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Shellcrafts Vase
Flower Pattern
Here is a beautiful shellcraft that will brighten any room in which it is placed. You can use this decorative vase on a desk in an office, on a shelf, or even as the center piece on a table.
This vase has seashell pieces, seashells, and rhinestones that flow in patterns from the bottom of the vase upwards toward the lip of the vase. At the front is a line of shell pieces that are arranged straight up the side of vase. On the back side of the vase is another line of shell pieces that mimics the line on the front of the vase.
On the left and right sides of the vase, the shell pieces curve in a open S form from the bottom to the top of the vase.
Returning to the front of the vase there are 4 seashells forming a C shape one side and an inverted C on the other side. These seashell groups each surround a small piece of coral.
To either side of the front seashell piece column are two yellow flowers made of 5 yellow rhinestones. The center of each flower sports a purple rhinestone. Each flower’s stem is made up of 4 green rhinestones that flow up the side of the vase.
On the sides of the back spine there are two patterns of seashells. One pattern forms a C and inverted C away from the spine and actually form a pattern with the S seashell pieces. Inside the “Cs” are two unique shell pieces formed by the action of wave and sand.
The last patterns on the sides are of 3 seashells each which curve slightly from bottom to about the middle of the vase, with the seashells getting smaller as they move up.
This Guide will help you to craft a vase similar to this one.
Specific Materials:
1. clear glass Ivy Bowl vase
2. seashells and shell pieces
3. sand
4. rhinestones
5. coral pieces
General Materials:
1. a bottle of Elmer's Glue-All or equivalent
2. a can of polyurethane - gloss or semi-gloss
3. set of hobby brushes
4. fluffy rag or towel
5. newspaper
Preparing the clear glass vase:
There really isn’t much to do to the vase. Just make sure the glass is clean and dry. Wipe it down with a soft clean rag or towel. Look for cracks, chips, or other damage.
DO NOT use glass vases that are damaged You can cut yourself up pretty bad if the cracked or damaged glass vase breaks while you are handling it.
Once you have it dust and grime free place the glass vase on top of the holding towel. Use the towel to steady the work so it doesn't roll around on you. You may have to move the towel around and push it up so that the vase remains in one place.
Making shell pieces for your Shellcraft project:
If you don’t have a beach near by where you can pick up shell pieces cast up on the beach by ocean waves you can make your own. They won’t be as smooth as the ones I used but will work just as well.
You’ll need some larger seashells that you are willing to break up. If you have some damaged seashells this may be a good use for them. Place the shells inside a rag or old towel.
Place the towel on top of a hard surface, such as a steady table or flat rock. Take a hammer and hit the shell that is inside the towel. Try a medium hit, then if that doesn’t work try a bit harder. The idea is to break the seashell up into usable chunks not to pound the shells into dust.
Open up the towel and pick through the pieces until you have all the good ones out. You may want to save other pieces that look usable to you for other projects. I would trash the dust and itty bitty pieces but that is your call.
For this Shellcraft you will need twenty or so nice pieces ½” to ¾” long.
Starting your Shellcraft project:
We will be placing the seashells and seashell pieces on the glass first. Let’s start with the front row of shell pieces.
Pick up the first shell piece and lay it on the glass. You may need to adjust the vase on the towel so that the shell piece stays on the glass. If you still like the way it fits and looks, pick it up and apply glue to the underside. Place it back on the glass.
You can move it around and position it the exact way you want it to be while the glue is still wet. Let it sit for a while (an hour or more) while the glue sets in place. You don't want the seashell to move or fall off when you move the vase around to place the next shell.
Do each of the other pieces the same way until you have a line of shell pieces running from the lower face of the vase to just under the top edge. Let it dry so that the shell pieces do not fall off when you move the vase around so you can do another face.
Once it is dry, turn the vase around so you are looking at the back face of the glass. Put another column of shell pieces here. This column should be opposite of the first column you did.
Now that you have got the straight shell piece columns set in place it’s time for the “waves.” Turn the vase around until you are facing the glass that is about ½ way between the two columns. Start with the center shell piece. Find its place on the glass and glue it in place.
Place two or more shell pieces above this center piece and two or more below the center piece. Curve them away from the center shell. Do the same on the other side, setting up another curving column of shell pieces.
Let it all dry.
Attaching the seashells to your decorative vase project:
Patience. That is what is needed with this project. Lot’s of seashells and seashell pieces to glue on slippery clean glass means a lot of time waiting for the glue to dry. Otherwise the shells will fall off or move from where you put them. This could mess up the design, don’t you think?
The seashells are placed curving away from the shell pieces you already have on the glass. They start in one of the pockets formed by the “wave” shell pieces. Then they curve out and back again, decreasing in size as you go.
Pick out some sets of shells. There should be 4 or 5 shells in each set. The seashells for each set should very in size from largish to smallish. It all depends on what you have available.
Pick one set and place the larger of the seashells on the glass vase. The shell should be in one of the pockets formed the seashell pieces that curve on the glass. Glue the seashell in place.
The next 3 or 4 shells should be place away from this first shell so they curve around and come back to the shell pieces. They should form a “C” design on the glass. Check out the photos.
In the center of this first group place a piece of coral, or other decorative item that you may have.
Once this group of seashells and coral is dry, start another group. Keep an eye on the photos I have with this guide so you can get an idea of how to lay the seashells out for this Shellcraft project.
Lay down the seashell, be happy, glue it down, wait with glowing patience for the glue to dry, set another seashell in place. Keep going until all the seashells are set in place.
Putting in your Rhinestone “flowers”:
Take a look at the photo. The rhinestone flowers have a stem composed of green rhinestones, in my design 4 of them curving up and in-between the curving seashells and the column of seashell pieces.
The flowers are made from 5 lighter colored rhinestones. I use yellow rhinestones as the petals for the flowers in my design. Finally there is the a darker rhinestone forming the center of the flower. I used purple rhinestones.
You’ll need 4 to 5 green rhinestones for stems, 5 lightly colored rhinestones for the petals, and 1 dark rhinestone for the heart of the flowers.
Apply glue to the bottom of the rhinestones and start placing them on the glass. Place as many as you can without them moving around. You will have to watch how you position the vase on your towel. As long as the rhinestones stay in place when you apply the glue to them and place them on the glass, you will do fine.
Just like the seashells, you place 1 or 2 or 3 rhinestones down on the glass. Then you apply glue to the bottom of the rhinestones and put them back on the glass. Wait for them to dry and go on with the rest. Eventually, you will have placed them all in place.
You now have a glass vase with seashell pieces, seashells, and rhinestones in a pleasing pattern. Let them dry thoroughly before going on with the next section.
Applying the sand to your decorative vases:
To finish off these unique decorative vases we will be using sand. The sand will both provide texture to these craft vases, soften the edges of the shells so they become one with clear glass vases, and help hide any glue streaks that may be showing.
We are going to apply the glue and the sand at one sitting so remove the towel and replace it with some newspaper. The newspaper is there to catch any sand that falls off the decorative vases project at this point.
Pick a section of the vase to start. Apply some glue to the glass and use a hobby brush to spread it around - kind of like painting the glass with the glue. Try not to get glue on the topside of the seashells, seashell pieces, rhinestones, or coral. Don't take too long at this, you want to the glue to be wet when you apply the sand to the decorative vases.
With the glue still wet, pour sand over it. Pour a bunch of sand on the glue so that it covers the glue completely. Wait 15 seconds or so and tilt the glass vases over the newspaper so the excess sand falls off. Place the jar aside on its base. Pick up your newspaper and return the excess sand to your container.
Pick the next section of the vase. Apply glue and spread it around. Make sure you get the glue between the seashells or seashell pieces. Pour sand over the glue - wait a few seconds - dump the excess sand on your newspaper and recover it.
Repeat the above until you have covered all the areas of clear glass with sand.
Lightly shake off any excess sand that hasn't already fallen off. Place the decorative vases aside on its base and let it dry completely. Recover your loose sand from the newspaper and return it to your container. The only places that should not have any glued sand are the inside of the glass vase and the bottom.
Once the glue has dried you can brush and scrape off any sand that may have stuck to the top of the seashells, and other items you have placed on the vase.
Finishing your decorative vases:
To protect and give your project some shine use the clear gloss or semi-gloss polyurethane paint. Apply a coat to each of the seashells, seashell pieces, and coral.
DO NOT put polyurethane on the rhinestones as it will dull them. Finally, apply a coat of the polyurethane over all the sand. Set the decorative vase aside to thoroughly dry.
Try Another Vase Project
Project 1 – "V" Pattern
Project 3 – Horizontal Pattern
Project 4 – Circle Pattern
Return to Main Vase Page
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