The Savannah morning news., 1903-07-12
SEA SHELLS NOW
ATTRACT THE
SUMMER GIRL

No pearl crowned mermaid of fairy
tales ever delighted more in her shell
treasures than the summer girl of to-
day, whose happy lot lands her at the
seashore.
Each ebb tide leaves new wonders
in it's wake, and the decorative and
useful possibilities of these kisses of
the sea-" as some one has called them,
are almost startling when evolved from
the clever brain of some original girl.
One of the oldest ideas is a shell
dado for the den in a summer cottage.
Putty will do as a foundation. One
girl who had no chance of securing
it simply used a heavy coating of glue
on burlap. If a harmonious tint is
chosen, the effect is good, although
the glue is not so durable as the putty.
Picture holding will do as a finish
for top and bottom and also form
supporting frame for the putty. After
laying in a surface of this to work on,
add the shells the same as in mosaic
designing. Clam and oyster shells
will do for borders, and the more
fancy varieties can be used in all
kinds of fantastic patterns for the
center The putty will harden readily,
and the result is striking and pictur
esque, as well as permanent.
To a girl who has any taste for
modelling, the same idea may be car
ried out in vases. A she1l-encrusted
jardinere makes a unique ornament
for a summer porch, and even a cigar
box may be transformed with "a thin
coating of putty and a mingling of
small scalloped shells and periwinkles
into anything from a work box to a
hairpin tray.
The periwinkles make the prettiest
chains and can be pierced with com
mon needle for stringing. BY alternat-
ing the pink and white variety with the
dark and only choosing the smallest
Ones a necklace can be made that
would grace the throat of a Lurline.
There is a small oval shell found
along rocky coasts that is like a crys-
tallized rose leaf in thinness and col
oring. 1t is as delicate and dainty as
a baby's nail. and shades from a deep
pink to orange and a pale green.
1t can be used in all manner of ways
where the heavier shells are impracti-
cable. One of the simplest uses is to
string them for portieres, the same
as bamboo curtains are made. One
girl made belts of them for herself
| and her friends by overlapping them
like scales and using two rows for
each belt. Worn with one of the
popular linen suits, the effect was
charming
The best shell souvenir to take
home to father. brother, or the be-
loved one is a paper weight. After a
heavy sea, fragments of green-stained
rocks, with all shapes and sizes of
| oysters fastened to them, are cast up
from the oyster beds. If left in the
sun, the oysters dry out and the shells
can be hand painted, or left natural as
preferred. A good idea for recep-
tacle for stamps or loose pens is to
drill holes in a blue point shell and
| hinge the two parts together
| Even if one has not the knack of
construction, there is sti1 the shell
| cabinet which every seaside girl
should possess, in which to exhibit
her trophies when the days grow chill
and summer birds fly home. A few
small shelves, stained dark, and hung
! or fastened in any corner, will do,
with a bunch of seaweed trailing
down from the top and a few
crabs dangling off the edges. The
| filling of the shelves should be a mat
ter of individual taste and selection.