History

As a young boy, my father would travel each summer, from his home in Pennsylvania back to Roseto degli Abruzzi, Italy on an ocean liner much like the Titanic. Roseto is a popular beach resort town on the coast of the Adriatic Sea.

Here he is pictured sitting on the deck of a ship crossing the Atlantic to vacation with family in Italy.

As children, we heard many stories from our grandmother and father about visiting Roseto, like the time my grandmother lost hearing in her right ear when a wave came crashing into the shore and burst her eardrum. One of the main reasons my father wanted to purchase a beach house in Nags Head was because it reminded him of his childhood vacations in Italy visiting family.

We spent many summers vacationing in the Outer Banks of North Carolina with our extended family. This was back before beach houses had TVs and air conditioning. During the day, we boogie boarded in the surf and built sandcastles. In the evenings, the family would gather after dinner around the table to play cards, board games or put together puzzles. At night, we slept with the windows wide open, listening to the sound of waves breaking at the shore, and begging for a gust of wind to cool off. I have fond memories of this secluded family time together.

In 1988, our family found our very own piece of OBX paradise. I still vividly remember the family meeting to pick a name for the house. We collectively came up with “Nexta Sea.”

For the next 31 years, Nexta Sea hosted many Thanksgivings, Christmases, and summer vacations with family and friends. Now that our grandparents, parents, and uncles have all passed, we look upon our time spent at Nexta Sea with nostalgia. We are so grateful for the joy this home has brought us. It is our hope that it will continue to bring future generations wonderful memories. And so, we share it with you in honor of our loved ones and what they taught us about “la famiglia,” the family.

The family “la famiglia” is most important and always comes first.

In 1989  Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash rented a week at Nexta Sea. On vacation with friends from Virginia Beach and Portsmouth, VA, they enjoyed fishing on the beach, exploring the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, and relaxing.

They were kind enough to leave some great pictures and a very nice note, copies of which are on display in the house. 

15 years ago, my mother began collecting sea glass during her walks on the beach. Both my husband and I would accompany her on these walks, which turned into contests to see who could find the most, largest, or prettiest piece(s) of sea glass. Eventually, we amassed a large quantity. My mother was always into arts and crafts and decided to try making sea glass jewelry. Several years later, she launched “Lou’s Seaside Gifts,” a small business specializing in sea glass jewelry based out of Nags Head, N.C. In recent years, my son and I accompanied her to many jewelry shows learning glass wrapping techniques along the way.

We planned to open an Etsy store in the fall of 2019. Unfortunately, my mother passed away in February before her dream could become a reality. In honor of her memory, we donated proceeds from the sale of her jewelry to philanthropic causes including the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation and the American Heart Association. We also decided to continue her legacy of creating one-of-a-kind sea glass jewelry through our shop Just Beachy OBX