Tag: Sanibel Island

Project – Buttercup Lucine and Driftwood Wind Chime

On By TimelessladyIn Projects11 Comments

We visited Sanibel Island in June, and I brought home quite a few seashells. One of the more common varieties was a clam called a Buttercup Lucine (Anodontia alba). I love the color yellow, so the gold edging on the interior appealed to me, and I collected about three to four dozen of these clams in different sizes. Happily, they were easy to transport back home as they stack together nicely for traveling.

I probably wouldn’t have brought so many back home if I didn’t have a specific project in mind, a wind chime. We found a piece of driftwood on the banks of the Delaware River that resembled a bird’s beak and head. It was just the right size to create a mobile with the Buttercup Lucines.

I was glad I had extra shells because one out of every three cracked when I drilled it with the Dremel tool. I had success with many and had enough to create the chime.

I left the beak a natural color for contrast and added a graphite and colored pencil eye. I painted the rest of the bird-shaped driftwood a golden yellow to match the inner colors of the shell.

As far as ease of making this project, I’d give it a five out of 1-10. The painting and the stringing into screw eyes were fairly easy. The hardest part of the project was drilling the seashells. Whenever I look at my project, I remember the joy of collecting shells on Sanibel Island.

I used waxed hemp thread/cord for the stringing material. It is sturdy and very easy to knot and tie off.

PS My husband made a keen observation that I had to agree with: the chime is more of a clacker than a chime, but hey, it sings the song of the sea, and that is definitely music to me.

Pathway & Project Part 4 – Atlantic Ocean & Delaware Bay

On By TimelessladyIn Paths, Projects4 Comments

I might be slightly stretching the challenge subject of passages/paths to consider walking alongside the ocean and bay a pathway, yet my way has a water border and dry sand on the other side. I walk on the wet, hardened area swept over by the waves. On further reflection, I think of walking along the ocean, a definite path. 

The first photograph is one of my favorite places, Fortescue, New Jersey, along the creek that flows into the Delaware Bay. This area is a popular spot to fish. Again, I found the photograph quickly because it is set aside as a scene I would like to paint.

Another favorite area is Strathmere, New Jersey. We walk to the point across from Corson’s Inlet State Park. The beach has large cordoned-off areas for the shore birds that raise their young in the sandy stretches beyond the reach of the waves.

Whatever beach I visit, I collect an assortment of ocean treasures. I keep them in baskets and jars, paint them, craft with them, and have them in my living room as decor. Today, I created a decorative basket with a few. I especially like the piece of seaglass on the front. I found the glass with the small oyster shell firmly attached. I imagine that oyster had quite a whirlwind life while it was alive, tossed around in the waves with its piece of glass host. The small shell included on this piece is a cat’s paw collected on Sanibel Island.

On the subject of Sanibel, I’m including a clip of one of my favorite YouTube Channels: SWF Beach Life. This clip includes Sanibel Island. I love her channel; it is so relaxing and fun to live through her as she gathers beachy treasures. On a scale of 1 – 10, I give this YouTube channel a definite 10. If you feel stressed, or are just interested in seashells, check out this channel.

Place – Sanibel Island/The Shells

On By TimelessladyIn PlaceLeave a comment

Have you heard of the Sanibel Stoop?

The Washington Times describes the Sanibel Stoop as “the bent-at-the-waist posture used to collect seashells on Sanibel Island.” Of course. While other postures and positions of the human form are primarily designed to reap a benefit directly related to health, wholeness or physique building, the Sanibel Stoop takes aims purely at the aesthetic, esoteric and artsy side of our being. ~Sundial Resort

This is my attempt at creating a daisy out of an iridescent array of pen shells. I didn’t bring any of this variety home. The edges are sharp and the shells are fragile, breaking easily into smaller pieces.

I did bring quite a few seashells home though. These are my finds, cleaned in the shell hut, a small open air shed with a sink, built by the West Wind Inn for the purpose of cleaning your shells. (This also keeps their plumbing, in the rooms, from becoming clogged with sand and beach debris.)

I thought ahead and brought some heavy duty zippered plastic bags I had saved from a recent purchase.

By nestling several together, we were able to bring home shells for all the children, grand-children, grand-nieces and nephews, and many for ourselves. I had read great advice in a blog post by another traveler to save plastic containers when you buy food on the island, and these also worked great to pack our shells for the flight home. Almost every shell made it back without breaking packed between layers of clothes in our carry-on bags.

Place – Sanibel Island/The Sea

On By TimelessladyIn Place10 Comments

Sanibel Island has warm water and strong surf. This helps bring up shells, and also sweeps them back into the sea. We were amazed a few times to find the beach, filled just hours before with thousands, if not millions of shells, swept pristine clean.

The waves are strong. I was knocked backwards once by one that caught me by surprise. Even strong swimmers need to be aware of the strength of the surf. I didn’t see any lifeguards while we visited in October. It’s definitely a swim at your own risk area.

We were able to see sunrise in the mornings from the beach in front of West Wind Inn, and in the evening, beautiful sunsets, featured in the photos above.

Captiva Island is next door to Sanibel. My  husband rented an hour on a sailboat at the Yolo shop located at the far end of the island. Yolo stands for ‘You Only Live Once.’ While my husband was having fun living life to the fullest, I had my only bad hour on the vacation. I watched from the beach in street clothes rather than a bathing suit, and by the time he sailed back to shore, I was about the hottest I have ever been. I will be wiser if we do the same thing in the future and wear a bathing suit and sit in the water to watch.

The Bubble Room, on Captiva Island, is an amazing restaurant filled with all kinds of interesting memorabilia. Despite the pandemic, and wearing masks upon entry, we were able to have a wonderful lunch of prime rib sandwiches.

This post is part of Skywatch Friday.