Craft a Stunning Planet Art Piece with Beautiful Seashells!

Planet artwork made from seashells

Living by the sea comes with so many awesome perks, and one of my favourites is hunting for seashells!

As summer kicks off in Otago, the afternoon tides go out, making it the perfect time to explore the beach for hidden treasures. You’ll find some really cool stuff, like tiny corals, curiously shaped rocks, and even edible sea veggies (though they can be a bit chewy). Plus, there are loads of pretty half shells left behind after seagulls have their snacks.

Today, we’re going to turn these seashells into a planet-themed artwork! Our inspiration came from one of the shells we collected, whose natural inked patterns reminded us of the planet Jupiter, famous for its distinct horizontal stripes of red, brown, yellow, and white. Let’s dive into our creativity and have a blast exploring our artsy side together!

First, create an organised workspace with your palette, paints, water container, and shells. At The Sustainable School, we’re passionate about upcycling! We use brown paper as a protective base to keep paint off the table, and breathe new life into canvas we’ve sketched but no longer love. For those who prefer to avoid the cleanup hassle, an easy tip is to wrap your palette board in cling wrap. This allows for quick, mess-free disposal after your creative session.

Set up a clear workspace with your palette, paints, water container, and shells. Look for ways to upcycle whenever you can!

Begin painting the background using dark blue, indigo, or black. There is no universal formula—choose colours that resonate with you! Do a few layers so the colours appear more solid.

Paint the background in dark colours to create the space feel

As we wait for the background paint to dry, let's dive into colouring the shells! Again, feel free to choose colours that inspire you, but let’s be a bit more delicate when representing our own planet, Earth, using lovely shades of green and blue. In our version, we've added green paint to represent the continents, while the shell we chose naturally has a beautiful light blue tone. Nature is truly a great artist, isn’t it?

Likewise, we decided not to colour the shell that represents Jupiter, even though it doesn’t feature its signature "Great Red Spot." However, the colourful stripes are beautiful on their own. For the Sun, we mixed orange, yellow, and red, as it is a giant, hot ball of energy! For Mercury, the smallest and closest planet to the Sun in our solar system, we colored it in a mysterious purple, even though its actual colour is more of a brownish hue. Mars is represented in coral red.

I understand that these colors may not match the real planets' colors, shapes, or sizes, but art allows us the freedom to reimagine things..

Be creative when colouring the shells that represent different planets

It’s time for the Avengers to assemble! Line up your "planets" in the order of Mercury, Venus, Earth (and don’t forget to include our precious little satellite, the Moon), Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. Unfortunately, we missed Uranus and Neptune, which are some of the farthest planets from the Sun. Next time, we should be sure to have a better count of the shells we collected.

Arrange your "planet" shells in the correct order

Lastly, remember that we are not alone in space! Paint, glitter, or paste some shining little stars around these giant plants. They may seem small, but that's only because they are far away. Hello, friends!

You can use paint, glitter, or glue to stick on some shiny little stars and make your artwork look just like the real universe!

Ta-da! We’re finished! Use hot glue to attach the shell "planets" to the background and let them sit. You now have a beautiful piece of space art made from seashells. Now, take a moment to admire your beautiful masterpiece as it sparkles beneath the real stars above!

Check out our finished artwork of the planet made from seashells!

Get #CuriouserandCuriouser with TSS:

We created today's activity to help our learners gain an understanding of the solar system. It's a great idea to explore NASA’s resources for a deeper dive. This will provide insights into the size differences, actual appearances, and the distances of each planet from the Sun, which is the centre of the solar system, as well as the distances between the planets themselves. It's a wonderful opportunity to spark curiosity and enthusiasm for the wonders of space!

Blending science with art also provides a great opportunity to let your imagination blossom and get hands-on! In this project, we embraced the natural beauty of seashells while preserving some of their unique charm. You can get creative and practice upcycling with items such as bottle caps, rocks, or other materials you can think of.

That's all! We hope you like today's activity. If you have made your own version, share with us at thesustainableschoolnz@gmail.com or tag us on Facebook or Instagram @thesustainableschool. We can't wait to see your wonderful creations! Follow us for more fun, hands-on STEAM activities that spark creativity, curiosity, and care for the planet.