Are you holding onto summer as long as you can? I am! Today I am sharing a beach inspired craft with sea shell napkin rings. Decorating with sea life always provides great coastal vibes and summertime feels. Please join me as I share this easy sea shell napkin ring DIY.
This is a fairly simple craft. You only need a few supplies and a couple of steps to put these together, but they look high end. If you enjoy coastal decor or entertaining outside or love outdoor living, then you will enjoy these for your own tabletop needs.
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The Inspiration behind the Sea Shell Napkin Rings
In Northern California, we enjoy the warm weather and our outdoor spaces well into the autumnal months. This summer was particularly hot, which prevented me from spending much time outdoors. Now that the weather has started to dip a bit, the days have been more manageable for me, and some days are truly glorious. I find myself wanting to enjoy our outdoor living areas.
Through the years, we have curated a collection of small sea shells from trips to St. Thomas, and Mexico and just local California beaches. I usually use them as decor, or bowl fillers or as accents on summertime tables, BUT I have been wanting to do a bit more with them. Since I wanted to set a summertime beach inspired table, I had that “aha” moment to use them for napkin rings. And here we are. I will share the beach inspired table styling in a subsequent post.
How to Make your own Sea Shell Napkin Ring DIY
Using plastic shower curtain rings from the Dollar Tree plus foraged sea shells makes this napkin ring project fairly inexpensive. Yet, the finished product does not look cheap, but rather stylish.
Supplies
- Plastic Shower Curtain Rings
- Small Sea Shells
Crafting Pro Tip: As I recommend with all my projects, read all the instructions through once and then re-read everything again. This way, you are familiar with everything you need and know what to expect.
Tools
- Hot Glue Gun
- Glue Gun Sticks
- Silicone Fingers
- Scissors
Instructions
- Read the supply list, tools required and instructions thoroughly
- Assemble all your supplies and tools
- Plug in hot glue gun
- Create an arrangement of shells in a line, mixing and matching styles and sizes of shells
- When you achieve the composition you like, hot glue the shells to the top of the ring following the arrangement you created
- Work yourself around the plastic ring until you reach all the way around
- Voila! enjoy your new coastal | beach inspired table top napkin rings
Tips & Tricks in Making Sea Shell Napkin Rings
I followed two techniques when adhering the shells to the ring. The first way is how I explained it above. I laid out the pattern or sequence I wanted the shells to be placed so I could then follow it as I glued the pieces on. The second way, I just grabbed as I went from the pile of shells. In the first manner you can play with the pieces and move them around with plenty of time to contemplate. The second way you can still move and adjust, but it has to be done quickly before the glue sets. There are different types of creatives, so do what works best for your personality.
The shower curtain rings tend to be a bit larger than regular napkin rings, which work great for thicker napkins or if you double layer napkins these napkin rings will work great. The seersucker napkins I chose, since I think they work great for a beach vibe, are on the thicker side so they fit nicely.
Invariably when working with hot glue, you will end up with some glue strings throughout your project. Use a scissor or tweezers after the project has set and fully cooled down to clean up any loose glue strands.
I recommend using silicone fingers when working with hot glue. It not only protects your fingers, but it also helps you manipulate the project better, achieving your desired placements. These are the ones I use, which have made working with hot glue much more pleasant and manageable.
Crafting Pro Tip: Adhesive can make or break a project. Always select the best man for the job. Always be aware of the materials used, paper, plastic, wood, glass, metal, etc. and select the adhesive best for securing a strong bond.
Closing Thoughts
The plastic shower curtain rings are fairly light, but after attaching all the sea shells the finished piece has a nice quality heft. With the sea shell application the plastic ring that peeks through actually has the appearance of acrylic, making it seem like a higher end item.
I can’t wait to set a beach inspired table scape, using these new sea shell napkin rings. And although I am basking in some late summer projects, I also have some early fall and halloween posts scheduled as well. August is a transition time, often calm and quiet with no major holiday, which is the perfect time to start planning and preparing for the upcoming season. Fall is the most complex season in my opinion, taking us from the early fall back to school, tailgate season, through halloween and crowning with the grand Thanksgiving finale.
I think Sylvia Plath said it best, referring to August as the odd uneven time, when the days of Summer begin to dwindle, the air changes, but we haven’t quite been graced by the presence of Fall yet.
Shopping Supplies
- Hot Glue Gun
- Glue Gun Glue Sticks
- Plastic Shower Curtain Rings
- Silicon Finger Protectors
- Assorted Tiny Sea Shells
- Sea Shell Napkin Ring
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It’s always summer somewhere.”
Lilly Pulitzer