Craft – Seashell embellished mirror

When I was shopping in a retail store last year I found a great mirror which was framed with pieces of wood that reminded me of driftwood the is found on the beach.  We had just come back from a trip to the North Carolina coast where we had brought back numerous seashells that we found on the beach.  I decided to accent this relatively plain mirror with the seashells to hang in our downstairs bathroom.  Craft Note: The key to this design is to build the layers slowly; test several different arrangements of shells until you are pleased with the result, then secure the shells with hot-glue.

Seashell Mirror 1

Step one –

I started embellishing the mirror with ten large scallop shells.  I placed them evenly along the border, setting the orange ones on the corners and the white ones along the straight edges.  When I decided it was the right arrangement, the shells were hot-glue the seashells into place.

Seashell Mirror 2

Step two –

Next, I added twelve clam shells to the mirror and placed them evenly between each of the scallop shells.  Once again, when I decided it was the right arrangement, the shells were hot-glued the seashells into place.

Seashell Mirror 3

Step three –

This final step involves using several different types of shells, I used smaller scallop shells and a variety of small and large starfish.  The idea is to fill in all the remaining spaces along the border of the mirror.  My design style tends to be symmetrical; this is the most pleasing to my eye.  So, I evenly spaced the seashells around the edges, making sure to match the different varieties of seashells from side to side and top to bottom.  When I decided everything was placed in the right arrangement, the shells were hot-glued.

Seashell Mirror 4

This beautiful seashell embellished mirror now hangs in our downstairs bathroom against a lovely blue wall.