display seashells in a gumball machine!

if you're a beach lover like me,
collecting & displaying seashells is a top summertime activity!

i've share many ideas before (linked below this post)
and now i have a different way to show off your shells
by using an unconventional container...

...continue reading for this easy paint & display project!

Q
this all started with a thrifted red gumball machine
that i've had for SIX years - kept in a closet. that's just SAD!
so i decided to bring it out into the light and DO something with it...

after disassembling it and taping off the metal details,
i sprayed over the red with silver 'galvanized' spray paint.

things to know about painting over red, pink, and yellow paint: neutralize it first.
(it's kinda' like haircolor - those tones will bleed thru if you don't neutralize them!)

i used Rustoleum textured metallic paint in silver/gray 'galvanized' finish (not an ad)
 which i had on hand, and it covered the red paint in one coat.
the following 2 coats of Rustoleum sunshine yellow spray paint (not an ad)
covered that completely, with NO bleed-thru of the red tones.

and oh, does it look HAPPY now!

after the paint was dry and i had re-assembled the machine,
i filled the glass globe part with seashells.
i have hundreds of them. mostly from my island in Washington state,
but some are from other locales - and SOME are from the dollar store!

if you don't have a ready-made collection of shells to use,
a cost-effective way to begin is to hit the dollar store and thrift shops!

you can't really see one of the details, but here it is anyway:

before i filled the glass globe with shells,
i stuffed some polyfill into the cavity that would normally hold gumballs.
a round circle of canvas fabric was cut to fit the circular area
just above that cavity and beneath the glass globe...
and just because i could, i covered that fabric with sand:

i smeared a glue stick all over the fabric, then put it into a large baggie filled with sand - 
pressing it onto the sand made it adhere to the fabric without a huge mess! 
when dry, i sat it on the base of the gumball machine
and put the glass globe into place on top of it.

then i poured in the shells, and added the top piece.

this is a fun way to display small shells that kind of get lost by themselves,

and the gumball machine is sure to attract attention - no matter what color you paint it!

for one last detail, i placed one tiny shell in the dispenser cup of the machine:

(and if i had littles around, i'd be replacing that shell alllll summer long!)

a sprinkling of sand and a few coins completes the summer-y vignette,
perfect on a mantel, table, shelf, or counter.
(and if you DO have littles around, you can always use a bit of museum putty 
to secure the whole thing to a surface for safety.)

i should say that there's nothing wrong with a red gumball machine - 
it just doesn't fit my decor style or palette.
that's why i paint and rework and change up things i have and find second-hand -
so they DO work for me as "𝕙𝕠𝕞𝕖 𝕕𝕖𝕔𝕠𝕣 𝕥𝕙𝕒𝕥'𝕤 𝕟𝕠𝕥 𝕗𝕣𝕠𝕞 𝕒 𝕤𝕥𝕠𝕣𝕖!"

as i was looking for previous related posts to link to this one,

i discovered that i never shared an entire theme that i used

to decorate our Shasta trailer 'Miss Dot' for a fall rally back in 2021!

one of the elements was a gumball machine painted a minty green like Miss Dot,

filled with the tiny clay pumpkins i made back in the 1990's:

it's easy to create a miniature 'scene' inside a gumball machine - 

for any season of the year!

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related content:

my 'beach in a jar' creation

5 ways to display seashells

shared online:

artsy fartsy mama | team creative crafts linky party #151

funky junk interiors | new upcycle ideas #683

thank you for including my project in your feature, Miss Donna!

modern on monticello | home matters link party #435

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