Wednesday, February 15, 2012

DIY: Artist Canvas Wall Clock

The idea of using a paint canvas to make a wall clock came to me quite accidentally. After a frustrating search for a wall clock that was reasonably priced, one that matched the rest of the decor of my living room and was of the right size, I decided to make it myself. A search on the internet for ideas came up with many using ceramic plates, which, for many reasons did not appeal to me. While I was still waiting for that eureka moment, I joined Traci Bautista's called Doodles Unleashed, the first of three online workshops run by Stathmore's Artist Studio.  For lesson one, I created this doodle art using an artist canvas that was first covered with vintage papers and painted and stenciled with various found objects.


Used for stenciling


I loved the way it turned out and that was when it hit me that I could turn this canvas into a clock. Off I went to Michaels to buy a clock kit and came up with this!


As you can see, it is not a very functional clock because the busy background obscured the numbers. I removed the clock unit and covered the design with a green paint mixed with glaze, which created a transparent layer letting the design beneath show through. I put back the clock unit and now it looked like this:


This was better and I was happy with it. For a week. The numbers were beginning to look too small and brassy. Went to Michaels again and got another number set in a larger size. They too were in metallic brass but I painted over them black with a deco art pen. Here is the final version (for now!).


Thanks for visiting.

Submitted to Gingersnap Creations Color Challenge Glorious Greens

P.S. I will post detailed instructions for making the clock soon.