Coastal Decorating

I love beach combing.  Summers on the rocky beaches of mid-coast Maine are spent looking for sea glass. And this month, thanks to a camping trip to Florida and South Carolina, I got to comb unfamiliar beaches for shells we don't find in Maine.

As we explored local flea markets and antique barns throughout the South, I kept my eyes open for items in which to display some of the shells we'd collected. I came up with an olive basket, two rusty handled baskets, and a dough bowl I had on hand. 

Even after giving some of the shells away to friends, there was still quite a pile left to arrange.

I started with the tin olive basket.

My first arrangement looked as if I had just dumped the shells in.

Clearly I needed a better plan.

On my second try, I decided to take up some space in the bottom so that the arrangement would take on a rounded shape and favorite shells would't get "lost" in the bottom. Cardboard bowls worked!

 The finished arrangement is big enough to make a statement . . .

And works well on the coffee table in our conversation area.

 The dough bowl was a little easier to arrange.

As was this rusty basket for the kitchen island.

I think I'm on a roll!

I had one metal basket left over.

And decided to fill it with my accidental collection of wooden shoe forms.

Don't laugh . . . I collect old door knobs too!

As always, one project led to another.

So I decided to rearrange this display in my kitchen to hold the two pieces of  M.A. Hadley pottery DH spotted at an antique shop in North Carolina. I love how they look on my shelf.

They're hand painted and whimsical . . . outside and in!

The two Shawnee miniatures I purchased on our trip are still sitting on the top of my display cabinet.

I'll rearrange that tomorrow.

After I walk the beach?

This post is linked to:

Metamorphosis Monday at Between Naps On the Porch
Wow Us Wednesday at Savvy Southern Style

Thursday TFT Party at Katharine's Corner
Flaunt It Friday 396 at Chic On a Shoestring