Smelly Starfish???????? What the ???????

[diamondpooch]

Okay, so I'm making my own place cards. A small card attached to a white finger starfish with a ribbon. Pretty normal thing. I ordered my starfish off ebay and they came today which is good. BUT.... they smell like crap! Is this normal? How do I get this odor off of them? I've been letting them air out outside all day and nothing is working! They smell like.....I don't even know what else smells like this, but it's grossing me out! Help!

[vdaybride]

Yes I saw some at a local wholesale store and the entire aisle was a little well.. funky! Maybe a clear acrylic spray paint to seal in that stinch. If you have one to spare, try it and let me know how it goes. I know people wouldn't want that surprise near their dinner plate! Good luck...oh wait, why am I thinking of lemon juice. I use that to get the fish taste/smell off of fish when I am cooking. Maybe..

[hockeymom97]

During a trip to Jamaica a while back I saw a vendor turn the starfish upside down and soak the starfish in rum. He said that the alcohol killed whatever was left inside...I guess when the starfish die, if it's not cleaned properly, it will smell. I'm assuming just about any alcohol could work...I'm just not sure if this is something you need to do right away, when the starfish is still kind of fresh, or if doing it now would still help. Depending on how bad they smell, it might be worth a try?

[stacey]

Just leave them out side to air out for a day or two, the smell will go away. I sprayed mine with fabreeze it helped.

[*Meagan*]

I heard to leave them out in the sun. Or put them in bleach to kill whatever is left inside of them.

[autjo]

I just left mine out in the sun for the day and the smell went away.

[A2Bride]

I used bleach when i came back from a trip to get rid of the smell and kill everything off of conch shells, sand dollars, and star fish. That really helped!! If you do a serach online it will give you step by step instructions on cleaning and preserving them. Like I put oil/polish on some of mine to make them look "prettier". Good luck

[Marne]

I'm thinking of doing the same thing for my placecards - so diamondpooch, can you report back if any of these ideas worked! Thanks!

[diamondpooch]

Okay, thanks ladies! I have them airing out right now and if after a couple days they don't smell better, I'm going to try the alchohol or bleach thing. Thanks I will report back on how it goes.

Keep an eye out for my finished starfish place card DIY in my DIY thread in a little while.

[hockeymom97]

Good luck with airing them out...I can't wait to see how they turn out!