Beautiful Shells, Shimmery Waters

by Tamara Summers.
(Kitchener, Ontario, Canada)

These are large repurposed shells that I bought about a year ago. Each shell is about two inches long, although they vary in size a little. I loved them right away, but haven’t been sure what I wanted to do with them, being the size that they are. It occurred to me a couple of days ago that this challenge might be the time to get them out and see what I could create.

The shells have intricate markings on them, so I needed to keep the design simple, letting the shells speak for themselves. Also, the holes that had been drilled in them were uneven and fairly large, so I was restricted in what I could use with them. The design fell into place for me when I found in my stash these large repurposed pearls. It seemed like a perfect pairing.

I had enough shells to do a few pieces. For the first double-strand necklace and bracelet set, I also included some repurposed copper chain. Afterward, I really felt like I wanted to add some turquoise somewhere, to bring in the element of the water these beautiful shells may have originated in. I had a snippet of shimmery turquoise gauzy fabric, left over from another project, and it gave just the illusion I wanted.

The second set focuses more on the pearls with the shells. The little side bow breaks up the symmetry, with a touch of the turquoise gauze and brown ribbon.

I also made a pendant with one of the large shells and an assortment of smaller ones. For this necklace, I added a made a little darker blue bow, maybe implying deeper waters. I attached it to an ivory satin cord.

I’m really happy that this challenge gave me the impetus to create a collection with shells (and pearls) that definitely make a bold statement.

Tamara Summers
Pink Pearls by Tamara