Beachcombing Treasures Displayed in Epoxy Resin

9 Materials
$20
2 Hours
Easy
I collect all sorts of items that have washed or blown ashore along our coastline, anything from a seashell to a tiny piece of driftwood for personal crafting purposes. There's miles of beautiful, sandy beaches around here to beachcomb and seen below is just a fraction of them. If you view my profile youll see that I put my treasures to good use in many different ways and today I'm sharing a brand new design!
Beach Coastline
But to start with this project I will be using large scallop shells that were in the bottom of a seashell collection that I purchased for home decor. I'd never find a shell as big as that washed ashore here but in other areas they dive and harvest those larger species.
Purchased Seashell Collection
First things first, I coated the base interior of the large shell with Aleenes Tacky Glue.
Beachcomed Items
I had some turquoise glass chips that were a purchased item sold as decorative vase filler, it would replicate the ocean. I gathered all of my collected treasures to try to create my final design.
Shell Style # 1
So you'll notice I added a beach as well with glue with a fine, silver stone that was also purchased as a vase filler. I added various seashells, a starfish, cod fish earbones (otholiths) and a heart shaped piece of seaglass.
Colored Sequins
This next shell was covered with glue then a layer of sequins, the kind you'd use for clothing accents! They looked like coarse sand to me in shades of gray, brown and taupe. Just another instance of using what I have to mimic the look I was trying to achieve.
Choosing My Accents
I chose neutral accents for this shell because of the multi colored background. You'll see a crab leg, a sand dollar and a small piece of coral waiting to be added to the shell.
Aleenes Tacky Glue
Again the tacky glue worked perfect for this project, it adhered well and it dries clear.
Adding 2nd layer of Glue
I added another layer of glue to any hollow spots that needed to be raised higher with more sequins.
Adding more Sequins
So by pouring more sequins over the glue I raised the height and filled in the hollow patch. I did this to try to prevent any small puddles of epoxy resting in these hollows.
Shell Style #2
I used 4 of the large shells to create four different styled keepsakes, each a little different but all of them hold treasures. I gave them adequate time overnight to dry well before adding the epoxy layer.
Four styles Completed
Folowing the epoxy instructions on the product to the last letter, I mixed and poured it over the shells. Note: Always work in a well ventilated area and use a respirator or mask when using these chemicals, protect your work surface and wear gloves! A little epoxy goes a long way and you can use a heat gun or barbecue lighter to remove any air bubbles after you've finished your pour
Epoxy Pour Completed
You'll need two containers to pour out your A and B epoxy portions into and then a larger one to combine those two equally measured liquids together. You'll need to stir and mix well for at least 3 minutes, scraping the sides and bottom. That is the crucial part, ensure both parts are mixed well.
Close up of Shell #2
It changes the color of the off white items a little but I'm okay with it, everything is sealed in place and protected.
Close up of Shell #1
Sorry about the glare but it was hard to get a good shot of something with such a high gloss finish.
Close up of Shell #3
This one has a blue heart shaped piece of seaglass, snail shells, limpet, pottery, coral, cod fish ear bones and a mussel shell.
Close up of Style #4
This one has a heart shaped stone, cod fish ear bones, snail shell, coral, colored seaglass and a ships wheel necklace trinket.
Silver and Turquoise color Scheme
I didn't have a suitable plate stand for it to rest in so I devised an alternative, keepsake shell resting in a chunk of driftwood.
Neutral Color Scheme
I like this one because of the neutrals, very flexible to suit anyone's color scheme.
Blue color Scheme
I hope you enjoyed my new way of protecting and displaying my beach treasures. Note if you cannot collect items from your beach or you don't live near one, you can easily buy assorted seashells at the dollar stores to copy this beach themed craft.*Cost based upon "buying all" items needed to complete these 4 shells.
Resources for this project:
See all materials
Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.
Hometalk may collect a small share of sales from the links on this page.More info
Frequently asked questions
Have a question about this project?
  2 questions
  • Tana Foster Tana Foster on Jan 15, 2020

    These are so pretty! It looks like the shells themselves are covered in epoxy, they are so shiny. Did you pour the epoxy on the shell too? Or "paint" it on? Did you fill the shell right up to the top with epoxy, or only enough to cover your treasures?

    Thanks!

  • Coach77cfc Coach77cfc on Jan 16, 2020

    Probably a silly male question but why not pour epoxy without using the glues first of is it the epoxy will move stuff when poured???

Comments
Join the conversation
3 of 22 comments
Next