I ♥ the Beach

No surprise there, hmmmm?

The other evening I was down at the shore, looking for some nice salvaged beach rope to make a shell mobile. (more about that later...)

No suitable rope, the beach is very bare this time of year. But washed ashore in the quiet waves was this sweet little pink heart...

Just another sand toy

...lost or abandoned by a child at play...

Maybe she wanted to build a sandcastle, little pink hearts were just too tame?

I don't know why I left it there...

Usually I collect these funny sweet objects, mostly with the idea that someday I will glue them all together and form a funky beach toy wreath! Painted white of course, dahling, has to be chic, y'know.?

Instead I walked on and when I looked another day, it was long gone.

 A Valentine to the ocean, I love you.....

As for shell mobiles...well, I had been planning this one for almost a year: long ropes tied to a driftwood arm, shells and treasure spaced along the strings. Well let me tell you it was hideous! Even my son said so and he is usually very supportive of my projects (only other thing he really hated was an I-thought- gorgeous patchwork jacket I labored over one winter. All Japanese fabrics....I wore it once and his face! "Awfully bright, mom." ended that jacket's career. Into the donations bag it went. I was sad.) But not sad about the mobile.
A bit surprised, usually my shell mobiles are, well, tacky but fun? I bestow them on unwitting friends at Christmas, oh my.

I rescued the shells and set the treasures aside for another time. This is the final result which I quite like.

A fun project if you vacation at the shore and your kids insist on bringing home buckets of beachcombed clamshells. Just drill carefully (pls wear safety glasses!) and knot them onto any rope or heavy string you have around. The kids can do the threading and stringing with a little help. They will be so pleased and you'll all have fun memories when you see it on your own deck or porch eaves.

love

           lizzy

~~~~~~gone to the beach

Linked to A Beach Cottage's Good Life Wednesdays! Take a look! Fun links and Sarah's photos are awesome.