Mt. Rainier and Lenticular Clouds - Dec. 2008 copyright: JMM

April 13, 2018

Beach Cottage Shelf

I scored this hot pink shelf at the thrift shop and had to snap it up for a project I've wanted to do.  First thing though was that I had to paint the outside an off-white and light blue on the inside. 


I ordered nautical paper off Amazon and was so happy with the designs!  I meant to take pics before I started adding stuff but I forgot and glued the starfish and sand dollar in!

This whale though.  I LOVE this design!  It fit perfectly in the attic.








Next came selecting the different items to use inside. 

The top has a large snail shell and a clam shell.  The one in the middle is also a shell of some kind but it also looks like bone.

The starfish isn't real but looks real.  The shells are ones I've found on our beaches, including the clam shell still attached.  I added a bit of glue to the back of it to keep the hinge from eventually breaking.

Beach glass is from my friend Barit, who gifted me a giant vase full of glass she didn't want anymore. 

My friend Karen sent me a bunch of sand dollars from Maine a few years ago.  This is real.  I found the small ones around here.

Message in a bottle with some shells.

Last but not least is a small glass tealight holder full of beach glass.  The tealight holder is glued to the bottom of the shelf but the glass is loose.

This was a really fun project and took just a few hours one afternoon.  It was mostly waiting for glue to dry! 

14 comments:

  1. Anonymous8:14 AM

    I'm so glad you painted it blue. Much better! I really thought that was a real starfish. I love that large sand dollar! I'm amazed it's still in one piece. It's so beautiful. Most of the stuff I find here is broken and chipped. You did a great job with this. What took you a few hours would've taken me months. :)

    Elsie

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    1. Thank you! You can get the fake starfish at the Christmas Tree Shop and I think craft stores. I was so bummed that it only took me a few hours to make. I love it when a project takes awhile so you can savour it.

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  2. lovely beach collection - you have an eye!

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    1. Thanks Joanne! It's hard not to be inspired by the surrounding area.

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  3. I have some sand dollar earrings which I bought in NC. I always love the painted sand dollars too. This looked a lot of work although it didn't take you that long.

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    1. I've never tried to paint any of the sand dollars and I still have a baggie full that Karen sent me. Honestly what took the longest was cutting and pasting the decorative papers.

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  4. That has to be one of the best recycled/upcycled projects I've seen! It went from hot pink hideous to beautiful blue nautical splendor.

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    1. Thanks Liz! I can't get enough of the whole beachy thing. I have a bunch more projects I want to do ASAP!

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  5. I agree that the pink had to go. You did an incredible job transforming this shelf into a thing of functional beauty. I should look for something similar for my clown collection. I doubt whether I'd have your transformational skills to make mine into one as nice as yours.

    Arlee Bird
    Tossing It Out

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    1. Awww thanks Lee! It just takes a bit of measuring to cut and fit the paper in. And I suck at math and measuring so there's a lot of winging it. haha

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  6. What a perfect project! Every single thing looks just right!

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    1. Thanks Andrea! It was so fun!

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  7. I can't love this enough. I love nautical themes anyway but wow. You really made this shelf over. UBER talented. That's right. I said UBER. :)

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    1. Thank you so very much! You're too kind! I have this hanging in my bathroom but my leveling skills leave much to be desired. It's off by a fraction. hahaha

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