Decorating with Vacation Treasures

Celebrate summer vacation all year long with these beach-themed decorating crafts.

Summer vacations may be coming to a close but the memories can live on forever. Hopefully you've brought home some treasures from a beach vacation and now can use them for these crafts. If not, maybe you can head back to the beach for one last jaunt over Labor Day Weekend?

The first craft is easily assembled by putting a couple of inches of sand in a trifle bowl. Then add a pillar candle and your beach treasures like seashells and starfish for a beautiful tabletop display. This beautiful centerpiece will bring fond family memories back every time you pass it.

For those of you who are blessed enough to travel to many different beaches, may I suggest you bring a little bit of each beach back home with you? Fill small, decorative bottles with sand from each different beach you visit to display on a wall shelf. Keep adding bottles and shelves as your collection of sand increases. 

This next keepsake is for those of you who like to comb the beaches for interesting seashells. Once you are home, rinse them out and dry thoroughly. Next, place candle wax in a large, clean aluminum can and place the can in simmering water. Tie a length of wick to a pencil or chopstick which is long enough that when you rest the pencil across the shell the wick hangs onto the base of the shell, then pour the wax into the shell. After the wax hardens you can trim the wick to 1/4 inch above the wax.

This is the most time consuming beach craft, but what a statement piece you end up with! The first step is finding a sturdy bowl the size you want the end product to be. Turn it upside down and cover with plastic wrap. Next, mix enough glue into sand so that the mixture is fluid enough to drip down the sides slowly. Allow that layer to dry completely and repeat 4 times for a sturdy bowl. Once you've completed all the layers, turn the bowl right side up and carefully peel the plastic wrap off the inside. 

Do you have any other favorite beach-themed crafts you like to create? Please share your inspiration with the other readers in the comments section below.

Barbara Green is the owner of Sensibly Chic Designs for Life and the host of Ask the Design Diva radio show. She believes you CAN have it all: kids, pets, and a beautiful home. Her showroom is located at 830 Lamar Avenue in Charlotte and is open by appointment only.  Call 704-608-9424 and mention Charlotte Parent Magazine to get a free 30 minute consultation.