Coastal Seashell Wreath

Wreaths are everywhere during the holiday season, and today I want to share with you a unique variation that’s perfect for beach lovers! All you need are a few basic supplies and you’ll be making this in no time. Our family absolutely loves vacationing together in Myrtle Beach, so I created this Coastal Seashell Wreath for my mom as a gift for my birthday {that’s right, I give HER a gift on MY birthday since, after all, she did all the hard work}! Take a look…

Coastal Seashell Wreath

You’ll need:

Small Wooden Sign
Small Grapevine Wreath
Assorted Seashells
FolkArt Home Decor Chalk paint Adirondack White
Hot Glue Gun and Glue Sticks
Paintbrush
Sandpaper and/or Power Sander

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Creating Your Wreath

Step 1: Paint your sign.

I used two coats of Adirondack White. Don’t worry about getting perfect coverage, because you’ll be distressing it anyway. Let it dry completely before moving on.

Step 2: Distress your sign as much or as little as you like.

I wanted mine to have a pretty weathered look like something exposed to the elements naturally would over time. I used my RYOBI ONE+ 18V Corner Cat Sander with a fine grit sandpaper, but you can also do this by hand. Sand around the edges of the sign as well as the edges of each individual board. Feel free to take off as much or as little of the paint as you like. If you want, you can skip ahead and make your wreath while the paint dries, then come back and distress your sign just before the final step.

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Step 3: Sort your seashells.

This is a great project for using up shells you’ve actually collected at your favorite beach vacation spots. If you don’t have any on hand, you can buy a package or two at your local craft store. I had a few from Myrtle Beach, but I supplemented with some from Michaels. You’ll want to make a pile of medium to large sized shells that are somewhat flat like scallop, clam, and cockle shells. You’ll also want a pile of small to tiny shells in a variety of shapes and colors. Large conch, cone, and tulip shells {as cool as they are} don’t work especially well for this project, so you’ll want to put those aside for another craft instead.

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Step 4: Begin creating a base layer for your wreath by gluing large flat shells over the vine wreath.

I started by placing four large shells, one on the top, bottom, left, and right of the wreath. Then I used 3-4 more large shells to fill in each space between them. At this point, you’ll still see the brown of the grapevine between the shells. Just try to cover the large areas and maintain a somewhat round shape.

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Step 5: Fill in the open spaces with small shells.

I was a little nervous about this part, but it turned out to be really fun. It was kind of like a puzzle, figuring out where I could place each shell. The trickiest part is not getting hot glue on your fingers because there’s not a lot of surface area around a shell’s edge!

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Step 6: Glue your wreath to the center of the sign.

I spent a few minutes turning the wreath around in every direction to find which way I liked it best.

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Once the glue is set, you’re all finished and your wreath is ready to display or to gift to a special someone!

Beach Seashell Wreath

I absolutely love the look of this, and not only does it make a fun piece of holiday decor, it can be used year round. It’s just as perfect for a beach house as it is for a house you wish were closer to the beach {like mine}. It’s also so fun the way every time you make one of these, it will look different since every shell is unique.

Seashell Beach Wreath

My mom was thrilled with it and already found a spot to display it in her dining room. What do you think? Is this something you’d enjoy making, gifting, and/or having in your own home?

Seashell Wreath

For more beach craft inspiration, check out my Beach Ornament and a Seashell Frame that’s fun for kiddos to create!

Coastal Seashell Wreath

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