We spent five glorious days on the beaches of South Padre Island, Texas. During that time my children delightfully spent a lot of their time collecting seashells that had washed up on the beach. As they collected buckets, upon buckets of shells, I had to come up with a few ideas of what we would do with all of the shells they had found.
A Seashell Treasure Box was the first idea I had! Watching my children find those seashells was like watching them find real treasure. They squealed with joy over every one they happened upon. Excitement for every size, color, shape, and detail. It was really beautiful to see the joy on their faces over such a simple trinket.
I grew up in Hawaii, and the Hawaii beaches had no where near the amount of shells covering the shores of South Padre Island.
You are going to laugh, but our sand & shell collecting buckets were old popcorn buckets we got from a trip to Splashtown Waterpark last summer. I had hung on to them (as a mom does when she thinks she might use them again), and found them stashed in a cupboard right before our trip. Six buckets. Six kids. It was perfect!
Supply list for DIY Seashell Treasure Boxes
- Seashells (a LOT of them)
- Small wooden boxes (I found some at Hobby Lobby. But you can order them on Amazon)
- Hot Glue Gun & Glue
- Tweezers
- Craft Paint
- Paint brushes
- Paper Plates
How to Make DIY Seashell Treasure Boxes
I used the paper plates to keep the painting mess to a minimum. Place the box on the plate and paint with desired colors. I used a second plate a palate to disperse the paint.
While you let the boxes dry, wash & sort the shells you want to use for your box.
Heat your glue gun and begin glueing you shells. I kept control of the glue gun and let the kids choose the shells and tell me where to glue them on the box.
After the glue is completely dry we used the tweezers to remove the “spiderwebbing” glue that the glue gun leaves behind.
This is really such an easy craft and I loved the way it turned out! We had so many shells I made a quick craft myself out of an ocean sign. And we made some shell jewelry for everyone.
I still have two buckets of shells left…. Have to find something else to decorate with shells ASAP!
What would you make with your seashell collection?
Oh that was such a good idea! The boxes turned out so well. I have such fond memories of seashell collecting at the beach.
This is something my girls would love to make! There’s something magical about seashells! This is a cute craft.
How cute are these boxes? I’m a big fan of seashells, and would love making a box or two for myself.
I love these seashell boxes so much! They are super pretty and thoughtful! I am going to check for some shells tomorrow when I go to the beach!
I love the look with the seashells. What a great way to remember a beach vacation.
Those are so cute. I may need to make these. I got a bunch of shells over Spring from our vacation and I’ve been wanting to use them to make stuff like this.
These are really cute!! I love it!
These are fabulous boxes! So well decorated! You gave me a wonderful idea for a summer diy!
that’s such a cute idea! i would have to go and buy shells at the store, BUT if we get to the beach i will def be saving the shells and doing this with my kiddos. love it.