Chris's red coral or sponge
Chris and Sarah picked up this vibrant piece of beach treasure and thought it was a little piece of red branch CORAL. As you can see, it has the shape and branches like coral and so full of color. This is a very cool find…..but….I actually think this is a red SPONGE. I’m not sure it will last long (at times they turn to goo, fall apart or lose their color) but still, it’s beautiful and it’s fun to see different gifts from the sea.
Chris, Sarah and baby Logan (Crawfordsville, Indiana)
Colorful Moon shell and Kings Crown
Clark found this not-so-pretty nice sized KINGS CROWN at the lighthouse beach this weekend. Whether they have barnacles, slime, algae or worn spines, I still like them if nobody has made a home of it and clean them up. Most of the time, I can make them beautiful again by using old dental tools to pick off the barnacles, a tooth brush or scrub brush, and just a tad of bleach to get rid of the algae. I thought I’d shock you when I showed you a before and after picture when I started on the clean up. I started picking….. cleaning…… scrubbing….. errrrrr…… a little better….. back to cleaning…….. hmmmmm. Well, this is the best that this shell is going to get for me right now.
Semi-cleaned up King's Crown
Not too much of a shocker but it was still worth a try. The other side looks pretty good.
Cleaned King's Crown
We have our fair share of King’s Crowns, so when we go back to the lighthouse, we will return this where we found it so that someone else might be able to enjoy it too.
It’s amazing what you can do to clean up a dirty shell. Very kind of you to put forth the effort and then return your treasure to the sea for someone else to find!
Amazing what a little elbow grease can do to change the appearance of a shell & turn what looks like a piece of junk into a treasure.
Only a shell lover, Pam.
Lee
Wow you did a great job!! And to put it back in the ocean for someone else to find,not many people would do that. I truly believe in karma and who knows,maybe soon you will find something that will be perfect for you for the nice thing you did :) I love seeing families with their kids on the island,their bby looks so cute & what a smile:) We are taking our 3 yr old grandson this weekend for his 1st Sanibel trip.
Wow! Amazing…..what a transformation!!!! Your the best!
I think you did a super job!! I do know how hard it is to get gifts from the ocean clean…..and to quit smellin’!!! We once left some conch shells on top of the boat for a whole summer to dry out…….only to turn around and give them away!!! (they were dead ones and floated to shore….NEVER take live ones) But now you’ve given me the best idea……gonna start doing just what you’ve done…cleaning and putting back to sea. I can only imagine the exhuberance on a youngsters face if he found a cleaned, shiny shell wash up!!! Thanks!!
Hi! I have a couple of junonias that have seen better days… There is quite a bit of rust on them and i wanted to see if there was anything i could use to clean up the shells without damaging them. Thanks!
Hi Pam! I’m loving your blog! I just found a red coral but every tutorial I read says I will have to bleach coral to clean it. Is there a way I can preserve its color? Thanks for your great posts!