shellwork

American  

[shel-wurk] / ˈʃɛlˌwɜrk /

noun

1. decorative work composed of seashells.

   an elaborate picture frame decorated with shellwork.

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Etymology

Origin of shellwork

First recorded in 1605–15; shell + work

Example Sentences

Art was not somthing that could be depended on, though all right for a hobby, like shellwork or wood carving.

From "Cat's Eye" by Margaret Atwood

These remarkable creations are so utterly tasteless, with masses of bristling shellwork and crude, ungainly statues, that we wondered how anything so inartistic could find a home upon Italian soil.

From In Château Land by Wharton, Anne Hollingsworth

Several "waganga," recognizable by their badges of conical shellwork, came boldly forward.

From Five Weeks in a Balloon by Verne, Jules

That had been only a few days ago, and Ray had shown the quilt, so rich and lustrous, and delicate with beautiful shellwork stitchery,—to the young girls this afternoon.

From The Other Girls by Whitney, A. D. T. (Adeline Dutton Train)

They have belts of shellwork slung across their shoulders, and are armed with bows and arrows, and flint-headed spears.

From Grandfather's Chair by Hawthorne, Nathaniel