Probably because of the storm we had a few weeks ago, the shore is littered with sea urchin shells in a way that it never was last year. (As well as mounds of seaweed and driftwood.)
This makes walking barefoot on the beach a treacherous task, but it also makes for amazing beach finds.
My daughter gathered a bucket of these delicate shells, collecting them like little treasures; my son and I made shapes with them on the beach and I photographed them.
It is wonderful what we can find on the shore.
In a Snap 
My mother took about 10 of these home!
The shell looks even more impressive when you see the creature in it with its purple ‘needles’! Your photographs of these are wonderful! I can almost feel the climate and air through them!
By the way,where do you live?
They are gorgeous – my first ever beach find was a fossil sea urchin, marked very much like these, when I was about three!
We are in Atlantic Canada, and my house is only about 15 minutes away from the beach. In the summer, I go as often as I possibly can – I absolutely love it!