How To Make Seashell Jewelry

Summer is here and it has me thinking about all sorts of beach jewelry! One of the most popular types of “summer” jewelry that jewelry maker thinks about at one time or another is seashell jewelry. Making jewelry out of seashells is some that’s so natural that some scientists think the first jewelry ever made was created out of seashells!

Almost any type of seashell can be used for jewelry.

If you’re lucky enough to live near a beach that’s clean and easily accessible then you may be able to get most, if not all, of the seashells you use for your jewelry for free. If not, then you can actually buy seashells online without spending much money. By buying your own shells you will most likely end up with some really nice shells as well as a few shells that are simply not suitable for jewelry.

Making jewelry out of seashells can be challenging because most shells are fragile and often sharp, which means that you sometimes have to be selective in exactly what shells you decide to use. You’re really only limited by your imagination when it comes to making jewelry with seashells and there are actually some jewelry makers out there who specialize in making nothing but seashell and beach-oriented jewelry. I’ve made a few pieces of seashell jewelry in the past, but a few recent trips to the beach with my toddler has yielded me a lot more seashells then I ever thought I’d have at home, so I’ve begun working with them again. Here are some of the tips I’ve learned for making seashell jewelry:

Drilling Holes in Seashells

This is by far one of the most challenging parts of making seashell jewelry. First, you’ll want to be sure that your shell is strong enough to be used for jewelry. Different shells warrant different testing methods, but I first visually inspect a shell and then I do a sort of “drop” test where I drop the shell from about a foot in the air to my desktop. If it doesn’t completely shatter or crack, then I figure it’s at least worth trying to drill a hole.

Now comes the cleaning. You can soak your shells for a few minutes in cold water and then use an old toothbrush to clean off any dirt or sand that might be caked on them. After your shell is clean you can pat it dry with a towel and then mark with a pencil or fine tip marker where you’re going to drill your hole.

You’ll want to stabilize your shell as your drilling and there are a few different ways to do this. Larger, flatter shells may sit fine on a table, but one good trick is to use a large, stiff piece of modeling clay. Stick the shell into the clay and push on it a little bit until it’s secure. Some people suggest drilling shells when they are filled with water or underwater because the claim is they won’t crack when they’re in water.

A small jewelry drill like this might work well for seashell jewelry.

Now you can drill one or two holes, depending upon what you need. Again, there are lots of different tools you can use to drill holes, but many jewelry makers prefer manual methods over mechanical methods. I have a little manual hand drill that I use for a variety of things, but it works pretty well with drilling holes in seashells because I can vary the speed, angle and pressure that I use on the shell. I also picked up a small set of jewelry drill bits a while ago that I use to create some remarkably small holes. The size of the holes you need to drill will obviously depend upon your stringing material and the shell you’re using, but we’ll get to that.

Drill slowly and carefully. When you drill something you’re not “pushing” the bit into the shell. Instead, you’re actually using that sharp point to grind away at the shell, leaving a hole. You should apply very little pressure and be patient. This won’t be like punching holes in paper.

Once you’ve drilled a whole in your shell you still want to inspect the shell with a jewelry magnifier for any cracks or sharp edges you may have introduced. You can use a little bead hole bore or even a little metal file to smooth out any rough edges.

If you have a Dremel tool then you could also use that, though I’ve found that Dremels are often too fast and too powerful for drilling tiny holes in fragile shells. If you use a Dremel or a power drill then you might want to try to find a tiny drill bit that’s meant for drilling through stone or ceremics such a tiny diamond tipped bit. Depending on your application, you may also want to start out drilling a small hole and then use a slightly larger bit each time, slowly increasing the size of your hole until it’s the size you need. Any sort of mechanical drill will make your drill bits very hot very quickly, so you may want to drill for a moment, pull back and let things cool and then drill again for a few seconds.

You’ll also want to be very careful not to breath in the dust from drilling seashells. This is where drilling holes in shells under water could definitely help: you won’t breathe in any toxic dust and if you happen to break something pieces won’t go flying all over the room.

If you want to make the holes you drill into shells a little stronger for your jewelry, you can glue or epoxy down seed beads with the same diamater hole on either side of the holes on your seashell. This will give your hole a little more surface area for the string and may prevent it from rubbing against a sharp edge.

Coating Seashells

While some seashell jewelry is composed of seashells without any sort of protective coating or paint at all, you should remember that shells are fragile and can chip or break if you’re not careful. Likewise, seashells are porous and can stain if they happen to have something spilled on them and the shells absorb it. Again, this is largely dependent on the type of seashell you’re using.

Some people like to paint the seashells they use in jewelry. I’m not a big fan of putting artifical colors on seashells, but I’m also not a very good painter! LOL! If you paint your shells then you’ll almost definitely want to coat them as well to be sure the paint doesn’t get chipped or crack over time.

I personally feel better coating seashells with a clear coat of an acrylic or resin craft spray. Whatever you use, you’ll want to be sure it’s approved for porous materials like tile or ceramics. If it’s okay to use on those things, then it’s probably okay for seashells (just test on a similar type of shell if you’re not sure). Others have suggested using clear nail polish, which I’m sure would work, but it seems that it might be easier to spray on a sealant coat instead of painting it on with a little nail polish brush.

Attaching and Stringing Seashells Together

The easiest part of making jewelry from seashsells is stringing them together, though there are some things you need to watch out for when you’re doing this.

First, you’ll want to pick out a good stringing material, but just about anything will work as long as the holes you drilled in your shells are large enough. I’ve seen seashell jewelry strung together with fishing line (invisible and strong), Beadalong bead stringing wire, black silk rope and even ribbons. If you’re good at wirework (which I’m not) you could wrap wire around smaller shells and make a pendant, essentially hanging and wearing the seashell in the same way one might wrap a gemstone in wire.

Second, you’ll want to be sure the holes in your seashells don’t wear at the stringing material excessively, which could cause your jewelry to break rather quickly. Again, you can round the edges of your drilled holes or you can glue on some seed beads or, if you’re really worried about it and you have a steady hand you can glue little couplings in the holes you drilled, but this takes some planning ahead to make sure everything fits together well.

Lastly, you’ll need to check your jewelry to make sure there is some play, but not too much, between your seashells. Too much movement could cause your seashells to smash together and crack or break if they are fragile, while not enough could make the jewelry piece too rigid for any sort of flexing or turning.

Conclusion

Attach some clasps, double-check everything to make sure it looks and feels good and that’s it! Now you can show off your jewelry at the beach, on vacation or wherever you’re going this summer.

Tweet