Archive for Shell Art
Merry Holiday Beach Art
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Merry Christmas, SS Marcia! In my last post, Marcia asked me if I had seen beach art yet. I had to laugh when the first thing I saw when I walked on the beach was this Christmas tree made with PEN SHELLS. Then right beside it was this beautiful menorah! This is the first that I’ve seen this season so thank you to the beach art artist who made these!
There was so much Beach Bling in between Donax Rd and Fulgur Rd on Sanibel.
This was one of several TULIP EGG CASES I saw…
I didn’t even see the second KEYHOLE LIMPET on the left when I took this photo. I was so amazed at the dark stripes on the big LIMPET and the colors on the tiny APPLE MUREX and BANDED TULIP.
In one little area, the high tide was bringing in shells to build up this nice pile. See that gorgeous LIGHTNING WHELK?
Maybe the golden rays of this Sanibel sunset shining on the amber edges of the ROUGH PENS will inspire the richly talented artists who create their beach art masterpieces for we mere beachcombers to fill our hearts with joy for the holidays. Ahem…. did I ask that nicely enough for more fun holiday beach art stuff? 
Tips To Decorate Your Home With Seashells
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“What do you do with all of the seashells you collect?” Haven’t you been asked that question every time you tell someone you love to collect shells? I’ve been asked countless times and I’ve asked other shellers so I’m guilty as well. I think we all are interested in getting ideas of what to do with them from other people who love what we love… seashells.
Our friends Dick and Mary love shelling and love their seashells and beach bling surrounding them in their beautiful home. Join me as I show you their seashell arrangements… with the help from kitty Fatima.
This is a perfect example of what I love about Dick and Mary in the photo above…. there are no rules. They find so many beautiful shells on the beach but they also love to buy shells if they see one that strikes their fancy and they don’t mind mixing them. Most of those shells in the bowl (that Fatima is admiring) were found on the beach by either Dick or Mary but some, as Mary says with a laugh “I found that one too…. in a store”.
When it comes to ALPHABET CONES, they don’t have to buy a single one. They found all of the ones in the glass vessel on Sanibel and Captiva. Wow! Piling the same shell in any type of vessel is my favorite way to display my shells as well. They found all of these baby HORSE CONCHS too. Wouldn’t you love a bowl full of candy by your bedside table?
They framed their oddity treasures in a shadowbox.
They framed some of their best shells to make a wall collage in the hallway.
This is the top of the very first shell mirror Mary made but the mirror is so big, I couldn’t get the whole thing in the photo. Again, she mixed bought shells with beach found shells.
Here’s the bottom of another shell mirror…
They displayed their “knobless wonder” HORSE CONCH (the spire doesn’t have those pronounced bumps normal horsies do) right at the front entrance with a striking vase of PAPER FIGS.
knobless wonder with figs
They call this little heart the WENTLETRAP trap…
This wire bowl has a beach found key chain, pottery pieces, sea glass, driftwood and other beach bling along with a bought object d’ art. See? Mix and match, just do it.
Mary was a doll maker a number of years ago so on the shelves of her glass door cabinets she displays the things she loves mixed together.
Of course there are OLIVE shells in the olive dish.
Remember I showed you the OYSTER shell mirror on my post Ordinary Oyster Turn Extraordinary? Mary made a plant stand out of them.
I still have so much to show you! Like how they use their shells in the garden and by the pool and how they organize all of their shells. But, oh my. I’ve run out of time so I have to break this post into several so… hang on! You won’t believe your eyes at how many more shells they have and what they do with them.
How To Make Shell Crafts Video – Project: Dandelions
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I started thinking about summer projects this week so I revisited some of my blog photos for inspiration. Bingo! The 74th Sanibel Shell Fair and Show was last month … and it gave me a great idea for both me and you. I thought I’d find out some of the secrets of shell crafting so I asked how 2011 Blue Ribbon and Judges’s Special Award winner Barb Walling made her ”Dandelions” piece. We will get to learn every detail of how this piece was made by the artist herself!
Barb was gracious enough to invite me over to her Sanibel home to see where the magic begins. She first showed me how she organizes her shells that she picks up off the beach after she washes and dries them.
She categorizes each box or drawer by the shell name. This one is the SEMELE which she uses as the base to the dandelion and most of her shell flowers.
From here, I’m gonna let her tell you how everything else is done. Sit back, relax and let your imagination roll…
How ’bout that, huh? Here’s a close up of the SEMELE she talked about ……
….and the CROSS BARRED VENUS
This is a dead PURPLE SEA URCHIN that washed up on the beach with some of it’s spines still attached.
This is a close up of Barb’s SEA URCHIN spines. That’s a lot of SEA URCHINS!
Thank you so much for the shell craft lesson, Barb! Can’t wait to see what you create for next year’s 75th Anniversary of Sanibel Shell Fair and Show.
Seashells Swarm The Shell Fair
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Junonia shell collection
The 74th Sanibel Shell Fair and Show was over the top this year! But, come on…. did they really have to put me over the edge by displaying this many JUNONIAS all together in one place like this? I just want one!! I got over my shell jealousy pretty quickly since there were too many other seashells to drool over too.
There were rooms of seashells….
Scientific display room
Tents of seashells….
Mom and shellcrafter Goz
Shacks of seashells…..
Live shell display
Sheds of Seashells….
Outside Shell Shed
Boxes of seashells….
Boxes of seashells for sale
Categories of seashells….
Gobs and gobs of organized shells
Flowers of seashells….
Flower arrangements for sale by the shellcrafters
Frames of seashells….
Shell frame by Lisa Givens
Tables of seashells…..
Artistic division table
Rows of seashells…
Fiji Shell display
Cases of seashells….
Shells Collected Dec 2010-Feb 2011 by Ethel Sinow
Posters of seashells…
Blue Ribbon winner Barbara Hansen's display
Magnifiers of seashells….
Blue Ribbon Mini Fossil shell display by Ron Bopp
Shoes of seashells…
Blue Ribbon for K-6 Student Weston Clark
Crafters of seashells…
David Rhyne shell crafter
Collectors (and cutie collectors, at that!) of seashells….
Shell Collector Diane Zimmer
….and this is only a smidge of what I want to show you. I’ve got video too! As you can already see, it’s a little overwhelming for a shell lover to just run through it in a short time. I didn’t even get a chance to show you details of some of the scientific shell displays. So many shell displays, so little time.
A shell show would not be complete if I didn’t add….
Lovers of seashells…..
Brian Holaway, yours truly, and Sandy Moran photo by Hannah Milman
Best In Show Sailor’s Valentines
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Best in Show Professional
The Sanibel Shell Fair and Show is so overwhelmingly good this year that to give the winning art pieces their due justice, I had to break it down into more categories. That’s why I wanted to save the “Best In Show” winners for a post all their own.
This SAILOR’S VALENTINE by David Rhyne won a blue ribbon first place prize for “Best In Show Professional” in the Professional Artistic Division. Congratulations!
Best In Show Professional close up
He explained this piece on a display card …
“The entire center of the Valentine is made from the CAPIZ shell. The picture in the center is hand carved and painted by the artist. The mosaic treatmetn on the jewelry, gown, and pattern work is hand carved from the following shells… ABALONE, OPERCULUM, SCALLOPS, MOLLUSKS and LIMPETS. Assorted shells and sea-life complete the piece.”
Best in Show Pro detail
All of the SAILOR’S VALENTINES that I have posted so far have been made by professional shellcrafters that sell their work as well as enter shows.
This next SAILOR’S VALENTINE won a blue ribbon for “Best In Show Hobbyist” in the Hobbyist Artistic Division. Yes, James Cowperthwait is a hobbyist. Congratulations, James for Best in Show!
Best in Show Hobbyist
Best in Show Hobbyist detail
I have so much more to show you but I can’t get it all in at once. I sure hope you don’t mind if I dedicate the next few days to the shell fair. I haven’t heard of anything spectacular happening on the beaches the last few days since we’ve had east winds. I think the winds will be shifting to the west soon so maybe by the time the fair is over, it’ll be good shelling again. I’m having a great time with my mom visiting from Virginia!!!
Mom buying a few shell crafts. She's so cute!
Sanibel Shell Fair Behind The Scenes
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Sanibel Shell Fair Setup
The Sanibel shell crafters have been hard at work setting up, sorting, categorizing and pricing seashells to sell for the 74th Sanibel Shell Fair and Show starting tomorrow. They have also been having lots of fun every Monday all year long making whimsical shell crafts like flower bouquets, shell critters and shell pictures to sell to raise money for the Sanibel Community House.
Seashell Hydrangea
It was a pleasure to meet some of the shellcrafters that donate their time and skills to make these beautiful pieces of shell art made for the Shell Fair every year. Here’s a little sampling of who these talented folks are and how these creations are made throughout the year. Thanks, Shellcrafters for inviting me into your wonderful world of shell crafting. Hope to see yall tomorrow at the show! 
