Golden Yellow Seashell Charm Bracelet

I love love love to make charm bracelets....I must because I've made several of them!
Even though they are  a LOT of work, I love to see them completed. From start to finish, this charm bracelet took me 2 days to complete. They are tedious, they are time consuming. And I love the results! This is my Seashell Charm Bracelet in Golden Yellow.

This beauty matches my Summer Seashell Earrings!

but it doesn't have to be summer to enjoy them! I'm staying beachy year round ;)

I'm also loving these beautiful golden yellow orbs of stunning perfection in these plump, freshwater pearls! These pearls are utterly gorgeous! I could gaze at these pretties all day long :D

This charm bracelet is definitely one of my favorites!

Thanks for hanging out with me today :D

Love,
Del

Blue Limpet Seashell Earrings in Sterling Silver

A couple of months ago, I bought 100 blue limpet shells with the intention of encrusting a frame with them.
I've been itching to make a pair of seashell earrings with them ever since! They are such pretty shells!

 

 These little lovelies are perfect for an excursion to the beach. 

White baby pearls dangle inside the shells.

All sterling silver components sparkle like the sun glinting off the waves in the sea.

These are the very first pieces of seashell jewelry that I have made using bought shells. Of course, half the fun of making seashell earrings is finding the shells, and I prefer to do some beachcombing, but I haven't ever found blue limpet shells. This type of limpet shell isn't native to the Florida coastline. I have found a keyhole limpet, and I made a bracelet out of it. 

 You can find both of these in my Etsy shop!

I'm heading back to my sea of craft supplies! I'll be back soon with a new beachy creation for you!

Love,

Del

Olive Shell, Pearl, and Abalone Necklace

You may remember a while back I posted a pic of some champagne colored stick pearls, some abalone beads, and an Olive shell...

After gathering additional supplies, I have been working on it...and it is finished!!!

I added some Swarovski Crystal bicones in Sand, some South Sea Shell Pearls, and a few copper beads. 

It lays so nicely around the neck...MY neck :D
I'm sure it would lay just as beautifully around any shell lovers neck!

 Now I need to take some pics of it on my bust. NOOOO not MY bust....my necklace display bust! HAHA!
Had you wondering, didn't I???  This pretty Olive Shell Necklace doesn't hang down THAT far! It rest perfectly on the.. ahem...upper chest ;)
I've been liking shorter necklaces like this lately. Do you?



Love,
Del

Seashell Jewelry

You may have noticed that I've reopened my Etsy shop. I received a custom order for an awareness bracelet, so I started working on it in the middle of the night while Bree was hospitalized. This prompted me to open the shop back up. Laci is working on a shop of her own, so I am on my own now....seashell jewelry, and awareness jewelry.

When I began making seashell jewelry, I did everything the hard way, and I mean HARD. I hand drilled my shells. What do I mean by that? I mean hand drill, not a power drill...no batteries, no electricity. It takes forever and a day to drill through a shell by hand. I am not kidding!
This is what I used.

 

My brother was a sweetie and bought me a battery operated drill. He tried to find a purple one, but he could only find this...

It was better than what I had been using, but it eats batteries. Rechargeable batteries don't last very long either. I borrowed hubby's little old Black and  Decker cordless, but it was angled and difficult to drill with. Last year for my birthday hubby bought me a nice Dremel with a drill press.

This is the best way I have found to drill so far. It is definitely faster!

Considering the time involved in drilling by hand, I was pricing my handmade jewelry accordingly, but it sure wasn't very cost effective to the buyer. Anything made pre-dremel is now in my own jewelry box. I cannot get what I want for them, so I'm keeping them for myself :) You try drilling a thick lucina or a jewel box shell by hand, lol! They are difficult enough, and still take plenty of time with a Dremel.

What's in my jewelry box? or BOXES? These are some pretties I've decided to keep.

and maybe this one too

It is one of my faves!

These are newer pieces, and were done with a Dremel, but I just love them.

and maybe, just maybe...this bracelet

I've been wearing this seashell and seaglass necklace a LOT!

 I only choose to keep something if it matches an outfit, or I can't part with the shell. I don't have pics of all of my shell jewelry....some of them I did make just for myself :D

But...I did take pics of this Tulip Shell necklace. It is my best Tulip Shell, and I just can't let it go. I wear it often!

So that's just a few of my fave pieces...it would take a very long post to show everything! 

I wish I still loved to sew as much as I love to make jewelry. Imagine the clothes I would have!

Do you have an abundance of your favorite crafty designs? Please do tell!!!

Love,

Del

Pssst...sorry for such a wordy post! I hope you got through it :D

Seashell Saturday

Hello, and welcome to Seashell Saturday! A nice, warm, sunny welcome to new followers, too! It's nice to see you! Feel free to add your comments, and I'll be sure to stop by your blog if you leave me the link ;)


I'm definitely missing my sunshine. It has been overcast, cloudy, and raining off and on all week. I have kept myself occupied by playing with all three Boxers...Laci leaves Tanner with me while she works. He loves to come to Grandma's house to play with Zach and Bree! When they aren't demanding my attention, I've been playing with my shells :D

I made a few things this week, and I'd like to show them to you!

These tiny calico scallops were just too cute to not be able to use them! I had a mini brainstorm to glue them to Tiger Wood beads.

 Dark magenta button pearls in between the wood beads turned them into a bracelet. A sterling silver toggle finished it off perfectly.

I just love those baby calico's!

These earrings are pretty DELightful, too!

 Cute, huh?! Those ruby Swarovski crystals are sooooo pretty, and match so well! I love the color of these shells :D Sterling silver ear wires make these friendly to anyone with metal allergies!

Wanting to play with more of my new crystals, I picked a pair of perfectly matched white shells. I actually found these still attached....empty of course :)

Jonquil yellow is a light lemony color, and is a lovely compliment to these shells.

I used the crystals inside and out, with sterling silver bead caps, and sterling ear wires.

 Just the perfect size, too!

I recently sold the last pair of calico scallops in the shop, and realized how very few shell earrings I had left. I'm on an earring making tangent now! I have some lovely 14k gold ear wires, and I'm looking for the perfect shells to go with them.

You may remember a post I did last summer about sharks teeth we found with the grandkids at Casperson Beach. I still have several of them left, after wire wrapping a few for the kids for pendants. The ones I have left are too small to wire wrap, so another mini brainstorm ensued.

The small gray scallop goes nicely with the gray and black sharks tooth, while peacock freshwater pearls dangle at the top. This received 2 hearts the day I listed it :D

I'm hoping (fingers are crossed) that I get over to the beach soon! I'd like to do a Seashell Saturday from the coast!

Speaking of coast...I ran across some great pics to use for tomorrow's Seashore Sunday!

I hope you enjoyed this jewelry version of Seashell Saturday!

To see more pictures of the shell jewelry, just hop over to my Etsy shop! I love hearts!

See ya tomorrow!

Love,
Del

Going Tropical

With our temps climbing into the upper 90's here lately, the glorious sun, and blue skies have had me feeling a bit tropical.

A pretty orange-y hued shell, some perfectly plump peach pearls, and orange bamboo coral came together and my tropical dreams are coming true!

 Can't you just feel the sunshine pouring out of this fun, flirty, tropical seashell bracelet?

This is one of the shells I found on Sanibel. I love the calico scallops, but I've found a few orange scallops, some orange calico scallops even, and I love love love them. But, this very light orange scallop shell has my heart right now. I've had this shell sitting aside since February....just waiting for the right components to come along.

This bracelet brings out the summer lovin' Leo in me :D All of that orange and peach has this Leo purring like a kitty.

I can see myself wearing this on the beach, or on a tropical island.
I'm having second thoughts about listing it, now. This does happen. I fall so in love with one of my pieces that I can't bear to list it.

Don't worry, I'll talk myself into it eventually! Give me a few days to gaze at it, and then maybe I'll want to see it in the shop ;)

Love,
Del

Seashell Charm Bracelet with Freshwater Pearls

I have been so busy, and have wanted to show off my new charm bracelet, but as usual, I get into doing too many things! I have a touch of spring fever, and it has been drawing me outdoors, and into my flower beds, and garden. I like to get into everything! Dad always said I had "too many arns in the far" which means "too many irons in the fire". Dad had a deep southern accent, and a lot of southern sayings went along with it. Dad wasn't around to see me make shell jewelry, but I would like to think he would have loved it. He would have told me he did, even if he thought it was a waste of my time.
So, as I continue to waste my time, here is another seashell creation of mine :D
A Seashell Charm Bracelet with Peachy Coral Rose Freshwater Pearls.

As many hours as I have spent studying photography and lighting, I don't know if I will ever take the perfect jewelry photo! I will keep trying! It is true what they say about jewelry being difficult to photograph, I just have to learn all of the secrets.

I love the way this bracelet sounds! I can't even describe it. It sounds as lovely as it looks ;) This charm bracelet fits a small to average size wrist, about 6 to 6.5 inches, and is 7 3/4 inches long including the toggle. You can read the full elaborate description in my Etsy shop!

I had to order some new pearls for my wood and shell bracelet I was working on. Something was missing, and I stumbled across the perfect pearls for it. I've been on a bead buying extravaganza lately. I've bought several strands of pearls, some abalone Paua shell beads, and some gorgeous bamboo coral. I have plenty to work with, I just have to make the time! While I'm waiting for that  strand of pearls to arrive, I've been making some new awareness bracelets, because I also bought other new beads, and new lamp work beads.

My doors and windows are wide open, and I'm enjoying a wonderful, warm, spring day, with a nice breeze blowing through my home. The water trickling down the rock into the pond sounds so nice and peaceful. It's a beautiful day!

Del

Seashell Photo Frames for Beachy Home Decor

I'm feeling somewhat better, and I think I'll make it to the beach this weekend! WooHoo! I can't wait to get there. We are leaving Friday morning, and we'll head home Sunday evening. We want to spend as much time there as we can, it's been a while since we've been.

I love the look of seashell photo frames! I tend to prefer the more simple styles. Like something you would see in a beach cottage.

I picked up some plain wood frames at the craft store. I have various colors of non toxic acrylic paints on hand. For the cockle shell frame I chose a tan shade, dry brushed the grain with white, and roughed the edges a bit with sandpaper. I glued on the cockle shells, and sprayed the whole thing with a matte sealer.

For the other shell frame, I painted it white, and glued the shells on, then sprayed it with a matte sealer also. I can't remember what kind of bivalves those are! I just really loved how they were so stark white, with such dark brown markings, and they look as if they were intricately carved.

The photo's in the frames were taken by me! The top photo I took at Daytona, and the bottom photo of the pelicans and gulls, I snapped it at Flagler.

I better start packing! I like to get an early start on things, and seeing our luggage out will prepare my poor dog that I am going away.

Del