Driftwood and Shell Wall Hanging

This spot by the door needed something .  We live near the beach and I have buckets of shells and driftwood.  What better than a beach-inspired fish?

 

I started with a cheapo  $5.00 metal fish from the Christmas Tree Shop.  I knew those fins weren't really what I wanted, but charged on anyway.  Bad idea - more on that later.

 

 

 

I knew there would be some small gaps in the driftwood and shells, so I sprayed the fish with some dark blue paint from my stash.  The gaps aren't so noticeable with a darker background.  Nothing glued down yet, just playing with placement.

 

 

I sorted out the shells by size and made a pile of driftwood so once I started gluing I wouldn't be rummaging through a pile of stuff.  I didn't need all the shells, but wanted to have a good selection.  I've made other driftwood and shell projects  and it always takes lots more of each than you'd think it would.

 

 

 

What glue to use ?  Always an issue!  I've been seeing references to E6000 with glowing reviews, so decided to give it a try.  I used the Quick Hold kind and think it's a keeper -  set quickly and everything is stuck tight.

 

 

I glued down the driftwood on the face first, then started with the mussel shells.  As I got near the fins, I realized they had to go.  Since I had already glued some shells down, cutting the fins off with tin snips didn't work, so I bent the fins behind the fish. Even then I had to re-glue some of the shells.   Next time I'd cut the darn fins off first!

 

I alternated the direction of the shells in each row - curved side toward the top on one row, straight side on the next.  Then more driftwood on the tail and my fish was done.

 

 

Those bent-in fins did come in handy for hanging.  The Captain banged a couple of nails into the siding, then bent them into a hook shape and they fit under the fins to hold the fish tight to the wall.

 

Loving my new fish!

 

(Check out the link party going on over at The 36th Avenue  for  all sorts of fantastic DIY projects and tutorials.  I linked my fishie there, too).