Seashell Cookie Jar/ Canister

Supplies:

• #77-7721 Armour Bottle & Jar Cutter
• #15-0315 Glass cleaner
• #61-3340 Dazzle Tac glue
• Small wine jug
• Sculpey or Fimo clay – beige, gold or color of your choice, 3-4 pkgs
• 10-15 medium sized seashells, starfish, etc
• Sand, caramel, golden brown, or color of your choice acrylic paint (optional)
• Clear acrylic sealer
• Small textured sponge (optional- to be used with the paints)
• Clay knife or plastic cutlery knife
• Baking sheet
• Rolling pin
• Old plate or saucer that’s slightly larger than the top of your cut bottle
• Wax paper
• Newspaper
• Eye protection
• Canvas gloves (gardening type work well)
• Cutter wheel oil
• Paper towels

General Instructions:

1. Put on canvas gloves and eye protection.
2. Oil the cutter wheel and set up Bottle cutter as specified in the instruction booklet.
3. Cut bottle at desired height, but sides should be straight. Use the picture as a reference point. Follow the instructions that come with your Bottle cutter View the directions and How to Videos
4. Lay out newspaper on work surface. Gently sand off the sharp cut edges with the sandpaper provided with your kit.
5. Clean bottle well with glass cleaner to remove any dust and glue residue.

Decorating the bottle:

1. Knead the clay in your hands for a few minutes to get it soft and pliable.
2. Roll out the clay on wax paper with a rolling pin to about ¼” thick. Circle should be about 1” larger than plate.
3. Turn plate upside down. Center the clay circle over the plate, pressing it down to the surface. Do not distort the thickness of the clay.
4. Wrap the overlapping edge of the clay around to the underside of the plate.
5. Center the plate over the cut bottle and gently press the plate down to make an impression. This will mark where the edge of the bottle makes contact with the plate. Trim off clay at the mark line with a knife. Smooth the cut edge of the clay with the edge of the knife, pushing it back about ¼” of an inch, forming a lip.
6. Place the plate, clay side up on a cookie sheet and bake at 275 degrees on middle rack in the oven for about 10-15 minutes in a well ventilated room. Check often. Do not allow it to get too brown. If clay is a little thick, it may need to bake a minute or two longer but no more than 20 minutes. Check constantly until clay is firm. Cool bottle completely. Read package instructions for details.
7. If you like the color of the Sculpey as it is, you can just apply two coats clear acrylic sealer. If it does not look as you desire, you can paint, sponge or antique the lid with acrylic paints before sealing. Let dry overnight before gluing on any shells.
8. Arrange the seashells around bottle and lid. Apply some Dazzle Tac to the back of the shell and apply. If the weight of the shell won’t let the it stay in place until it dries, lay the bottle on it’s side in a nest of old towels and glue the shells onto one section at a time. Dry completely before turning the bottle to glue the next section.

Suggestions:

1. Dress the shells up by adding some beach sand or glitter (#61-3351 Glitter It)  in and around the shells. You can even mix some glitter to the sand to give it sparkle.
2. Try frosting the bottle with Etch Bath before gluing on the shells.

Paint a beach scene around bottle and add mini shells, aquarium stones or little beach stickers like fish or palm trees.