DIY: cut, clarity, clockwork

This weekend I found myself trapped inside by the horrendous, hurricane-force rain that rudely refused to cease, ruining any hopes I had for a sunny, outdoorsy weekend. Feeling bored and cooped up, I took to cleaning up a little. While cleaning up my guest room, I stumbled upon a ridiculously tacky clock in the dusty corner of the closet. The background read, in Comic Sans (ew), “Boys are smelly, throw rocks at them”. Apparently my elementary-school-age self believed in cooties, and concurrently believed the only way to cure them was through rock throwing. Because I have long since outgrown those beliefs, I decided to give the clock a facelift.

After much crafting, painting, and glueing, the clock became unrecognizable. I loved the result so much I thought I’d share it. Now, if you’re looking for a quick, 30-minute project, this isn’t it. But if you’ve got an old clock you want to spruce up, and a rainy-day-craft-state-of-mind, this is it.

You will need:

And last but not least, (actually quite the opposite, as it is the most important material):

Step 1: Print out the diamond template. You’ll want a few sheets printed for this, depending on how many diamonds you want on your clock. I got my template from a lovely blog, Mini-eco, which is full of adorable, no-stress crafts. Click here for the template http://www.minieco.co.uk/papercut-gems/, which looks like this:

Step 2: Tape the template on top of a sheet of colored paper. Tip: I taped around each side to ensure the layers wouldn’t budge, which would skew the cutting.

Step 3: Using a craft knife (and probably a cutting mat or a thick surface you don’t mind scratching up), cut out the designs. This part takes a while (even longer if you’re a perfectionist like me and insist on 100% straight lines), so put on a movie or some music in the background. Tip: I found it easier to start cutting the middle shapes, working my way outward. This way the two sheets of paper stay taped together.

Step 4: Once you’ve cut out your desired number of diamonds, use a glue stick to stick each one to a sheet of gold, metallic paper (found at most craft stores in the scrapbooking section). Tip: Be light with the glue, or else excess stickiness will show up on the metallic paper, making it dull.

Step 5: After the glue has dried, use a sharp pair of scissors to carefully cut around the edges of the diamonds.

Now for the clock part of the project. Since I didn’t like the picture on the face of my clock, I had to take the plastic cover off with a screwdriver in order to paint it. If you’re happy with the face and just want to paint the rim, that’s ok too.

Step 6: Whatever you decide to do, cover the part of the clock you don’t want painted with painter’s tape. Tip: Use your fingernail to smooth down the tape, creating a secure bond. If the tape isn’t fully attached to the surface, the spray paint will seep under it and you’ll get paint where you don’t want it.

Step 7: Spray it. A couple of things to keep in mind: only spray outside. Shake the can for a full TWO MINUTES before spraying. It’s tiring, but this is important because it prevents tiny paint bubbles from forming when you spray. Use two coats and let dry in between. Tip: To speed up the drying process, blast the paint with air from a hair dryer on the “cool” setting. Hot air will form cracks.

Step 8: After the paint is dry, peel off the tape carefully. Then, using a hot glue gun, attach the gold diamonds to your clock wherever you want.

Ta da!

What do you think?

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