Who says you can't make time? Not me! I fell into this idea when a friend of mine, with whom I also work, was in need of a clock. Her office, while very small, didn't come with a wall clock. Since she is a social worker, it is imperative that she know what time it is as she has students and parents coming and going for meetings. Plus, how annoying not to have a clock when you really need one!?!
So, after she mentioned that she didn't have a clock and that the custodian was supposed to be bringing her one.....soon (which translates to when he finds one that works someplace else in the building AND has time to hang it--in short, not soon enough), I thought, I could make one for her. It could be customized to her job. Something neat looking that people would comment on when they were in her office and would be a one of a kind gift. A clock that would be cute, without being too cutesy and showcase some of the many things she does to assist our families.
So, this is the final product. Pretty cute, huh? My Best Bud Lisa really liked it. (And believe it or not, the custodian came and asked me how I made it because she thought it would be a neat thing for the kids in the after-school program to make.) Check out my tutorial if you're interested in making one, too.
Supplies
- clock
- scissors
- glue stick or glue dots
- stickers, photos, miscellaneous decorations
- pencil
- screwdriver
- decorative paper
- awl or something pointed and sharp
- cricut (optional)
1. Find an inexpensive clock. Any kind will do. Mine was from Wal-Mart.
2. Remove the clock from the packaging. 
3. Turn the clock over and remove the back. There are usually some screws or tabs that keep the back attached to the clock's face. My clock had tabs. I just popped them in. 
4. Remove the back from the front cover. It should just come apart.
5. The face of the clock is attached to the back of the clock. Turn over the back of the clock and CAREFULLY remove the second, hour and minute hands. Just pull them off. They should come off pretty easily. Make sure to pay attention to the order that the hands were on the clock so that you will be able to put them back in their correct places--or your clock may not work properly when you put the clock back together.
6. If possible, carefully remove the printed face from the clock. If you're able to do this, you can simply trace around the face onto your new background and cut out. I, however, was unable to do this, so I had to trace around the "plasti-glass" onto the back of a piece of paper. (As the "plasti-glass" was larger then the actual clock face, I had to continue to cut down until the new face would fit comfortably over the original face.)
 |
| 6a. Remove "plasti-glass." |
 |
| 6b. Trace around "plasti-glass." |
 |
| 6c. Cut out. |
7. Remove the battery area on the back of the clock.
Some are screwed onto the back, but mine was just clipped onto the back.
8. Lay your new face onto the base of the clock.
9. Turn the clock over. Behind where the battery was attached, there will be the clips that hold the battery and the center hole that is where the hands will be attached. Using a pencil, make a mark onto the back of the paper. This is the center of your clock face.
10. Using an awl, or something shark, gently poke a hole over your pencil mark.
11. Check your new face. Make sure that it fits properly and that the hole is large enough to fit over the housing that will poke through to hold your clock hands. Now glue your face down to the clock. Be sure to push down all the way around to be sure that it is well adhered.
12. Now decorate to your heart's desire. I used stickers that represented things my friend does daily in her job. I added numbers that I cut out using my Cricut and glued down with glue dots. Some of my stickers were 3-D and in one part of my clock I placed numbers over these stickers. I ended up having to really glue these down well so that they wouldn't interfere with the hands making it around the clock. ** Just a reminder....if you add numbers to your clock, be sure that the 12 and 6 are in the right positions, or you won't be able to hang it up properly. (The hook on the back should be where the 12 should go.)
13. Put the battery mechanism back onto the back of the clock. Put the hands back on, in the proper order. Clean all the fingerprints from the "plasti-glass" and put it back onto the clock.
14. Add a battery and admire your work. I had an extra step--as I added a stamped saying around the edge of the clock face.
Let me know if you make one. I'd love to see it!
No comments:
Post a Comment