DealDash Teaches: Building a Sandcastle
Summer is in full swing here with temperatures in the mid-80s. I think it’s time to build a sandcastle.
Building a sandcastle is one of the most fun things about going to the beach, especially if you live somewhere that the water never truly warms up. I grew up in North Carolina very close to the beach, so I have spent my entire life making sandcastles. The weather in southern coastal North Carolina is very mild, and my family would go to the beach regularly from April until November. My kids don’t have it as lucky, Massachusetts may be coastal, but the beach season is significantly shorter.
Since I have been trying to teach the kids how to build a proper sandcastle I thought that I would write-up a quick instructional article. So if you want your sandcastle to go from looking like this:
to looking like this:
read on…
Most people are ill-prepared when they attempt their sandcastle, bringing maybe a bucket and a trowel. You don’t need many supplies, but you do need a few more than that. You need the aforementioned bucket and trowel, but you should also have something to tap the air out of the sand such as a bigger shovel or a largish flat rock, another bucket with the bottom cut off so it’s more of a large plastic tube than a bucket, a spoon, a plastic cup (like a red solo cup), and a paint stirrer.
The first thing that you will want to do is a little planning. Map out on the sand where your castle is going to be by drawing lines on the sand with your paint stirrer. Don’t bite off more than you can chew by making it too huge. Start on the smaller side until you get a little more confident in your building skills.
After you have mapped out the footprint of your castle then begin heaping sand into the outline of your castle from outside of the lines. Then with the back of your larger shovel pack the sides of the sand mound to form your castle walls. Make them higher than the center of the mound, creating a bowl shape to hold water. Keep packing until you get the height you want.
After you are done packing the sand use your bucket to fill up the bowl shape with water. Place a large bucket with bottom cut off on the mound. Fill three-quarters up with sand. Pour in water, climb in, and stomp. Tap sides with your shovel or flat rock to remove air. Repeat until bucket is full, then lift it off.
You can now use your paint stirrer to carve out walls, ledges, and doorways. You can use your plastic cup to add additional turrets to your castle, and use the spoon to dig out windows.
You’re done! If you would like to add any additional details such as shell decorations or cutting in brick designs with the paint stirrer now is the time. When you’re done be sure to take a picture of your sandcastle because like time, sandcastles are fleeting.
If you’re in need of a shovel or trowel DealDash has you covered. Just click on this link here and it will take you to a selection of shovels. DealDash also has waterproof cameras that are perfect for taking to the beach. Just click here and you can peruse your options. Good luck and happy bidding everyone!
