Shealynn's Faerie Shoppe: craft room

, by Shaylynn

Clothespin Clock {Tutorial}

It's very easy to let time run away from you while working on a craft project. I can't tell you how many times Dad has walked into the backroom and told me it's already an hour past my bedtime.

The solution? A cute, unique, and functional wall clock. It's the perfect bold embellishment in any room, and the bright funkyness is exactly what the drab concrete walls in our craft room needed!

You will need:

sturdy paper plates

scrapbook paper

scissors

Mod Podge (or other decoupage glue)

a bag of clothespins

clock parts (buy a "kit" from a craft store, or gut an old clock)

(optional) a washer and fingernail polish

something to hang the clock from

(optional) ribbon

Gather your materials.

Note: you will need almost an entire bag of clothespins. I already had one hanging around the back room, because I use them all the time for crafts. (That is part of the reason why I love this clock so much-- I can still use the clothespins, but they are now very cute and are never lost in the bottom of a box!)

Glue the paper plates together. I used four, so that the clock would be very strong and sturdy.

Cut 2 colors of scrapbook paper into circles the size of the bottom of the paper plate.

Cut the circles into 12 sections. Arrange them so that the colors alternate.

These will mark the hours (although you could use number stickers or other odds and ends to mark the hours-- the possibilities are endless! Buttons, pom-poms, legos...)

Decopauge this paper onto the paper plate.

Next, decopauge the scrapbook paper onto the clothespins. I found it was easiest to coat the paper with Mod Podge, lay the clothespins ontop, let dry, and then cut them out. Once they are all cut out, apply a top coat of Mod Podge to each individual clothespin.

Next, use a nail or other sharp object to poke a hole through the center of the paper plates. Insert the clock parts and screw them all together.

Arrange the clothespins around the paper plate. My plates had little ridges every few centimeters, and that provided the perfect guide for spacing the clothespins.

Here, you can see that I took a washer, painted it with fingernail polish, and used it between the paper plate and the clock hands. I did this because the plates were not thick enough and the clock movement was moving around.

I also put some red fingernail polish on the clock hands, to make them stand out more.

The next step is to hang the clock. I attached some ribbon to the back of the paper plates using duct tape.

You could then simply hang the clock on a nail. I, however, had to deal with a very not-nail-able concrete wall... so I just used an extra-strong 3M wall hanger. Worked like a charm.

I also added some extra ribbons at the top, for decoration.

Works like a charm! Now I have a bright, bold clock... and a bunch of totally usable, cute clothespins... right where they will never get lost.

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Did YOU make something using or inspired by this tutorial? Please share in the comments!