My Favorite Beach Craft - Just For Me

If you've been reading this blog for a bit, you know that one of my favorite “Just For Me” items is to drive down to the beach while my kids are at school (to read about it, click here.  I spend a few hours listening to the waves, sometimes reading, often writing, walking along the shore, and generally re-charging my battery. I've collected lots of shells over the years which inevitably wind up either outside in my garden or tucked among my plants. I've even used one or two large ones as spoon rests. Recently, though, I came up with a simple, low-cost craft to remind myself of my most recent “Just For Me” days: a Memory Jar.

Here's how to make one. Grab a clean jar sans label. You could use a jelly jar, spaghetti jar, baby food jar – whatever you've got around the house. I just happened to have an empty mason jar in my craft area.

Fill it partially with sand. I happened to bring sand back from one of my trips, but you could use sandbox sand. Then, fill it with rocks and/or shells from the beach. In my button box, I also found two buttons that looked like flip flops, so I added them.

Stretch some material over the top of the jar and secure with a ribbon or rubber band. You can even put a shell on top.

I love how pretty the jar looks. It reminds me of something special I did for myself and the timelessness of the beach, how even as I sit landlocked outside a large city, the beautiful ocean waves beckon in my dreams. More beach excursions are in my future...after the kids go back to school. Until then, I have my Memory Jar to remind me how beautiful the shore is. 

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Thank you for reading!