What creative projects can a person do with driftwood?

October 7, 2019 5:56 AM

I have no artistic experience (painting, drawing, etc), a desire to gain some, and access to a practically unlimited supply of driftwood. What are my options for beginner-friendly projects?

I do have limited woodworking experience which was my first thought. But then I started thinking about pyrography and I'm wondering what else I could do. I have access to an outside workspace and a small garage for storage. I don't own any tools and would prefer to minimize spending on them before learning if I like whatever it is I'm trying. I also generally prefer hand tools.

posted by ToddBurson to Sports, Hobbies, & Recreation (13 answers total)

Dunno how beginner-friendly it would be, but I've seen some lovely wonky mirror-frames and picture-frames made with driftwood. Pinterest is probably crawling with them.
posted by Grunyon at 5:59 AM on October 7, 2019

You can make very nice mobiles with driftwood as the arms and other beach items -- shells, feathers, etc -- as the weights.
posted by Winnie the Proust at 6:26 AM on October 7, 2019

Garden trellises and tripod plant supports would require fairly simple tools if you have large pieces.
posted by Botanizer at 6:31 AM on October 7, 2019

On the Cape here in MA, I've seen driftwood trellises that seem to be built to suit the shape of the wood itself, so it'd be mostly a matter of cutting and nailing/screwing/gluing to the height you want.

Also, with the holidays coming up, I've seen driftwood Christmas trees in all sizes around the area each year at craft fairs. Just build up each layer with cut pieces to resemble branches. Could be tabletop or ornament size or however large you want to go. Could do it with hot glue or screws/nails/etc.
posted by xingcat at 6:37 AM on October 7, 2019

Some ideas... candleholders, clocks, christmas ornaments, shelves, art pieces, those cute little driftwood houses, jewellery, keychains.

Driftwood arts and crafts ideas are plentiful on both Pinterest and Instagram. Here is my driftwood pinterest board. Driftwood is lovely. Good luck!
posted by fourpotatoes at 7:04 AM on October 7, 2019

driftwood sculptures
posted by mrmarley at 7:05 AM on October 7, 2019

We have a very nice wall mounted driftwood coat/clothing rack in our cabin. It's great!
posted by rdnnyc at 8:14 AM on October 7, 2019

Take a look at this for inspiration!
posted by mbarryf at 8:17 AM on October 7, 2019 [2 favorites]

Victor IV was an artist who worked with driftwood, and made some really cool stuff, here's a site with some of his work
posted by mumimor at 8:25 AM on October 7, 2019

My internet connection is wonky today so I won't link, but recommend the works of artists Deborah Butterfield and Andy Goldsworthy for inspiration.
posted by effluvia at 9:12 AM on October 7, 2019

Another good place to look for inspiration as well as instructions is Instructables. I see lamps, planters, furniture, coat racks...
posted by Too-Ticky at 11:33 AM on October 7, 2019

Make terrariums

Small pieces? Jewelry

Large pieces? Look into techniques for making it appropriate for birds, then sell/give to bird lovers

more terrariums, for pet reptiles or amphibians

large spindly pieces? jewelry rack, especially for necklaces
posted by amtho at 12:32 PM on October 7, 2019

Pieces of driftwood bring a tidy sum sold at orchid shows .
posted by hortense at 8:52 PM on October 7, 2019 [1 favorite]