WoooHooo Bondo cool! I like that, Marly. I have a whole box of assorted shells from the ocean. I may have to try a sphere or something like that with them. I love shells, just don't know how to display them. Great work! Did you say how big it was????

BB... thank you!

It is small - about the size of a baseball! Those shells are tiny!

Marly

This is beautiful! I love the way the background color matches the shell color. Is it the Bondo shavings that add the specks of color or is that your tufa recipe?
Laura

The ball is beautiful. I was wondering on the size too. I have a collection of shells I would like to use. This is a great idea. So what are bondo shavings?

Hey Marly, that's Just Fab.

How did you apply the shells? Did you just press the shells into the mix? I ask because I tried something like this using some river stones and it was very difficult to embed the stones. Any help would be grand!

Great Job.

Rainsend, the white flecks are the Bondo . The browner flecks are the tufa with the peatmoss.

(Oh, and someone asked what Bondo was...it is the stuff that they use to do bodywork on our cars)

Figigal... I forgot to mention that the core is a small ball of leftover tufa. It was nice and hard and well-cured. I used silicone to 'glue' the shells onto the basic tufa ball. Then I packed the 'grout' around them (the grout being the Bondo/tufa). One thing I learned in this project (and I learn ALL the time! lol) is not to have the silicone squishing out the sides. Try to keep it JUST under the item you are glueing onto the ball. Because the tufa/Bondo layer is so thin, I couldn't get the tufa close enough to the shells in places to lock them in. So after the ball was made, using manicure-type scissors, I carefully removed the excess silicone and then filled in those spots with the Bondo tufa again. Am I making any sense? I'm wiped out right now... been a LOOOOOONNNNGGGG day!

Marly

Only can think of 3 words

" I LOVE IT ! "

That's a very nice piece of work! It reminds me of those old Mediterranean oil jugs that they find, all encrusted with shells.

Your work is superb, Marly!

Sue

Hi Marly,

Very interesting texture, specially with the shells. Is it stong enough for thin layer?

Andrea

Andrea... I am not sure what you are asking. Is it strong enough for what?? lol

Just want to understand better how to address your questions.

Marly

Sorry, if I wasn't clear. Your mix with the Bondo, is it suitable to make for example a bowl with 5/8 inch tick wall ? Was the curing time similar as the mix with sand, etc. I have no idea what is the Bondo by chemistry. Did you shave your car personally ?( ...just kidding).

Andrea

LOL LOL LOL Andrea! No I didn't shave my car! I don't even have one... and that is a 'good thing' with the price of gas these days! I have a can of Bondo... made up a small 'lump' of it and let it harden and then shaved it with a wood rasp.

Thank you for explaining what you were asking. I have made one other item that is about 1" thick or so... not nearby to measure at the moment. I would say it is very strong and it DOES cure at a similar rate to peat moss being in the tufa. It is a tad labour intensive... I just used it because I had the left-over shavings from a previous project. I must say I love the flecked look it gives! It would be cool for a planter. Maybe a person could drop by a body shop and ask if you could collect some of their shavings! THERE'S a thought! lol

Marly

Thanks Marly!