Souvenir Ornament Summer 2018

Every summer when i go for vacations in Greece Islands i collect tons of sea shells like pinna, urchine shells, oyster shells every type and size. So at the end I bring back to home a suitcase full of shells. Some of them i use for lighting projects for me and friends using pinna's shell. They are very fragile and they brake easily so i treat them with a special Vernice which gives endurance.

So today decide to make an ornament like a summer souvenir using the shells and pinnas. The result was really beautiful.

Pinnas live in very clean and deep waters and you will finde them in Greece seas 4 meter up to 14 meters depth. In Greece you find 2 species but pinna ctenoide like this in images are eatable. Are very hard to take them beacause the 1/3 of the shell is actually immersed at the bottom of the sea. For this size in photo it takes enough tries and a knifr will help.

Don't try it if you are not good swimmer and diver.

I took a thick cardboard and i cut a piece about 20cm x 20cm.

After I took another piece of cardboard less thinker than the first one. Size 21cm x 21 cm.

I glued them. After that I turn the cardboard, and at the rear side i just draw the outlines and centers for placing the shells.

After that i took some dry colors and glue the base of the carton with spray glue. I applied the colors using a spatula and just dropping at the glue trying to cover all the surface. After that I took a water spray to dilute the colors making a convincing sea bottom.Let it dry for 1 hour. Thees dry colors are using in egg tempera and coming from stones and minerals. They are very bad for respiratory system and use gloves and breathing mask. .

I use them because they give a very effective result.

After that I start to pass the cables from the holes.....

Soldering gun

wires 5-10 cm

hot glue gun with clear glue

any simple glue, or spray glue

colors any type to represent sea's bottom.

Card Board pieces 20cm x 20cm and 21 x21 cm for frame....

3 RGB LEDs

a small on/off switch

any power supply 3,5-4,5V. if above use also the appropriate resistors for the LEDs.. For me any cell phone charger is suitable because they give 4,5V.

No other material needed.

The shell of my pinna was broken so i need to gue it with hot glue at the inner side. After that the broken shell was fixed. So I glue with hot glue an RGB LED at the base of the pinna shell. After I solder wires at the positive and negative pin of the LED.

After I solder the the 2 RGB LEDs with wires and pass them through the open holes. Then I Glued the urchins with hot glue at the cardboard. I attached one LED at any of the 2 urchin shells. I wire it up at the rear side of the cardboard so like all LEDs is like just one. So all work with 4,3V.No resistors....RGB LEDs running at 3,3 to 4,5V without resistors.

After that I put some decoration details like the piece of coral and the murex. Also some pebbles giving more realism.

The final result is amazing. Very beautiful in darkness. Try to make it Has fun..

Also don't forget to comment and Vote.....

Thanks Instructable.com