When Rory and his wife, Linda McGrath, moved to Jeffreys Bay in July last year, they became fascinated with the vast variety of sea shells along the beaches which has led them to creating a 2m-tall chandelier with over 1 000 carefully collected and categorised sea shells.
Living within close proximity to the incredible beaches in Jeffreys Bay, Rory and Linda, who moved from Kwa-Zulu Natal, were immediately struck by the abundance of beautiful sea shells and realised what a vast variety of different shells were to be found.
While walking on the beach, they began chatting to local strandlopers who taught them the colloquial names for the various sea shells passed down from generation to generation.
Rory then began collecting sea shells daily while walking along the shores at low tide and leap tide, while Linda spent hours sorting through the shells, learning to distinguish each one by its unique appearance and subsequent scientific categorisation.
“Together we have managed to collate them and in so doing, we have learnt to recognise and appreciate each and every one of these shells and their wonderful, distinct characteristics,” said Linda.
She said while sorting through the sea shells she decided to classify each species of shells using colloquial names where possible as suggested by the local strandlopers and by using the classification of shells 1 to 400 as per the The Shells of Jeffreys Bay by G Steyn and E Steyn (1999).
Some of the sea shell names include baby toes, carrots, mermaid’s tears, false teeth, kal-koentjies, uie, dolly vardins and koffiepitte, to name a few.
Apart from the information she received from the Strandlopers and The Shells of Jeffreys Bay book, the couple also received assistance from fellow shell-gathering enthusiasts in Jeffreys Bay.
Once Linda and Rory had collected as many sea shells as they could, they embarked on their first project which included the classification of 400 sea shells which they then displayed on a board using Tjhoko paint from Tjhoko Chalk Paint in St Francis Bay as the backing colour to enhance the natural colour of the shells and then they box-framed the shells.
In July this year, one year after they moved to Jeffreys Bay, Linda suggested they buy a large wooden beaded shell chandelier for their new home.
Since the retail price of large chandeliers was exorbitantly expensive, Rory decided to create his own unique chandelier with the shells they collected along the beach from Kitchen Windows to Jeffreys Bay Caravan Park and with the rarer sea shells that they bought from local Strandloper, Hesther Bambo, and from various craft shops.
“I never thought it was remotely possible to create a chandelier of this magnitude as shells are not uniform; they are relatively heavy and this would be a monstrous task,” said Linda.
To her surprise, three months, later Rory completed a magnificent, unique 2m-tall chandelier, in the French empire style.
“One cannot ever appreciate the magnitude of the task without first understanding the entire process from start to finish,” said Linda.
She said the process of creating the chandelier involved collecting over 1 000 sea shells and sorting them into categories and sizes.
Rory then made a DIY frame that was strong and inexpensive by shaving thin strips of wood around an old truck tyre sticking on layer upon layer until it was strong enough.
Linda said Rory tried various options for the smaller discs but eventually settled on cutting two wooden circles.
She further said the centre column was made from green plumbing pipes which they painted with Tjhoko paint and glaze and then added four globes.
Thereafter, each shell was hot glued onto strips of tape which were wiped over with Tjoko clear glaze.
“Mounting these strands of shells onto the frames to create the correct shape took many different experiments and attempts,” said Linda. To ensure that the shells did not spin and twist, the tape was glue gunned onto strong strapping.
Linda said each of the 600 strands was nailed into position to create the classic curves.
Finally, the horizontal edges of the discs were decorated with rows of tiny pink ‘baby toes’ sea shells and the top and bottom discs covered with small ‘cowrie’ shells. ‘Chicken’ shells were also used as part of the design.
“It was a euphoric moment for us all when the chandelier was completed,” said Linda.
“It took such patience, passion, creativity and love to make this special piece and I am so very proud of Rory.”
In honour of Rory’s late mother, Barbara McGrath née Kennedy, they have named the chandelier ‘The Barbara Kennedy’ and will display the master piece once the construction of their new home in Paradise Beach is complete.
Linda and Rory plan to continue collecting sea shells and creating various designs to display in their home and share with their friends.
