DIY Seashell Frame Art (beach life)

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I love seashells.

I love the pretty shapes, colors, uniqueness of each, etc.
They just mesmerize me.
It’s so much fun to walk along the beach and look for pretty shells and hear the sound of water rush up onto the sand.
I’m thankful to have had the opportunity to live along the coast my entire life.
I don’t think I could ever live away from it now!

I so LOVE the beach…..and the “beach life”.
It’s just part of my soul.

So when my friend Kathy from Petticoat Junktion invited me to be a part of her “seashell tour” I said YES!
That is right up my alley. :)
And I decided to create this DIY Seashell Frame Art…..

DIY Seashell beach life Frame Art - Sprinkle sand on front - #beach #seashell artsychicksrule

I have shells (and starfish, sand dollars & sea biscuits!) all over my home.
In jars, trays, displays, art work, etc.
For this project I decided to use these pretty shell pieces instead of whole shells.
These things are just gorgeous and so iridescent.  

LOVE

DIY Seashell Frame Art - Looking Glass Spray and Graphics - #beach #seashell artsychicksrule.com

Aren’t they pretty?
 I think so.

Here’s the frame I started with….

DIY Seashell Frame Art - Before - #beach #seashell artsychicksrule.com

I painted it with General Finishes “Snow White”. (any white paint will do, even spray paint)

DIY Seashell Frame Art - Sandy Textured Paint Base - #beach #seashell artsychicksrule.com

I added in a bit of this “Fine Stone” into the paint to give it a “sandy” texture.
I wasn’t sure how much of the frame would be showing and thought it might be neat for it to have that texture.

DIY Seashell Frame Art - White and Sandy Base - #beach #seashell artsychicksrule.com

Kind of cool finish….but in the end it didn’t matter! ;)
Except for the sides.
They are the only thing left showing.

I started adding shells in one corner ….

DIY Seashell Frame Art - Add Shells with Hot Glue - #beach #seashell artsychicksrule.com

…and just layered the shells all the way around.

DIY Seashell Frame Art - Go all the way around layering shells - #beach #seashell artsychicksrule.com

I actually really enjoyed doing this.
It was very relaxing and almost like doing a puzzle.

And that’s it!

I had planned to leave it as a frame but I can never leave anything as is. ;)
So I decided to make it a mirror by spraying the back of the glass with Looking Glass Spray Paint.

DIY Seashell Frame Art - Glass turned to Mirror - #beach #seashell artsychicksrule.com

And then I messed with it a bit more by painting “beach life” on the front and sprinkling white sand over that!

I know, it’s a bit of overkill but I like it for now. ;)
I may take it out and replace it with another piece of plain glass and add a photo as some point.
(no biggie since frames –and glass– are easily found in excess at thrift stores for cheap)

DIY Seashell Frame Art - Beach Life - #beach #seashell artsychicksrule.com

(pictured here with the DIY Nautical Rope Mirror I just posted about yesterday)

And can I just tell you how hard it is to photograph a mirror?
Really hard.
And even harder to see the paint on it.
I can see it very easily in person but translating that to the camera…not so much!

DIY Seashell Frame Art - Spray Looking Glass onto Back - #beach #seashell artsychicksrule.com

I moved it outside to take a few more….

DIY Seashell Frame Art - Beach Life with Sprinkled Sand - #beach #seashell artsychicksrule.com

I sprayed a sealer over the painted graphics and then sprinkled sand over that.
I then sprayed a second coat of sealer to “hold” the sand.

DIY Seashell Frame Art - Shell Frame - #beach #seashell artsychicksrule.com

Love those shells.

DIY Seashell Frame Art - Sprinkle sand on front - #beach #seashell artsychicksrule.com

Perfect handmade gift for those beach loving friends or family. :)
With “beach life” on the glass or just a photo inside the shelled frame.

Be sure to take a peek at my friends’ seashell treasures too ….they are below.

And I’ll see you later this week with a brand new furniture makeover!

A few other seashell projects of mine:

 

 

My Friends Seashell Projects Here: 

Seashell crafts artsy chicks rule

 

Monday

Domestically Speaking

H20 Bungalow

At Home With The Barkers

Yesterday On Tuesday

Tuesday

Artsy Chicks Rule

Cottage At The Crossroads

The Country Chic Cottage

Confessions Of A Serial D0-it-Yourselfer

Wednesday

The Kim Six Fix

Our Southern Home

White Lace Cottage

Petticoat Junktion

Signature for Blogsmall

AND a few other seashell projects of mine here: (click photos to visit post)

Simple Art with leftover beadboard, thrift store frames and starfish, sand dollars or seashells -artsychicksrule.com Simple & Thrifty DIY Coastal Wall Art - Before & After Wall Art -artsychicksrule.com #thrifty #coastal #wallart #diy #art Love & the Beach - DIY Sign Tutorial - Before-After - artsychicksrule.com #thrifty #homedecor #beach #sign #coastal #diy Sun, Sand, Sea Beach Sign - DIY - Tutorial - Finished #chalkpaint #sign artsychicksrule.com

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34 Comments

  1. How did you attach the shells? Did I miss something? I wouldn’t want to rely on the wet paint to hold them on. ?

    1. Hi Maggy,
      I’m so sorry, I see now that I did leave that out! I will edit the post. I used a hot glue gun and glued them to the frame. :)
      Nancy

  2. aww nancy i love that you used the broken beautiful pieces of shells they look wonderful and make so homesick for fl growing up and living most of my adult life in fl picking shells was a fun thing to do and i always wound up with some pieces like that, i love tn in the spring summer and fall but wish every year i could go to fl in the winter xx

    1. OH yes, you and me both!!! (FL for the winter!)
      It is a fun thing to do…I bought these but I think I’m going to go down the road and pick some up! Especially the oyster shells (we have an abundance of those here! ;) )
      My next project may be with them instead!
      Maybe one day for the winter in FL…for the both of us! ;) I am going this summer for a week…to the west coast…can’t wait!
      xo
      Nancy

          1. that was my favorite spot to go shelling and omg just had friends vacationing there wahhhhh xx

          2. Oh we can’t wait! I’m so ready for a getaway and that will be the perfect spot. :) It’s been a long time since we visited! I’m just glad this winter is over…even if it means staying put! ;)

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