A White Sea Glass Frame

I have been really struggling with whether to continue blogging or not.  There is so much out there....how can I stand out especially when my computer skills are so limited.  My banner is shameful.  But, the fact remains, I love to blog.  With my hand surgery almost 2 months behind me and the use of my hand improving, blogging does not seem so impossible.  And, when I find the time away from my shop and new obsession, Pinterest, I will continue to blog.

I love this ceramic clam shaped bowl 

So, here's a little project I was working on.  My husband and I are avid beachcombers.  And, we love finding sea glass.  Unfortunately, sea glass is becoming more scarce as plastic has replaced many glass containers.  This bowl of mostly white sea glass was collected at a beach in California famous for it's abundance of glass.  But, what to do with such a mother lode of glass booty?

Decorate a frame.  I found this large white frame at a local consignment store.  There were wooden letters spelling out "FAMILY" on the frame which my husband carefully removed and then put away for another project.  With a "touch up" of white paint, we were ready to arrange the white and not- so -white, sea glass pieces.  Like a jigsaw puzzle, we carefully placed flat smooth pieces on the frame to get the most coverage without it being overbearing.

It took me several hours, but I attached each piece carefully with a dab of Tacky Glue ~ which is great stuff for glass and shells.  My husband suggested we lay a strip of tape across the sea glass to keep the pattern in order, lift it off the frame and then have the ability to glue the backside.  Sounded like a disaster waiting to happen.

After the glue dried, I sprayed the sea glass with a workable fixatif by Krylon.  I actually have this  spray for my graphite drawings once completed.  Experimenting with the spray, I discovered the subtle way the fixatif puts a soft gloss on the glass.  Really makes the sea glass stand out more ... the POP effect!

And here is the finished project.  This little oil painting, I purchased on Ebay for $7.99!  Once my husband has some free time, we will hang this in our coffee nook.