Clam shell for furniture

Clam shell is a hard, protective outer layer of the shell animal that lives in the sea. The clam shell is the part of the body of the exoskeleton of an invertebrate marine animal.  The shells will empty when the animal has died and the soft parts have been eaten by another animal or have rotted out. The clam shell can found many in the beach and collected to make souvenir. Many clam shell handicraft  is very common souvenir at the beach tourism.

Now, with the development of woodworking and finishing technology, the shell can be utilized to make special configuration for the furniture and handicraft products. The shells can be arranged and pasted on the wood surface to make panel with very attractive appearance. The resin is layered at the top to build the film layer and protection to the shell mosaic. Variety of patterns and model can be created with the arrangement of shell. 

The clam shells are widely used to make the panel to make the top panel for the table or cabinet. It usually used in combination with the wood or metal in the furniture product. The shell panel also can be used to make front drawer or accent parts at the cabinet, bed or even a chair.
With the proper process, the shells can also be attached to the curved surface used to make accent special appearance for the unflat surface.  

Finishing for the clam shells panel.

 
This shell panel usually is finished with natural color. The panel is already covered with resin layer. He already got protection and film layer. We can polish the surface to produce a flat smooth and high gloss panel. The high gloss shell panel will bring the unique, luxurious and special looked. However, if the lower gloss is required, we can apply to top with the required sheen.  We can apply stain or glaze to make color to the panel. However, too thick coloring should be avoided since it can cover and kill the beauty of the shell mosaic.
Any type of clear coat can be used;  NC, AC, PU or water work well with the polyester resin. PU is widely used because it can provide maximum protection, especially for the high gloss finish. The NC clear coating is also most used since it is easy in application, especially when we do stain and glaze application.