An Endless Summer Globe

While stores may be having Christmas in July sales, no one is putting up wintery decorations.  It’s summer (in the northern hemisphere) and hot and one of the ways to keep cool is going to the beach and jumping in the water.  So instead of displaying a snow globe, make yourself a beach globe.

I made this one some years ago, so I don’t have any step by step pictures.  I used sand from a favorite beach, shells I’ve collected over the years, and even added some small glass beads from the jewelry department at the craft store to imitate sea glass which I’ve never found before others.

My personal piece of the beach

What you need:
A clear glass globe fixture
Sand (or table salt)
Shells
Styrofoam or thick cork tiles
Glue
Twine
Ribbon
Felt

Optional:
Sandpaper
Seaglass

Creating the base:
First you want to make the base for the sand globe using the Styrofoam or cork.  I used styrofoam – the kind that used for packing electronics, small appliances, not the more porous kind found in craft stores.  Place the open side of the globe on the foam and trace the opening.  You will actually cut inside this line to fit just inside the rim so that you will create a tight seal.  Then cut another circle about 1-1 ½” wider than the original circle.  You want this piece to be at least as wide as the globe itself for stability and proportion.

Center the small circle on the wider one and glue.  Let this dry thoroughly.  I added a circle of sandpaper to put on top of the smaller circle to that when I move the globe around to rearrange the globe contents, the white Styrofoam was camouflaged.

Filling the globe:

These globe fixtures are pretty generic across suppliers.

These clear glass globe fixtures can be found cheaply (I originally paid $4.) at the big box hardware stores, thrift stores, Habitat, even at garage sales.  First add shells you have collected from beaches visited.  Even broken shells (for beachy authenticity).  Have friends and neighbors collect them for you when they go on vacation.  If you haven’t collected any, the craft stores and online sites have shells you can buy.  Add any beach glass or pebbles, even small pieces of driftwood found on the beach.

Next, add your sand.  If you haven’t collected any yourself, ask someone else going to the beach to collect some for you, or raid a child’s sandbox for play sand.  If these aren’t options, then buy some sandbox play sand or go to the craft store and buy some craft sand.  You can even use salt to imitate ‘sugar sand beaches’.  Do not use sugar.  You only need 2-3 cups of sand.  There is no need to completely fill the globe.

Putting it together:
Once your happy with the amount of shells and sand, add glue to the sides of the small base circle and fit inside the globe opening.  Let dry thoroughly before turning it over.

Finishing details:
Wrap twine around the base to complete the nautical look, then add the ribbon of your choice around the bottom of the globe to hide the inner part of the base.  Cut a circle of felt to put on the bottom of the base for the finishing touch.

Here’s a closeup of the finished base wrapped in twine and tied with a ribbon bow.

Now you have your own personal beach to tuck inside your home.  Shake it up to arrange and rearrange the shell mixture inside whenever you feel the need for summer and sand.

 

Here’s another view of the finished Beach Globe. As you can see, some of the sand is still sticking to the glass from the last time it was shaken.

 

Best of all, this ‘snowglobe’ can be displayed year-round to remind you of summer memories.