Hand painting Whelk Shells and Conch Seashells is a great way to add some summer decor accents to your home and garden. You can collect the shells from the beach or purchase them from an online source like Amazon. If you’re collecting them from a beach only take the empty (vacated) shells. Don’t kill the mullosk that lives inside to just get his home. Once you have the shells, you need to prepare them for painting.
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Wash the shells in warm soapy water using Dawn Liquid Dish Soap. Why Dawn? It does the best job at removing dirt, debris, sand and fishy odors. If necessary, use a Magic Cleaning Eraser Sponge to get off any stubborn debris. Rinse with clean water. Lay them out to air dry overnight. They need to be completely dry before you use them.
You should base coat all of the shells using white acrylic craft paint and a brush or by using white spray paint. You only need 1-2 light coats. By base coating the shells you’re allowing the colors that you’ll be applying on top to be more vivid and colorful. Seashells can be very pourous. Let the base coat dry for 1-2 hours or until the paint is no longer tacky.
Take a pencil and lightly sketch onto the shell the design that you would like to paint or just free-hand the design. I don’t like using patterns or templates. I like to let my own creative juices flow.
When it comes to painting the design you can use acrylic craft paint and a paint brush or you can use a pack of Acrylic Paint Markers. I personally use both when I’m decorating the shells. I like using BETEM Acrylic Paint Markers and Tooli-Art Acrylic Paint Markers for all of the fine detailed work. If you’re looking for affordable I recommend the BETEM. If you’re looking for high-quality, then I recommend Tooli-Art or use a combination of both…like me!
Once the shells have been painted it’s best to let them dry for 4-6 hours or overnight. Let the paint cure. Next…you need to “seal in” the paint by brushing on 1-2 light coats of Clear Mod Podge Sealer or by spraying on 1-2 light coats of a Clear Acrylic Spray Sealer. Let them dry overnight. They can now be displayed inside your home or outside in your garden area.
Check out the TwoClassyChics blog for over 400 free arts and craft project ideas that utlize seashells and other fun beach finds!
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