Have you ever thought about taking some inspiration from Mother Nature for your craft projects? If you’ve ever seen an oyster shell or two wash up on the beach, you may have thought about cleaning them up and using them for fancy crafts.
The great news is that you can go right ahead and get started – but knowing how to clean the oyster shells is very important and the process is a little different from cleaning crab shells.
Given that oyster shells have come fresh out of the sea, it’s important to prepare them so that they’re free from nasty bacteria – and the oysters themselves! While this may seem a little gross at first, it’s a really nifty craft idea that I’ve come back to many, many times!
In this guide, I’ll take you through how to clean oyster shells effectively, so that they’re safe to use in all your crafty and creative endeavors.
How to clean oyster shells for crafts: Step by step guide
Step #1: Grab the right equipment
Cleaning oyster shells for reuse means more than just rinsing them under the faucet for a few minutes. The process is a little involved, but once you know the ropes, it’s easy to come back to time and again.
So, before you get started, make sure you have access to the following items for ease of cleaning:
- A bottle of pure bleach
- A thick towel
- Protective gloves
- An oyster knife, screwdriver, or equivalent
- Several buckets (two gallons each is ideal)
- A source of water
- Baby oil
- A scrubbing brush (preferably hard-bristled)
- A microfiber cloth
- A colander
Step #2: Removing the oysters
To use oyster shells for crafts, you’re going to need to remove the oysters inside first. To do this, you should firstly ensure you have a thick towel to hand, wrapping the oyster and placing it carefully on your kitchen counter.
Put on your protective gloves – the kind you’d normally wear to protect against sharp points or when using power tools. You’ll need these to keep safe when wielding the oyster knife.
Then, press down flat on top of the oyster, and then press into the hinge of the shell – hard – with your knife. You may need to give it a little movement or wiggle, before carefully prising open at one end (with your knife and your thumb).
Carefully cut through the inner flesh, avoiding damaging the shell.
It’s crucial that you take your time to carefully remove the oyster meat. There’s no hurry! Be too hasty, and you may end up damaging the shell, or even hurting yourself. Caution is advised.
You should then cut out the oyster, or meat, from the shell. Be warned – this may be a little slimier than it looks! You can either choose to eat the oyster, or dispose of it.
For the next step, it’s probably a good idea to take your oysters outside – as cleaning them can cause a real stink! What’s more, if you are ever using bleach to clean, it makes sense to open a few windows to ventilate.
Step #3: Cleaning the shells
To start cleaning your oyster shells, you’re ideally going to need to rinse clear any ground-in dirt or sand that’s marring the outside. Once you’ve removed the oyster meat, it’s also worth checking if there are any pearls lurking inside – if you’re lucky!
Be sure to fill one of your buckets with warm water and rinse each shell by hand, making sure to carefully remove any ground-in sand or dirt with your fingers.
You’re then going to need another fresh bucket of water, where you’re going to actually store your shells for safe keeping right now. Keeping them out in the open air may result in your shells losing a little bit of their sheen!
Therefore, carefully place all the shells you rinse off in a clean bucket of water (this is a must – you don’t want to end up making them dirty all over again).
Step #4: Bleaching the shells
As mentioned, using any quantity of bleach without ventilation is never a good idea, meaning this may be another part of the process you wish to do outside. Again, wearing protective gloves is a must, as you could risk burning yourself.
You’re going to need to dilute bleach in a further bucket, which is where your oyster shells will be heading to next. I’d recommend using equal parts bleach and water for the best dilute balance.
When transferring your shells into the bleach bucket, make sure to hold them under the water with a rod or stick (to avoid getting any solution on your hands). Once they have submerged, you should come back once or twice an hour to stir the solution.
It’ll normally take at least an hour for the bleaching process to start taking effect, and many people actually leave their shells bleaching overnight.
However, never leave your shells in the bleach bucket for more than appears necessary – you should start to see the shells clean up in the solution! Any more than 24 hours, and your shells are at risk of eroding or deteriorating further – and that really defeats the purpose!
After you’ve fully bleached the shells, it may be worth using your colander to carefully fish them out of the bucket. Carefully drain your bleach bucket away, and thoroughly rinse the shells (with care enough not cause damage).
Step #5: Scrubbing up
Yes – there’s a little more scrubbing to do just yet! Once your shells are rinsed clean from bleach, you’re going to need another bucket(!) of water that you can mix with dish soap.
Make sure that your shells are completely bleach-free before using any other products. Bleach mixed with many cleaning products can create toxic gas – a mistake you won’t forget in a hurry!
With this solution, you’re going to need to dip your scrubbing brush in for the final scrubdown. You might wish to use a toothbrush for extra precision, but providing you have stiff bristles, either option works well.
Scrub with care – too hard, and you risk damaging your shells permanently, and they simply won’t look great for crafts!
Once you’re happy with the results, be sure to rinse again and leave to dry on microfiber. Drying will take as long as it takes – but when completely free from moisture, be sure to carefully brush a little baby oil on your shells for an extra sheen.
What can I make with oyster shells?
Here’s where you can really let your imagination run wild! You could create necklaces, earrings, brooches, or other jewelry with stylish, oiled shells.
Or, why not use oyster shells to create unique borders for mirrors or household units? Some crafty people have even made candle holders out of oyster shells – a wonderful idea if you have a nautical theme running through your home.
Oyster shells are immensely popular in the crafting scene thanks to their timeless look. They give off an immediate memory of vacations at the beach – and if you long to be beside the sea, you’ll get a real kick out of crafting and decorating with oyster shells.
Where should I get oyster shells from?
As mentioned, you may be able to find oysters washed up on your local beach if you’re lucky – but there may actually be some laws you need to adhere to first. For example, you may need a fishing license depending on the state (some areas of California observe this).
Otherwise, you could save a few from dinner at a seafood restaurant, or even after enjoying store-bought delicacies at your local fishmonger. That said, you may even be able to grab a few shells for free if you ask nicely at your local seafood place (they’ll just throw them in the trash otherwise)!
Conclusion
As you can see, cleaning oyster shells doesn’t have to be arduous, but remember, it’s always vital to clean and sanitize anything you intend to use outside of the home in your arts and crafts.
You never know what bugs and bacteria may be lurking in the ridges of your latest shell haul!
Let’s run through the steps to cleaning oyster shells for crafts briefly one more time:
- Make sure you have protective equipment, several buckets, a towel and bleach at least before you start cleaning. For the full list, take a look above!
- Rinse your oyster shells, carefully removing any obvious dirt and debris bogging down the outsides. Place them in a bucket of water.
- Prepare another bucket that’s equal parts bleach and water with care. Insert your shells to submerge for at least an hour, stirring once or twice every further hour you leave them.
- Remove the shells via colander and rinse off any bleach traces, and prepare a further bucket of water and dish soap. Take a brush with tough bristles and submerge, carefully scrubbing any remaining detritus.
- Leave your shells to dry in the open on a microfiber cloth or similar. Polish your shells with a little baby oil once dried.
There you have it – the best way to clean oyster shells is to be gentle! However, the more thorough you are, the less chance nasty bacteria and pathogens will make their way into your crafts.
Have fun, and take a look online at a few interesting craft ideas you can put to work right away!
Originally posted 2022-05-27 21:49:34.