In every home, it is not global methods of surface finishing that give a special atmosphere, but small accessories and decorations. Do you want to decorate your home original things self made? Try making a wall clock with your own hands - it's not as difficult as it seems. Let's try to make a designer wall clock?
Materials and tools
What will you need to make a watch? First of all, it is a clock mechanism. It can be taken from factory alarm clocks or purchased at craft stores. If you need large, openwork arrows, make them yourself from a strip of thin metal:
- Print the template on your printer.
- Transfer it to the tin, pressing along the contour.
- Cut with scissors and make a hole with a hole punch.
- Paint spray paint in any color.
You can make walkers with figures moving in a circle: butterflies, flowers or a running person. To do this, parts cut out of thick but light cardboard are glued onto the finished arrows. The result is an original item with running, decorated arrows.
Important! There are special mechanisms with a pendulum that can be decorated to your liking. As a result, you get a thing that, when you look at it, you cannot believe that it was made with your own hands.
In addition to the mechanism, you will need a scale with marked numbers. Where can I get it?
Make numbers from:
- Salt dough. Knead a stiff dough from salt and flour (1:1), adding PVA glue to it. After rolling the sausages, place them in shapes and dry. When the dough is dry, paint the model with paint and fix it with varnish.
- Polymer clay. This material is similar to children's plasticine, but when baked in the oven it hardens, turning into plastic. It can be painted with gold paint or left with clay colors.
- Ready numbers for front door. Large numerals made of plastic and metal are suitable for large dials. They can also be painted in any shade.
- Stencils. Print and transfer the time scale to paper. Cut with a sharp knife and the stencil is ready. Now you can make the numbers by painting them with paint or texture putty.
- Available materials. Some ideas don't require purchased parts. The divisions will be replaced by buttons, keys, dominoes, beads, artificial flowers and colored paper.
Important! To make the product complete, think through the design in advance by drawing it on paper.
Look among the old clothes and sewing items - is there anything suitable there? Determine the style in which you want to make a watch: will it be luxurious Modernism, laconic Minimalism or cheerful decor for a nursery? And the idea of how to make a watch with your own hands will finally form in your head. All that remains is to bring it to life using the tips provided below.
Clock in decoupage style
An interesting design option not only for watches, but also for other household items is decoupage, which creates an imitation of painting. For this decoration method, printouts, napkins with patterns and special cards for decoupage are used, which are glued to a base made of any material:
- wood;
- plywood;
- cardboard;
- gypsum;
- plastic;
- glass;
- metal
It is impossible to say about such a ready-made item that it is homemade, and the drawing is not an author’s painting, but ordinary paper with a design.
To make your own watch more original in addition to decoupage:
- Apply brushing (firing). It is suitable for hardwood pieces.
- Use gold plating. Thin sheets gold leaf (rolled metal) is glued to numbers, the edge of a watch or part of a pattern.
- Decorate your watch with a stencil pattern.
- Add decorative effects. For example, paint it with metallic paint, mother-of-pearl, or decorate it with small glass beads.
- Antique your watch using craquelure compounds, which create a light network of cracks on the surface of the varnish, like in old paintings.
To make a simple wooden wall clock decorated with decoupage, take:
- napkins with a pattern;
- water-based acrylic varnish;
- acrylic paints;
- fine sandpaper;
- bristle brushes.
Operating procedure:
- Prepare the workpiece so that the soil adheres to the surface. To do this, sand the surface with fine sandpaper.
- Apply primer with a wide brush and dry.
Important! If you don’t have a special primer at hand, prepare it from PVA glue and white water-based paint, mixed in a ratio of 1:2.
- Sand the workpiece again. The surface must be perfectly flat, otherwise the pasted paper will lie unevenly and bubble.
- Apply glue to the workpiece and transfer the design to the base.
- Spread the paper over the surface, from the center to the edges, expelling air bubbles.
- When the decoupage is dry, coat the picture with 2-3 layers of varnish.
- Paint the sides of the clock.
- Print the dial to the size of the watch, transfer the markings to the blank with a pencil.
- Glue or draw numbers and a time scale.
- Install with reverse side clockwork.
- Attach arrows.
Important! Use several methods to create a unique piece of art. Apply craquelure over the gold leaf, fire along the edge of the clock, and draw the numbers through the stencil.
Cardboard clock for the nursery
This material is unfairly considered flimsy and unreliable, but on its basis you can make wall clocks with any type of decor and a wide variety of shapes.
2 types of cardboard are suitable for watches:
- corrugated cardboard - the same one from which packaging boxes are made;
- beer paper - this paper is used for binding books and is similar to thin plywood.
Important! Thin cardboard from creativity kits does not hold its shape, use it to decorate the finished watch: cut out decor from it to decorate the watch - numbers, figures and flowers.
We'll tell you how to make a watch for a child's room with large numbers:
- Mark the circle with a compass and cut it out with a utility knife. To make the workpiece durable, make 2-3 backing parts with a hole for the mechanism, and 1 front part. Glue them together and the watch will be durable.
- Divide the circle in half, pierce a hole for the mechanism rod with a pencil.
- Mark the numbers and stick on large buttons and bright lids from children's plasticine.
- Draw numbers on felt and cut out a circle to fit the lids.
- Glue the numbers onto the clock.
All that remains is to assemble the clock and hang it in the nursery.
Important! Complete the design with painting, applique and characters from your favorite cartoons.
Record clock
To decorate a clock from a record with your own hands, you will need a special tool - a jigsaw or an engraver. You won't be able to cut vinyl with a utility knife or soldering iron:
- Cover the plate with paper tape.
- Prepare a stencil on squared paper.
- Cut out the template with a blade.
- Attach it to the plate and trace it with a pencil.
- Cut the vinyl along the outline with a jigsaw, and then remove the tape.
- Sand the rough edges with sandpaper.
- Enlarge the hole and insert the clock mechanism.
Additionally, you can make a backlight that will highlight the outline of the clock and serve as a light source:
- Glue LED strip on double-sided tape to the clock mechanism along its perimeter.
- Install the crown with the switch and connect the wires.
Important! You can paint the plate with spray paint. If you need a multi-color design, then several stencils are created, each under specific color, which are superimposed one after another, starting with the lightest.
Clock made from CDs
Old laser discs are ideal for making clocks for your desk or kitchen. To turn an unwanted CD into stylish decor, there are several ideas:
- Cover the disc with a layer of black acrylic paint. Scratch numbers and floral designs. Rainbow patterns on a black background will turn a boring blank into a stylish watch.
- Connect several disks by gluing them onto a cardboard base. Insert the mechanism into the middle and you will get original watch in hi-tech style.
- Attach the disk to its plastic box, drill a hole for the arrow rod. Install an alarm clock mechanism. The result will be a compact timer on a desktop stand.
- To decorate the clock, use buttons from an old keyboard, securing them around the circumference.
- The plastic circle can be used as a dial for big clock, decorating it with painting.
Important! A CD cut into pieces can be used to make a mosaic. Decorate a clock, record, tray or box with colorful shards to create a stylish set.
Wooden wall clock
Wall Clock made from wood with your own hands is a wonderful interior decoration. Let's learn how to make a stylish watch in Eco-style.
Prepare:
- cutting down a tree;
- sandpaper;
- water stain;
- Matt lacquer;
- drill.
Operating procedure:
- Take a wooden round and sand the surface.
- Cover it with stain several times, achieving the desired color saturation.
- When the wood is dry, mark the numbers and the center of the circle.
- Drill a hole for the mechanism.
- Varnish the wood and set the clock.
Important! Use saw cuts with chips, cracks, or traces of knots for decoration to add individuality.
In addition to this idea, a wooden watch can be made from:
- Small plaques from vegetable boxes. Attach them to a square base, glue them and paint them with acrylic paint.
- From square scraps of timber and remnants of parquet. Combine them into a panel and select interesting numbers.
- Plywood. Cut out a shaped blank with a jigsaw and decorate to taste.
- From branch cuts filled with epoxy resin.
Important! Wooden clock They are considered a classic piece of furniture and will not go out of fashion for a long time. They suit any style, be it Loft, Vintage or Provence. By choosing interesting numbers and a color that harmonizes with other decor, you will have an excellent, functional item that will decorate your home for a long time.
Watch on the hoop
To make a watch with your own hands at home, you don’t need to buy expensive materials. A neat textile watch can be made from an old hoop:
- Find a round hoop and thread a smooth, plain fabric into it.
- Cut the material, make a hole in the middle of the fabric for the clock.
- Decorate front side buttons and embroidery.
- Insert the mechanism.
- Glue decorative tape around the circle and make a loop to hang the watch.
Additionally, you can decorate the hoop with lace, a motif cut from an old napkin, decoupage or painting.
Important! These clocks look good in a children's room or a rustic-style living room.
Clock on canvas
Sold in art stores ready frames with stretched fabric, from which you can make a fake watch:
- Prime the canvas with an aqueous solution of PVA glue.
- Apply putty mixed with glue using a flexible trowel.
Important! Simulate broad brush strokes to create a textured surface.
- When the canvas is dry, paint it with light paint.
- Then highlight any imperfections with dark and gold paint.
- Decorate part of the panel with decoupage or painting.
- Glue the finished numbers and attach the clock to the back.
You will get a picture with a clock that will decorate the interior and show the time.
Quilling
An interesting type of creativity, which is an application of strips of paper folded into various parts. A drawing is then assembled from them.
Important! Play with contrast - openwork elements will look good only on a dark or light background.
Operating procedure:
- Cut the paper into strips.
- Using a curly ruler, twist the spirals, securing the end of the tape to a pin.
- Assemble the composition into one whole.
- Transfer the paper clock to a thick base and place it in a photo frame.
Important! Complete the watch with rhinestones that will serve as markers for the hands.
Watches made from scrap materials
A DIY wall clock made from scrap materials is an original piece of furniture. You can be sure that no one else will have anything like this. They can be made from:
- Coffee beans, gluing them to the workpiece and decorating with twine.
- Tin cans with vintage pattern.
- Car wheel covers painted in bright colors.
- Natural materials - shells, dried flowers, pine cones, spices, nuts, collected in a beautiful composition.
- Large plates, trays, baking dishes and pans.
- Hard drive from an old computer.
- Covers from old books and magazines.
- Plastic spoons and forks mounted on a round clock base.
- Broken musical instruments.
Important! Having decorated these items with painting, appliqué, decorative materials, you can do it unique item interior The main thing is to show a little imagination.
By learning how to make a wall clock with your own hands, you can not only decorate your home and realize your creative potential, but also give new life old household items. Try to create an interesting designer item that will tell about your hobbies, taste and love for cozy things.
Comfort in our home depends on many details and little things. Thus, most interior stylists and designers agree that well-chosen curtains, lamps, blankets, pillows, carpets and clocks are integral attributes of comfort. Our master class will be devoted to the latter.
Anyone can make them, and there are hundreds of ways to do this. The most important thing in this matter is to install the clock mechanism (you can purchase it in a specialized store or remove it from old ones that are no longer used). required hours), And you appearance The product is left at your discretion.
In this lesson, we will talk about the most popular techniques that can be useful in designing original watches.
Clock in decoupage style
If you decide to make a watch using a similar technique, then you will need to purchase in advance from a specialized store a ready-made blank template, hands and clock mechanism, patterns for the background on rice paper or a napkin, acrylic paints, glue, varnish and other compositions necessary for decoupage, brushes, sponges.
First, you need to process the workpiece by covering it three times with acrylic paint primer and sanding it. After drying, it needs to be given the desired tone and texture. To give the surface of the watch an aged, shabby look, it is better to apply the paint randomly using a sponge. 
Next, you should outline a frame around the perimeter of the workpiece, stepping back a couple of centimeters from the edge, and paint it in a darker tone.
Now you need to paint the workpiece in the color that suits your interior. In our case, the tone chosen was light ocher (ocher mixed with white). Mix the paint and apply with a sponge. Let it dry completely, then sand the workpiece. 
The bezel of the watch must be highlighted in color. For example, wood paint would be suitable.
After this, you can apply the selected pattern to the workpiece. First you need to cut it out of rice paper, and if the pattern is on a napkin, then soak it in water. Now we simply apply it to its place on the dial and coat it with glue on top. 
In the next step you will have to use all your imagination and artistic skills, because you will need to remove the border between the napkin and the surface of the watch and achieve the integrity of the pattern with the background. To do this, you will need to select paints of appropriate tones and use a sponge to create smooth transition from pattern to surface. You can also try to continue the pattern in the same style and use a brush to complete its elements along the surface of the clock and along the dark frame. This will certainly add brightness and vibrancy to the image. 
After drying, the most interesting step in this process begins - the artificial aging of our watches. For this they use special remedy two-step craquelure. It is applied with a dry brush in two layers, allowing each layer to dry thoroughly.
After its use, characteristic cracks appear on the product, which should be rubbed with copper powder. On final stage the workpiece is varnished. 
Once the clock mechanism, numbers and hands find their place, the clock will come to life and will become a wonderful addition to your kitchen, living room interior or a wonderful gift for friends.
Quilling style
Quilling or paper rolling is a decorative and applied art in which one works with strips of paper of different widths, twisting them into pattern elements, which then form a single composition. A flat wooden plywood board or thick cardboard will be suitable as the basis for future watches. In our case, black paper was glued to the surface of the board, and the elements were mainly made of white paper to achieve contrast. You can choose any combination, as well as use any quilling elements.
The color scheme of the product should depend on where it will be used. At a minimum, it should fit into the existing style of the room and not disturb its harmony with its presence, on the contrary, strengthening this criterion. So the choice of color is the most important point in this case.
To work with this technique, you will need strips cut from paper, glue and a hook or knitting needle on which you will wind the paper. All ready-made elements are glued to the surface of the future product. You can mark the divisions, but this is not necessary.
First you need to do the numbers. Suitable for this simple elements quilling in the form of tightly rolled spirals.
After the numbers, proceed to creating the main elements of watch decoration. In this case, flowers consisting of the “drop” element were chosen.
The finished “drops” must be collected into flowers and all the preparations must be transferred to the surface of the watch.
Before adding the clock mechanism, you need to decorate the middle of the clock.
All that remains is to place the finished watch in a frame under glass.
This product option is suitable for children's bedrooms.
From wooden sticks
In this case, you will not need a lot of materials, just wooden sticks, glue, sharp scissors and working hours with flat surface. Cut out at least one hundred sticks and glue them like rays of sunshine in several rows, making sure that the length of the sticks is relatively equal. It is advisable to make a second layer of longer sticks. This will create an interesting visual effect - an “explosion” effect.
This design will fit original into the interior of the kitchen and living room.
From tiles for false ceiling
Such tiles, if, of course, they are made of gypsum, will always look beautiful and with special chic. Making our device from this material is an excellent solution for creative and romantic people.
Gypsum ceiling tiles are called medallions among builders. A clock mechanism is attached to its back. A hole is made in the center for the arrows. In order for our product to have a laconic and at the same time refined look, it is appropriate to apply an additional coating to it in the form of matte paint or paint with a glossy effect.
You choose the paint color yourself, but it is worth remembering that the original color of plaster, a material made to look like marble, is beige, white, pearl, white-coffee and white-purple (pale pink).
This element of room decor will perfectly complement the decoration of halls, living rooms, and bedrooms.
Hooray! I am officially a shoemaker with boots. I watched enough of the participants in our master class at HVOE making wall clocks, and now (less than six months have passed) we have a tropical time keeper in our kitchen.
At the beginning of May, our HVOE hosted a master class where we made wall clocks with our own hands. The idea for the workshop came up back in January, and it was a pleasure to implement it. Here, by the way, the clock in the kitchen, which I had long since stopped liking, broke down. Combined business with pleasure. Firstly, I made a new device for telling the time, secondly, an article for the blog, and thirdly, I included my favorite tropical decor this summer.
Why make a watch yourself when you can buy one?
And it’s clear that something made with your own hands is done with soul and from the heart. Perhaps the purchased ones will be of better quality and with a guarantee, but there are more advantages to making a wall clock with your own hands:
- you can implement any idea (for example, like mine with the tropics)
- choose exactly the size you need
- find the correct arrows and mechanism
- start to understand a little better how wall clocks work
- proudly inform everyone that you made them yourself (and this is not just a card or a flower, but a whole device).
What to make a dial for a wall clock from
When thinking about a panel for a dial, it is worth remembering that a watch can be not only round, but also triangular, square, or even in the shape of a flower.
- The panels can be ordered at the laser cutting workshop
- find and buy ready-made plywood in an online store or in a craft store
- make from cork backing or thick thick cardboard
- cut from drywall
- made from wood cut
- or from a vinyl record.
How to decorate a wall clock
There are a lot of ways to decorate a wall clock, it all depends on your desire to create and bother.
- You can print and paste the finished picture
- paint with acrylic paints
- draw something with watercolors, cut and glue
- glue three-dimensional parts made of thin plywood
- embroider something on fabric and cover it
- You can draw or glue numbers.
Wall clock - materials and tools
Time spent - one and a half hours. We will need:
- round panel made of plywood with a diameter of 30 cm
- clock mechanism with hands
- paper and pencil
- ruler
- acrylic paints and brushes
- palette for mixing paints
- pliers
- scissors.
DIY wall clock - progress of work
The mechanism can be ordered from an online store or used left over from an old watch. There are a couple of points to pay attention to:
- dial thickness
- thread diameter (must match the diameter of the hole in the middle of the panel)
- and the height of the rod (the stump on which everything is held, and on which the arrows are put on).
For example, in my mechanism the height of the rod is only 8 mm, which means that the thickness of the plywood blank should not exceed 4 mm, otherwise there will not be enough space to tighten the nut. The best overall stem height is 16mm and the thread height is 9mm. This mechanism is suitable for most wooden workpieces.
If there are voluminous parts on the dial, you need to make sure that the hands will not cling to them.
1. Before you start making a wall clock with your own hands, you need to decide where the number 12 will be. To do this, you need to turn the panel over, insert the clock mechanism, mark with a pencil the middle of the top of the mechanism (it will coincide with the middle of the loop) and draw a perpendicular line. It is from here that the countdown will begin and the distance between the numbers will be marked (if they are planned).
2. Take a sheet of paper, trace the outline of the dial on it and draw the decor. This is useful for seeing if the composition looks harmonious before it is too late to change anything. I drew the outlines of the leaves on paper, then cut them out and transferred them to a piece of plywood using a pencil.
3. Color the blank in accordance with the decor. I used white construction acrylic, artist acrylic and colored tinting paste.
4. When the paint is dry, screw on the clock mechanism. There can be a lot of detail that can be used or ignored depending on the thickness of the dial. Usually, the watch mechanism comes with an assembly diagram, which I advise you to follow. We string a rubber backing onto the stem and apply it to the dial on the reverse side. The top (middle of the loop) should coincide with the pencil mark (see point 1).
5. Turn the workpiece over, put the washer on the rod and tighten the nut. Here we need pliers so that we can tighten it more tightly.
6. String the arrows. By the way, I repainted the arrows from white to black. There are also two points here. Firstly, the arrows may be protective film which needs to be removed. Secondly, black artist's acrylic did not adhere very well to metal, so I had to first prime the arrows with artist's white acrylic, and then apply black after drying.
Before stringing, you need to make sure that all the arrows are straight. First we string the hour, then the minute. The second one gets dressed last. They are strung until they click lightly. It is important not to overdo it or be too zealous, so as not to break the delicate fasteners. The hands must be strictly parallel to each other and not touch, otherwise the clock simply will not move.
7. Set all hands to 12 o’clock according to the mark, insert the battery and adjust right time using a special wheel, which can be found on the back of the mechanism.
A couple of evenings, an hour and a half - and I happily used up my time. Take care of your time, spend it with those who give you joy!
Best,
My relatives renovated the kitchen. A wall clock is not enough to complete the interior. The old clock is working, but outwardly it doesn’t fit into the updated kitchen at all. It would be a pity to dispose of the watch; there is a dedicatory inscription on it. I'll try to breathe new life into them.
To work with the clock, let's take it apart. Dial, glass (not plastic, as in modern watches) and frame.
I didn’t even try to remove the clock mechanism, because... Upon careful inspection, I did not find any fastening elements. The dial will be accompanied by a careful rotation of the minute hand, this will complicate the work a little.
So let's start with the frame. I decided to cover it with fabric; I had just the right one in stock. color scheme. This is a fairly thick cotton fabric with elastane. When cutting it cuts quite a bit. We place the frame on the fabric and trace it with cutting chalk, making indents along the edges for folds.
Let's cut out our pattern. Place double-sided tape on the outside of the frame to secure the fabric before wrapping.
After making small cuts in the corners and gluing double-sided tape inside the frame, we tighten it, carefully wrapping the edges of the fabric and gluing it onto the tape. I didn’t choose the adhesive tape by chance; the fabric sticks well to it. In this case, the glue would soak through the fabric and complicate the process.
Having finished fitting the frame, I tried it on the watch. It turned out great.
And we could stop there. But the factory decor of the dial tells us that this is not entirely a man-made product; it looks rather boring. In addition, relatives really wanted a wall clock with Roman numerals. So let's move on to the dial. The dial is molded from plastic, the numbers and letters on it are part of a solid structure. Therefore, I decided to putty the surface of the dial, leveling everything to zero. The height of the leg on which the arrows rotate allows us to apply 2-3 mm of putty.
Carefully rotating the hands, I walked over the entire surface of the dial.
The can of putty says that it dries from 3 to 24 hours, I decided to wait as long as possible to be on the safe side. A day later, I discovered microcracks on the surface and once again went through with putty, this time only rubbing these very cracks with a layer of less than 1 mm. The second layer took 5-6 hours to dry.
After complete drying, I lightly rubbed the surface with a small spatula, knocking down any unevenness, and wiped it with a damp sponge, removing small particles. I primed it with two layers of white acrylic paint without water, with each layer drying in between. And finally, I tinted the surface of the dial with the color of acrylic paint without water I needed, using chaotic strokes. The result is such an interesting texture.
I found Roman numerals on the Internet and, in addition to them, the Eiffel Tower, which matches the style of the kitchen. I printed out the image and, placing the sheet of paper in a plastic file, outlined the drawing with black stained glass paint from the Stained Glass children's set. This paint, when dried, turns into sticky sticker.
A day later, the numbers were drying along with the dial, I transferred these stickers to the dial. I collected the watch and...
...I hope the relatives will be happy.
You don't need to have any special knowledge to understand how the watch mechanism works. Probably in every house there are old chinese watch with still working mechanism. It may be useful to you when creating original wall clocks with your own hands. In the human understanding, watches have a certain mystical power. After all, they have a special function - to be a time manager.
Creation of watches with my own hands Any housewife can do it. She may only need a little imagination and a certain amount of time to create this decorative element. As a result, such a clock will be an attractive place in your interior. We must assume that anything can serve as a dial. The most important thing is that such watches must be original and beautiful.
One of the creation options could be a round board, which previously served as a cable reel. In this case, the designer, not paying attention to the main purpose of the coil, saw stenciled inscriptions and a hole in the middle as a basis for the dial homemade watch. If you are decorating a travel agency office or a room with a geographic focus, a special option for creating a clock would be to use halves of a globe. Such a clock will take up quite a bit of space on the wall, but in any case it’s worth it. In the kitchen, you can use a version of a clock with buttons to replace the numbers on the dial. Such a watch will create the effect of a grandmother’s chest with old things. A ball clock will be complex, but quite unusual. Here you need to take a bright ball and a curved arrow as a basis. Such wall clocks will look like a real time machine from science fiction films. To create a clock-painting, you will need to take any painting you like and adapt it so that it shows the time.
The strict style of a living room or office will suit the option of a clock decorated on a chessboard. In this case, elegance, rigor and precision in the room are guaranteed to you. Use wood as the base of your homemade clock, and you can use thin branches as hands. The result is a natural and environmentally friendly version of a wall clock. Music lovers and music lovers have a right to life with figures cut out of old, unnecessary gramophone records. This will be a very creative watch design. If you do decide to hang a clock, then make sure that it will be visible from anywhere in the room, and you will always know what time it is at the moment.
