Glow in the Dark Paint Project & Product Review How to Refurbish Old Sea Shells Outside Beach Decor

This is a quick & easy project that will transform your existing old Sea Shells into bright beautiful Beach & Coastal Decor, lets give new life by simply Refurbishing with some new color and glow in the dark paint! Why not have it look great both during the day and when it gets dark!

Project Difficulty: Easy

Active Time: 1 hour

Inactive Time: 2 days (for letting the shells dry after cleaning & then on day two letting the paint dry a half hour between coats)

Steps: (additional photos are below if it helps)

1. Wash your shells & dry them overnight

2. Gather materials: Something to paint on like cardboard, an old towel, etc. Craft paint brush, the spray paints in the color(s) you wish to use (here is a link to the products I used if you want to select the same items), Clear coat both UV & Non UV paints, Glow in the Dark paints in Bright Aqua (I used Spacebeams brand). Sunlight can activate the glow but if you want it truly bright use a UV light. I have one in my Aerogarden so I sat them next to it for 15 minutes.

3. Spray paint your colors onto the shells, let dry a half hour and turn over to paint the bottom (if desired).

4. Spray on a clear coat of UV protectant paint to protect the colored paint you just put on. Let dry an hour.

5. Brush on a thin layer of Glow paint, let dry a half hour, brush on a second thin layer. I used two layers on mine but would honestly recommend 3 or 4 coats for even brighter glow effects. Two coats went a long way leaving 3/4 of my paint jar still available for other projects. Let this dry an hour.

6. If you are putting your shells outside spray on a Shellac or Non UV protecting clear paint which will help protect the glow paint! Let this dry for an hour.

7. Activate your glow paint with Sunlight or use a UV light. I have one in my Aerogarden so I sat them next to it for 15 minutes then turn off the lights and watch the magic happen!

Product Review: Spacebeams comes highly recommended among glow paints, it is easy to brush on, dries fast, has a nice glow and is available in many color tones for different glow effects: pink, yellow, etc. The glow lasted an hour for me with a 15 minute charge, I look forward to experimenting with this paint more to see if a longer charge or more coats will give me a longer glow. This would be a great craft project to do with kids also (do not eat the paint!)!

Enjoy!

Note: links are affiliated to help support the cost of my website however will not cost you any additional money to use, I was not paid by Spacebeams etc. to try out their products).

Painting on a cardboard protects surfaces

Glow paint is drying

Quick steps printable