two kids, two brothers from New Jersey on vacation for two weeks. Their father was an antique dealer. The older brother offered me 25¢ for a simple wooden lobster buoy. I was astounded. Sold it on the spot. Before the morning was over I rounded up a dozen more. The prices varied from 25¢ to 75¢ according to color and quality. Both brothers were buying. Sold them all. I cleared $5.75. Word traveled fast. Kids showed up from all over the beach with buoys to sell. We couldn’t believe our luck. Dozens of buoys sold. We talked about the buoy buyers for years afterward.

I’ve been thinking about the buoy buyers recently. In the last month, I’ve been buying wooden buoys in antique stores up and down the coast. They are beautiful, hand-made, colorful with rich patterns and shapes reflecting the style and personality of the lobstermen who created them. I now have two dozen buoys. From these, we have selected five and have faithfully recreated them in miniature for our sterling silver Buoy Buyers Bracelet.

If you are looking, it might be tough to find a good looking authentic wooden Maine lobster buoy this summer because I bought every one I could find this spring from Kittery to Rockland. The irony of this has not escaped me. The going price for genuine wooden Maine lobster buoys these days is $22 – $35 each. That’s a 60-100 times increase in value since 1958. Buoys have appreciated more than gold in 50 years. Take note investment bankers.

This bracelet is lovely. The shapes play well together. Toggle clasp.
One size fits everyone.