Looking for an inexpensive craft project? If so, we have one for you today! These hand-painted seashells with Inspirational Sayings are the perfect give to gift to a loved one or to keep for yourself. You don’t need any artistic ability to make them! Don’t have large clam shells or seashells available? You can make these same designs on smooth river rocks too!
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We used 4″ and 5″ wide clam shells for this project. Wash them with soapy water and then rinse clean. Let them air dry overnight.
You can paint the background a solid color or do a paint pour like we did. I’ll explain it below.
Paint Pour Method – You’ll need a few bottles of acrylic craft paint and a bottle of paint pouring medium. I like mixing in a small plastic medicine cup that I can toss away when I’m done. In the medicine cup I add a 3-4 nice sized drops of Paint Pouring Medium (it’s a liquid) I then add in my desired paint colors. Don’t stir them together! Slightly move the medicine cup around in a swirling motion to get some of those colors to lightly blend together.
Hold the seashell over a bucket or your kitchen sink. Pour that paint slowly all over the shell. Yes, it will be messy! You want to pour it in different directions until you get the cup emptied out. Then move the shell all around in different directions to get the paint to run in different patterns across the top of the shell. Let the excess paint drip into the sink. You can easily wash it down the drain when you’re done. Once you’re happy with the design…lay them out on a sheet of aluminum foil to dry. It will take several hours.
Decorating the Shells – I used a pack of Tooli-Art Acrylic Paint Markers with a fine tip to write the words out onto the shells. You can do fancy lettering or just classic block letters like I did. If you want the letters to “POP” outline the letters with a different color. I used black and white. Let dry.
Finishing – Once all the paint is dry you need to seal them. I like to brush 1-2 light coats of clear Mod Podge Sealer in a glossy finish across the top. You’ll need to allow 45 minutes of drying time between coats. This will protect the painted finish. You can now display them inside or outside of the home.
