So, this is what I have made -
And, it all began here -
We brought them home in our carry-ons (which is a whole other story - ask the grandsons!!). I did some research online as to the best way to clean them up. I think I used 1 part bleach to 3 parts water (but I may have adjusted it). I spent days and days cleaning, drying, & sorting the shells. I then bagged them according to size, etc. (This is where the weird part comes -- I thought I would count as I was bagging them to see how many we brought back -- are you ready????? 1,072 (oh yea!!)
Months later I began to work on the trees. I used 12" styrofoam cones, a low-temp glue gun (because of the styrofoam), and lots of glue sticks. I also used a spray gloss acrylic sealer by Plaid to make it all nice & shiny when I was finished. This is how I began to glue the shells -
I just glued them all around in a single layer. Don't worry about any imperfections or bad spots on the shells - save those for the first layer - you'll be able to hide them with other shells. I used the medium shells for the first layer. In order to hide the styrofoam there were sometimes 2 or 3 layers in certain areas.
There are about 125 shells on these -
When all finished make sure to spray the glossy sealer in a well ventilated area. I did this in our garage with the doors open. This does dry fairly fast.
I did 2 of the shell trees and have them displayed with some sand dollars from the beach and some store-bought starfish --
I am now obsessed with shells!!!! Don't you love the toppers on them??
I think that Lucy's keen sense of smell still makes these shells intriguing to her -
I am linking to Kate's Christmas Craft Party - please click here and get lots of ideas -
I am also linking to Sally Lee By The Sea's Coastal Holiday Linky Party. You can click here to see many great ideas!!!
12 comments:
Love the shell trees. Great idea.
Great idea! Especially if you have a beach theme going. Shoot, those would look good year round at a beach cottage.
Thanks for sharing at Centsational Girl's party.
Brittany
http://www.prettyhandygirl.com
Love the shell tree! I just did an ornament tree!! Ah the fun you can have with glue guns!
Love the shell trees!! What a grand idea!
Didn't know that these topiary shell trees are so easy to make!!! Awesome!
Happy Holidays!
Darling! Now I just need the beach cottage to go along with it!
What a great way to bring back memories of your Florida trip during the coldest time of the year! The trees look amazing!
What a great use for the seashell keepsakes!
It looks painstaking work but so pretty and you have a memento of your memories!
I have posted my first giveaway on my blog. it is a gift card from CSN Stores. Would like you to please enter!
LoVe your shell tree !
Thank you for sharing & happy holiday !
Thanks so much for sharing your Christmas Seashell Tree at our linky party - we LOVE it!!
Coastal Christmas Hugs,
Marie
Merry Christmas! Your seashell tree is one of our favorite Coastal Christmas Crafts!!
http://www.sallyleebythesea.com/2011/12/coastal-christmas-day-21-christmas.html
Holiday Hugs,
Marie
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