This year I’ve decided to make something special for my family and friends for Valentine’s Day. Usually, I’ll buy a greeting card or a little gift at a retail store but this year is different. I hand-painted these cute seashells which serve as the greeting card and gift in one! They can use it year after year as a little decorating accent when Valentine’s Day rolls around.
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You’ll need to collect 3″ wide clam shells seashells from the beach. Wash them in soapy water and then rise them clean. Air dry overnight.
Base coat all of the seashells with white acrylic craft paint. This will help all of the colors to “POP” once they’ve been applied on top.
Two of the designs were made using the paint pour method. I squirted acrylic paint into a plastic medicine cup. Added several drops of a Paint Pouring Medium in with the paint. Swirl it around a little bit. Hold the shell over your kitchen sink. Slowly pour that mixture of paint over-the-top of the shell…moving the shell in different directions so that the paint is rolling around. Let the excess drip into the sink. Once covered, lay it on a sheet of wax paper or aluminum foil to dry. It will take several hours. I did one with purple & pink colors and one with red, pink and white colors. (see the photo).
For the third design I drew a heart shape onto the shell. Used a red acrylic paint marker to go around that outline to form the heart design. Using a pencil I sketched two stick figures in the center of the heart. Color them in using paint markers, added facial features, etc. To finish up…I added additional hearts and the word LOVE onto the front of the shell.
I personally recommend and use BETEM Acrylic Paint Markers that I picked up from Amazon. They’re fabulous! No priming, no drippy messes, no clogged tips and no foul paint odors!!!
Purple shell I glued an irridescent heart glitter shape onto the front of the shell using Gorilla Glue. I don’t use hot glue because items will indeed fall off. Use something more permanent. For the pink colored shell I used a white acrylic paint marker and wrote LOVE on it. Then I used a black acrylic marker to outline the letters and the heart. Let everything dry for a few hours.
You need to seal the painted design by brushing on 1-2 light coats of Clear Mod Podge Sealer. I used one with a glossy finish. It goes on white but will dry crystal clear. This will protect the painted finish. Let dry overnight.
If you enjoy painting on seashells or crafting with seashells…you’ll find over 150+ seashell craft projects right here on the Two Classy Chics blog! We will be sharing more seashell craft projects in the future too!
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