How to Make an Oyster Shell Ring Dish
We love bringing natural, coastal elements into our decor. One of our favorite ways to do this is with this simple Oyster Shell craft. We adore this DIY because it’s simple and an easy way to bring color and beach vibes into your space AND it’s incredibly versatile. Most commonly this can be used as an Oyster Shell Ring Dish, but can also just be used as a nice coastal accent in any interior decor, we’ve even used these as table-scape decor at bridal showers!
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The Shopping List:
- Decorative Napkins (we used a combination of these 3 Shibori Print Napkins – Napkin 1, Napkin 2, Napkin 3)
- Mod Podge
- White Paint
- Gold Metalic Paint
- Thick & Thin Paintbrushes
- And of course Oyster Shells!
Step 1 – Enjoy an Oyster Meal and Clean the Oysters
One of the best parts of this DIY is that you get to enjoy a fantastic meal and use the leftover shells for your craft – talk about repurposing! Most restaurants will give you a to-go box for you to take shells home with you. Once you get them home you’ll want to do a pre-rinse in the sink and then a nice soak in hot water. After their bath, you’ll need to start scrubbing to get all of the excess sand, dirt, oyster meat, etc off the shell. We then do another soak in water and a bit of bleach.. then, another rinse and let those babies dry off in the sun!
Step 2 – Start with White Paint
This seems to always be our advice when it comes to DIY and interiors! The first step is to paint the inside shell white using your larger paintbrush and white paint. Since the napkins are so thin the darker spots will show through if the inside is not painted white. This creates a nice, clean slate to adhere your design to.
Step 3 – Mod Podge and Napkin Play
Now’s the fun part when you get to infuse color and fun into your shells! Once the white paint has dried, you’ll paint a layer of Mod Podge then then adhere a single layer (napkins are generally folded in fourths so open it up so you’re only dealing with one layer at a time – here are the napkins we used: Napkin 1, Napkin 2, Napkin 3) of the napkin to the shell and paint another layer of Mod Podge on top! (Don’t worry if it looks white on top of the napkin, the beauty of Mod Podge is it dries clear). Once you’ve finished your top layer carefully tear the napkin around the edge of the oyster shell so that you’re left with just the shell with a decorated interior – don’t worry if the edges don’t look perfect, you’ll be painting over them shortly.
Step 4 – Add the Gold
After the layers have dried it’s time to add the finishing touches! You’ll need your thinner brush and gold paint for this one. Paint a thin line all around the edge of your oyster shell to add that last sparkle – bonus if you’re using this as a ring dish, that jewelry will shine!
Viola! You’re all finished. Once your Oyster Shells have fully dried, they’re ready to be displayed, given as gifts, or used in your interior decor plan. We hope you love your new creations!