Kelly Swells for Sea-Shells...

Down by the sea-shore.


Just like a bathing-suit clad toddler or sweat suit covered older lady, I like to collect sea-shells.


Just like the weird, grizzled guy with the ponytail and the metal detector, I too am searching for lost treasures from the sea. (However, when I at last see the glint of gold shimmering beneath seaweed, pebbles, or sand, my resulting prize is a pretty sea-shell, whereas his is usually a beer can. I win! And my pony-tail is cuter.)


Just like a greedy gull after having located that which is desired with beady eyes, it’s hard not to take every last morsel for myself. (Fortunately for those people around me, I don’t show my spite by shitting all over them.)

It can't be helped! Even though I'm 27 years old, I love sea-shells! During the hot days of my family’s annual summer vacation to Newport, Rhode Island, I can often be found slowly walking by the ocean’s side with my head down, eyes rapidly searching amongst the tide’s current offerings for an undiscovered intriguing sea-shell.


Ever since I was little, I never knew what to do with all the shells I found captivating, and would sadly leave all but the most unique behind. (Sometimes I would even have to smuggle some precious shells home from the beach, against my mom’s warning that they were going to smell, attract bugs, etc.)

For those less discriminating, there are lots of ways to come by shells- just some aren't as organic as others.

Obviously, being an area so close to the ocean, seafood plays a very dominant part in the local food industry- even the pizza shops offer “lobsta rolls,” and seafood pizza. I always wondered what the restaurants did with all of their empty shells, considering that shellfish based foods- clams chowder, mussels marinara, and lobster- were the source of their livelihoods. Opposite from the murky depths of their origin, most of these shells find their way into the bottom of landfills.

It’s depressing to think that tons of shells are being dumped into land-fills, because beside the fact that they are pretty, they can also be used for so many other, useful things. The shells can be mixed in with asphalt, mortar, and concrete to make sturdy and aesthetically pleasing sidewalks and parking lots. Or, the shells can be ground down into new sand to help replenish the weathered beaches- a full circle solution.

Or, you could make a sweet puka shell necklace...just kidding!























Recently, I stumbled across another lovely alternative, a company that appreciates the beauty of shells, wants to keep them out of landfills, and has patented a process to accomplish all their goals. With deals in place to receive the discarded shells from sea-food restaurants, Artful Wares takes old shells and repurposes them into the most exquisite home items.

The design teams at Artful Wares grind up old shells (they’re partial to ones from their home state of Maine) and then add the shell pieces into a patented solution that once hardened and buffed, creates the look of sparkling marble. This treatment can be applied to the handles of silverware and serving utensils, trays, and even tabletops. The available hues, pinks, blues, creams, are all colors that some may find hard to believe have occured naturally in nature. Mixing the shells together also creates some beautiful results, like the blue and orange speckled dish shown from a Mussel and Lobster shell collaboration.

Ah- a solution for waste after my own green heart; useful, creative, desirable, and, pretty- with the bonus of including sea-shells. ♥

http://www.artfulwares.com/store/