Merry Crabmas!

Holey Moley! Where has the time gone? It seems like time has been flying by at an unprecedented pace.......at least for me it has. I really need time to slow down a bit. Nonetheless, here we are with the Christmas shopping season upon us and never enough time to prepare for it. Needless to say, I have been pretty much spending every waking moment scrubbing shells and painting them. As I try my best to have the shells that most people want to buy, it is never enough........I simply cannot mass produce them. Some people will be disappointed, and some will be very happy. I cannot please everyone........although I try to do so. Often, it is difficult to anticipate what people will want to buy. As an example.........do I spend the time making six Steelers shells and then find out I should have spent the time making six Redskins shells? It's all about time........isn't it? 

Some of my customers have played it smart and planned ahead by ordering their shells ahead of time........(there's that TIME thing again).........good for them. And I know there will be some who are waiting until the last minute and will expect me to knock out some custom shells for them in record time............aaarrggghh!
Lack of planning on their part does not constitute an emergency on my part. Once again it is all about TIME.  And time is running out.........at least for Christmas orders.

If you are reading this blog for the first time.......welcome!
If you are local to the Baltimore area........come see us at the flea market!
If you have the need for something special to give as a gift..........I have what you need.

Single crab shells with rope.........only $10.
Diorama shells...........................only $15.
Crab shell in 5x7 display box.....only $25.
Two shells in 8x10 display box...only $45.
Larger display boxes with three shells or combo with mallets........prices vary.

Time is running out..........first come, first served. 

Saturdays and Sundays at Northpoint Plaza Flea Market in Dundalk, MD.
7am until 4pm

Monday at Hunter's Sale Barn in Cecil County MD 3pm until 8pm.


Sorry......no online purchasing available at this time. 

Feel free to contact me via email:  signtopia@aol.com

Painted Crab Shells in Display Boxes

 I have so much to say that I will just have to store it all under my hat for a while. If you happened to have browsed through this blog's older entries, you surely know that I can be very opinionated..........and that has not changed. The reason that I spout off less these days is that I have been extremely busy painting..........YES!..........PAINTING.......crab shells.............and YES!..........WITH MY HANDS!  
I get asked the question "Do you paint these by hand?"..........and the other gem of a question "You do these by yourself?"............needless to say, my response has been to simply say "I tried using my feet byt they won't cooperate." and after I look around under my table "Yep,.........there are no midgets or little Mexicans under the table painting away."

Yes........I paint on crab shells........and I use real paint and real brushes, too :)
Oh yeah.......another big question I get is "How long does it take you to paint one?"  Well, I suppose this is a fair question to ask and I think it is a fair response to say "As long as it takes."  You see, not all shells have the same thing painted on them. Some are simple and some are complex. Some are downright difficult and some I tend to take longer to do because I might not enjoy doing that particular one. Actually, it is rare that I ever just sit down and paint just one at a time. I work in batches and paint them according to the method to my madness. If I am using red paint.......then I line up all of the various assorted shells that needs red paint. Then I move on to the next color, and so on. If I have music in my ears, I work faster and can pump out about 100 shells in a weeks time if I push myself. But normally I average about 35 to 40 shells per week. So there you have it..........its a huge amount of work and yes, I get tired of it and need to take breaks here and then.

Lately, I have been taking lots of special requests for custom painted shells and shells in display boxed. It is the start of that time of year when smart people plan ahead and place orders now for Christmas. Of course, some people place orders for birthday gifts, etc. Recently as last week, one repeat customer of mine requested a display box with two crab shells inside. They wanted one shell to have the Baltimore City flag and the other shell to have the Maryland flag,  They told me that it was a gift for the Mayor of Baltimore.

The Baltimore Flag shell.

The Maryland Flag shell.

The finished product.

Another customer had ordered a display box with his family name on a Scotland flag on a crab shell. Two weeks later he came back and requested another display box with five crab shells inside. This time I had to paint each crab with the first names of each member of his family.

The finished product.

If you would like a painted crab shell, or a painted crab shell in a display box.......or would like to order one for a gift this Christmas...........time is of the essence..........get on down to the North Point Plaza Flea Market and look over my wide selection of crab shells on display and put in your request for custom orders. You can even watch me paint :)  Without a doubt, Signtopia's Painted Crab Shells has the largest amount of painted shells available on any given day..........anywhere.

Also.....come see us at Hunter's Sale Barn on Mondays in Port Deposit, MD.

Triple shell box.

The Maryland Flag display box.

One of a kind and only one available,

Hand Painted Crab Shells Part 3

Ho!.....Ho!......Ho!
As I write this it is after midnight......uh.......gee it's Tuesday already.........arrrggghhhh.......so much to do and such little time. My plate is full this week.......crabs.....crabs.....and more crabs........all of the prep work on the latest batch of crab shells..........it has been seemingly endless. I started cleaning up the shells Monday morning and while about fifty or so were left to dry, I headed off to deal with the grandchildren. I started cleaning up another batch of shells when I got home around 7:30 pm. Let's see......I lost count.......that was another good 40 to 50 more shells now set out to dry. I still have another large bag of shells to be cleaned sitting in the fridge.....my guess is there is another 60 or so to go. If only I had ten hands........oh well.

The crab shells have been a hit. I figured that I would show some pictures of some that have been going fast.......as soon as I make them.......they sell and I find myself making more of them.
Personally, I prefer doing each crab shell as one of a kind. That way, it doesn't become boring or laborious for me. The idea was not to "work hard"........and yet, at least for the Christmas holiday shopping period.........it has become quite difficult to keep up with the demands. The Steelers crab shell is very popular.......apparently there are alot of Steelers fans in Baltimore.

Of course the Redskins are popular too.........after all, the Redskins play in Maryland!........this painted crab shell stuff IS a Maryland thing you know.

I do not have all of the teams, but I do take requests......if you want one, I will probably make one for you..........note: I do need some time though. Usually a one week wait.

Yep, I sold out of the Utz girl.............but hopefully I will have time to make a few more before the week ends.

Here is something you won't see just anywhere......needless to say......it sold right away.

I do special requests like this one.......the Greek flag with the family surname in Greek.


I simply don't quite get it but there are some folks that wanted Boston Red Sox crab shells.

I can understand putting things related to Maryland on a crab shell. This one is also very popular.

And no......it is not a sticker........hon.

I only made one of these and I sold it this past weekend. The "golden eggs" of Dundalk!

Well.......that's about it for now........time for some shut-eye and then back at it again tomorrow.

Please note: If you are interested in purchasing some of the hand painted crab shells be sure to come see me at the North Point Plaza Flea Market every Saturday and Sunday with the exception being THIS WEEKEND, the flea market will be open on Friday, DEC 23rd and Saturday DEC 24th and closed on Sunday. Christmas Day.

Hmmmmm.......so I have three and a half days to paint about 100 crab shells..........hmmmmm..............I must be crazy.

Have a very Merry Christmas everyone!

Ho! Ho! Ho!