I always get asked the question “How do you get started?”  My answer: lots and lots of water and sand!  And then more water and sand!  

     Once that’s out of the way, just let your creativity take over.  There are many ways to pound, stack or form sand.  I can’t really recommend one method over another.  Personally, I use vinyl roof flashing in various widths stacked in layers atop one another.  Small clamps hold the rings together.  I like the vinyl because it can be used again and again, and it’s a light weight material, yet very sturdy. Using these forms, I can create castles eight feet tall.  The process resembles building a giant birthday cake with each new layer topping the one below.  

     Once the sand is stacked is when the real fun begins.  Sometimes I’ll have a drawing or sketch, but many times I’ll just start at the top and work my way down.  One of the neatest things I ever carved was a fire hydrant.  After it was done, we were all sitting around watching people with their dogs on the beach, and this one dog walks right up to the fire hydrant and hikes his leg!  About an hour later here comes the same dog from the other direction and sure enough, he hiked his leg again.  I regret we didn’t have a video camera with us that day. 

     That’s the neatest thing about sand sculpting ... each piece is unique, and there’s usually a story that goes with each one.