Comfort and coziness in our home sometimes depends on even the smallest details and elements. Even most interior designers agree that the most important attributes for achieving comfort in the home are well-chosen curtains, original lamps, soft and selected in the right shade, blankets, pillows, bath mats and watches.
This article will focus on a master class on how to decorate a clock at home yourself.
Available on the Internet a large number of photos of watches, most of them are made by famous designers, but make original watch At home it’s also not difficult.
There is, of course, one key and difficult point - installing a mechanism on the watch for its operation, but a ready-made mechanism should be bought in a store and installed according to the instructions. But appearance future watches and its other design completely depends on personal preferences and tastes.
There are several modern techniques, which help you make your own watches in any style.
Clock style decoupage
This technique of designing and creating a wall clock involves working with a ready-made store template, which already has a blank, the base of the hands and the finished mechanism. You can also purchase ready-made patterns on papers, special paints, glue and other decoupage elements.
The preparation for the watch is done in this way: the base is covered several times with soil from acrylic paints, and finally polished. The desired shade and texture are given to the base in the next step.
There is one trick - if you want to make a watch in the old style with a tint that represents scuffs, then the paint must be applied with a sponge.
Decorate Wall Clock DIY is a process of bringing out the imagination and creativity from a person. Special water stickers can be applied to the base. Or you can draw a preliminary sketch yourself and transfer it to the dial.
Afterwards, the finished mechanism and arrows with numbers are attached. After a series of actions, the clock you created with your own hands will come to life and give your home a special, original look.
Quilling style watch
Quilling is an arts and crafts process that involves working with straight strips of colored paper of varying widths. Such strips, as a rule, are twisted and glued to the surface, thereby creating the most varied designs and pictures.
To create a watch using this technique, it is best to take wood as the base of the watch, since quilling elements can be glued to it well.
The color scheme should be in harmony with the interior of the room. After all, a bright clock will look ugly in a room designed in a minimalist style. Therefore, the choice of shade is a key point in this matter.
Most often, multi-colored quilling elements are used to create flowers, insects, trees, animals, berries, and so on.
Plaster clock
Regular plaster tiles will serve well as a base for future watches.
Romantic and reverent natures will definitely find a large number of solutions for creating watches from this material.
Among professionals, such a tile is called a medallion. The mechanism of the future watch is attached to it back side. To make the product look more elegant and discreet, you should cover its surface with matte paint in light colors.
And, if you want some highlights, then glossy paint will do.
Note!
This material is most suitable for creating a clock for the bedroom. At the same time, shades are chosen - beige, soft pink, pearl, coffee with milk, purple, and so on.
Clock using wooden sticks
In this situation, your arsenal should include items such as sticks and quality wood, good glue, scissors, and a ready-made working clock with a flat surface.
You should cut out many small sticks of the same size from wood, and then connect them
If the sticks are applied to the base in two layers, you can achieve a wonderful “explosion” effect, which looks luxurious and original.
Now you know how to make a clock at home. Watch self made Ideal for the kitchen, living room, and bedroom.
Note!
DIY watch photo
Note!
All photos from the article
The topic of this article is wooden wall clocks. We will get acquainted with the history of the creation of all-wood mechanisms in our country and find out who and in what years created the most remarkable designs. In addition, we will get acquainted with the methods of making watches with our own hands - both based on a ready-made quartz watch mechanism, and from scratch, with all the mechanics made from.
Bronnikov watches
Whom did Herzen wake up?
Here are two facts that seem completely unrelated to each other:
- The writer Alexander Herzen, a comrade of the Decembrists and one of the theorists of the Russian revolution, was convicted back in 1834 “for singing libelous songs” and soon after that, in May 1835, he was exiled to the city of Vyatka;
- On March 31, 2001, they were sold at the Geneva antique auction wooden clock Russian master Bronnikov. The transaction price was a record for a watch movement - 34,500 Swedish francs. What is unusual about this fact is that the mechanism of the watch (fully working, despite being a century and a half old) was made entirely of wood.
What do these two events have in common?
The very concept of exile during Herzen’s life meant only that the disgraced nobleman was removed from the capital, while maintaining his civil privileges and status. Soon after moving to Vyatka, Alexander Ivanovich organized an exhibition of industrial products there.
Note: the official status of the enterprise organized by the exiled revolutionary was confirmed by the fact that the co-founder of the fair was the Zemskaya Uprava of the city (by today's standards - the municipality).
Herzen invited the most famous artisans of the city to exhibit their goods self-made, in order to stimulate trade between urban industrialists and neighboring cities and regions of the empire. One of those who responded was sixty-year-old wood turner Ivan Tikhonovich Bronnikov; His son, Semyon Ivanovich, helped him in his work.
The passage of time, very significant compared to human life, has erased many details of events and their sequence. Much of what happened in the 19th century leaves us guessing about its reasons.
Here is a scattering of facts and their retellings from that time related to the history of the wooden clock from Vyatka:
- Before that very exhibition organized by Herzen, father and son Bronnikov specialized in making boxes and caskets. Their calling card was wooden hinges made from birch burl - a special growth on the birch trunk, characterized by exceptional strength, resistance to moisture and shock loads;
It’s curious: a twenty-pound (just under 10 kg) birch burl was then sold for 50 rubles. For comparison, for the same money at an agricultural exhibition you could buy a purebred stud bull or several cows.
- One day Semyon Bronnikov was shown the mechanism of a pocket watch. They say that he was so shocked by its complexity that he immediately wanted to make his own version, but from the material familiar to the master - wood;
- Over the next few months, the master, whose products were in considerable demand, practically abandoned the work that brought him income and spent all his free time turning gears. Needless to say, the family was... let's say, not very happy with this development of events;
- His manic passion for watch mechanics gave a logical result: Bronnikov Sr. was committed to a psychiatric hospital by his relatives. Of course, for his own good;
- A year later, after leaving the hospital, he secretly continued to work on the clock and after some time showed the public a working copy. The watch case had a diameter of three centimeters and did not contain metal parts.
About fifty years ago, such an interior element as a grandfather clock could be seen in every second Soviet apartment. They were the pride of any owner. But over time, interior fashion replaced such exclusiveness, and the area of Soviet Khrushchev-era buildings did not always allow for luxury, which would take up a lot of space. But, as you know, fashion is cyclical. And all the well-forgotten old things become relevant again. Devices with a striking or cuckoo sound in a wooden case are again in favor. Craftsmen who specialize in exclusive products are increasingly receiving orders for such watches. True, they don’t charge pennies for their work. But making a grandfather clock with your own hands is not as difficult as it seems at first glance. To do this, you only need to know a few nuances and carefully read our article.
Timeless classic
The term “Floor Clock”, that is, “floor clock” came to us from in English. In the same country they came up with the following types of mechanisms:
- Grandfather Clock, reaches a height of 195-200 cm;
- Grandmother's clock - Grandmother Clock, reaches a height of 150-190 cm;
- Granddaughter's clock - Granddaughter Clock, reaches a height of 150 cm.
The world first saw such watches in the 17th century. This detail traditionally carried certain symbolism of that period, and also testified to the wealth and aristocratic origin of their owners:
- At first, the clock was a tall, narrow cabinet, behind the walls of which the entire clock mechanism was hidden; only the dial was visible to the eye.
- About a century later, the production of watches began with a glass front part of the cabinet wall, behind which not only the dial, but also the exquisite pendulum was visible.
Important! Now, in addition to height, DIY grandfather clocks differ in the material used to make the case - there are wooden, glass, plastic and metal cases. But products made from various types of wood with the addition of quality finishing materials remain classics that will never go out of style.
DIY grandfather clock
Before you learn how to make a grandfather clock with your own hands, you should decide on the design.
Choosing the right model
Masters share finished goods into three types:
- Vintage. Such products are very similar in shape to a tower. The apex has a rounded outline. Most often, they have a body made of dark wood and consist of a base structure, a display case, which is equipped with a door and a dial located in the upper part.
- Interior. Here the design depends entirely on style direction interior Classic rectangular shape don't play a role. Both wood and plywood are used as the main material. Most often, the color chosen for them is neutral or light.
- Modern. These include devices that transform the classical presentation. Vivid examples are grandfather clocks made in the form street lamp or tall models that are equipped with a metal support.
If you decide to make a grandfather clock with your own hands, then it is better to opt for a classic, antique design. The most important thing about it is the base, a box consisting of frames and facades fastened together.
Important! Wood and veneer are best suited for such a case. hard rocks such as maple and oak.
Operating procedure
The main work of creating a grandfather clock with your own hands is done by hand:
- First of all, prepare the frames for the future frame. These should be thin but strong wooden pieces, because they will form the basis of the entire structure.
- Fasten the frames together with pre-prepared spikes. Insert them into the holes of the structure at the corner joints and be sure to treat them with glue. Wait until it is completely dry.
Important! You can also use it to assemble the base. metal corners, placing them with inside designs.
- Then use regular hinges to attach it to the base of the door.
- Now prepare the facades. First, sand them with sandpaper to achieve a perfectly smooth surface.
- Then immediately attach them to the base. It is recommended to assemble the case together using pins, glue and screws. After assembly, you also need to wait until the glue has completely dried.
- Facades can be decorated with the most various elements. To do this, use staples, slats or platbands, creating any patterns on your future grandfather clock with your own hands. First they are glued with outside, and then they are additionally secured with screws from the inside.
- Once all the parts are in place, sand the surface again. After this treatment, the paint will be absorbed evenly.
Important! It is not necessary to finish with varnish. You can emphasize the beauty of wood with ordinary stain. It can both lighten the tree and darken it. This can be skillfully used on various parts of the box.
- Then, when the coating has completely dried, insert the glass into the door frame, securing it with reverse side. At this stage, maximum caution is needed; if you tighten the fasteners, the glass may simply burst.
- Once the door is in place, install the clock mechanism. It may include long sounding metal rods and pieces that keep time and drive hammers that strike the rod every hour, every half hour, and every 15 minutes, depending on the settings.
- Having connected the clock mechanism to the dial, insert the latter decorative element- a wooden panel framing the dial.
- Then set the arrows to black or gold. They are secured with a decorative nut.
- And now it comes to such important details as weights and a pendulum. The weights are copper cylinders filled with lead. Each weighs about 4 kg. The pendulum swings evenly from side to side, thanks to which the clock always shows the time accurately and chimes.
Approximate instructions on how to make a grandfather clock with your own hands may vary depending on what final result you want to see.
Important! When planning your living room interior, it will be useful for you to familiarize yourself with the tips from designers that we have collected in the publication.
DIY striking clock
It often happens that there are no problems with the purchase of wood and veneer; now these materials can be found in many construction stores. But the watch that will chime is not so easy to get. And the cost of such a design is not always affordable. Therefore, we suggest considering another option on how to make a grandfather clock with your own hands:
- Buy a regular doorbell with a wired button at your local electrical supply store.
Important! You can choose a self-powered option, battery powered and with a standard set of melodies, which even include a “cuckoo”.
- Upgrading the device will involve installing a magnet on the minute hand and a reed switch under the dial, in the place where the number 12 is located.
Important! Magnet that will play decisive role, can be taken from a computer hard drive.
- The reed switch is found in any computer keyboard. Before work, be sure to test the sensitivity of the reed switch to magnetic field magnet. Minimum distance should be equal to the radius of your dial. Solder wires to the reed switch that will replace the contact of the bell microbutton.
- Then disassemble the watch case; without this step, it will be impossible to remove the minute and second hands.
- Afterwards, wrap the magnet in a rubber shell, preferably a very thin one, and glue it to the end of the minute hand on the reverse side.
- After the glue has dried, return the hands to the mechanism and reassemble the watch case.
- Set the minute hand to 12 o'clock and select the position of the reed switch at which it will work. We control this process by connecting the tester beeper to the reed switch. We fix the reed switch in the found position, for example, with hot glue.
Important! The bell body can be placed entirely behind the clock or next to it. Or you can shrink it a little and glue it to back wall. It is better to take the electronics outside and leave access to the button for selecting melodies free.
- Placing the battery may shift the center of gravity of your structure, so use an old utility knife to create a counterweight on the other side.
Important! As a possible upgrade to the grandfather clock with your own hands, you can modify the design with backlighting so that you can find out the time without turning on the general light. To do this, lay the backlight cord around the perimeter of the door, or in the part where the dial itself is located.
Grandfather clock in the interior
While the DIY grandfather clock is drying after finishing, think about where it’s best to place new part interior:
- The living room is considered the most suitable place. The larger its area, the more appropriate the structure will look there. The Baroque style is ideally complemented by a clock with intricate wood carvings and a pendulum. A floor element with a cuckoo would be very appropriate in a colonial style. A watch with a glass stand or aquarium stand will fit perfectly into modern interior, but watch models with a forged footrest are best installed in Provence, Vintage or Shabby Chic interiors.
- The dining room is another perfect option placing a grandfather clock with your own hands. Usually this room is not cluttered with an abundance of furniture, but there will always be a place for the highlight of your interior. The clock can be placed against any wall.
- If you decide to decorate your bedroom with a clock, then choose a silent option. Otherwise, you are guaranteed insomnia, since the ticking will constantly strain your hearing and disturb your peace of mind. It is better to place a grandfather clock with your own hands in the sleeping room so that it is within sight of the bed. Otherwise, you will have to constantly get up to see what time it is.
- A compact device with built-in shelves for various small items is suitable for the kitchen. You can always find out the time and actively use the shelves for storing dishes, spices or even compact household appliances.
- Often, do-it-yourself grandfather clocks are installed on the landing of the stairs leading to the second floor, as well as near the wall at the foot of the stairs or even under the stairs.
- You can also make a niche in the false wall especially for this interior decoration at the renovation stage. Then the watch really becomes a full-fledged desirable element of decor.
- A DIY grandfather clock will look very appropriate in an empty corner of any room. There will probably be such a place in the house, just like in a large apartment.
- If the room has two windows located on the same wall, then in the space between them you can install your favorite floor-standing clock.
- An empty wall near the door can also be occupied with such a clock.
- This interior element will look good next to the sofa in the living room.
- The clock can also be placed in the corridor between two doors located on the same wall.
- A clock with closed shelves can serve as a miniature bar, so it can be placed near the bar counter or in a seating area with sofas.
Important! If you decide to decorate your wall with paintings, do not rush to go shopping at the store. You can make a painting yourself, our special reviews will help you with this:
Wall clocks have long been not only a timekeeper, but also a stylish piece of furniture. You can easily make your own clock that will match the spirit of your home and your character. Personally, I prefer eco style and want to make a wooden watch from an almost untreated tree trunk.
The easiest option is to make a clock from sawn wood.
First you need to saw off the cut from the trunk. You can leave the bark, it looks decorative in some cases, and sand it thoroughly.
To make a watch, you will need to buy the most simple clock in a plastic case. All you need from them is a clock mechanism. The watch will need to be carefully disassembled by first removing the batteries from it. Take it from the watch protective glass, then the plug. which secures the arrows, nut and washer. We take out the mechanism from the clock. We remember the sequence and put all the parts in a safe place.
Now we apply the numbers on the cut dial with a burner. In this case, everything is extremely conditional (only the number “12”).
And drill a hole in the center for the arrows. You can make a cut at the back of the cut for the clock mechanism using a chisel or a router. Now we mount the clock mechanism with hands on the new watch:
You can saw parts of different lengths from a pine block and glue them together, clamping them with clamps. You will get a very creative dial:
In the following version, the dial is made of OSB sheet, and the frame is made of wooden blocks:
If you have jigsaw cutting skills, you can make more complex options dials in the form of animal figures:
Such a clock would be especially appropriate in a children's room.
A very simple and original option - a wooden dial with buttons glued to it instead of numbers:
In general, give free rein to your imagination and go for it!
Please rate this post:
The idea of creating a watch out of wood hung in my head for a very long time, it was ripening, so to speak.
At that time I was working at a wood processing plant, it would have been a sin not to take advantage of the opportunity to do something for myself.
So, after scouring the web, I found several sites where they offered to buy ready-made drawings/models. On one of the sites, drawings in PDF format were available. It was possible to buy it, but it was interesting to rebuild it yourself and, if necessary, make changes to the drawings.
The website itself: http://www.woodenclocks.co.uk/index.htm
Appearance:
Assembly diagram: 
Scheme of operation of the anchor mechanism: 
Model built in PowerShape:
breakdown by workpiece: 
Assembly: 
Naturally, I wrote the entire treatment myself. The processing was written in PowerMILL.
Processing the dial and small details. 
Writing processing for gears. 
He made watches from walnut and oak. Walnut frame, dial, hands, some small parts. Walnut was used with a thickness of 16mm.
All gears are made of oak. The so-called “deck” blank is a 3mm thick veneer glued together under a press and calibrated to a size of 8mm. Made from re-glued material, because... I thought that the plywood would be more durable and less susceptible to warping.
I bought axles in a store, 6, 8 and 10 mm thick, made of beech. The factory does not have the equipment to produce such small items).
All processing was carried out on a FlexiCAM machine. This is not a small machine; in the photo, a sheet of plywood 2.5 * 1.5 meters is processed. There are other completely different details in the photo, perhaps more about them another time. I also did the processing on the machine myself and did not trust it to the operator. But somehow my hands were full and there was no camera at hand, so there is no photo of the actual processing on the machine ((. 
Workpieces after the machine: 
Sanded Gears 
First build 
And this is a small assistant. Grabbed the frame halves and let's run with them. Shouts - I'm a tractor!
After that I had to glue one of the halves. Blago is a tree good material, I can’t even find where I glued it after gluing it. 
Dry assembly 
Side view.
There is not one in this version yet metal part. When I first read the author’s website, he mentioned that you shouldn’t make axles out of wood, there will be problems with them, but then I somehow missed it. 
Tiny seconds hand 
All parts were covered with teak oil. Oil does not change the texture of the material, but highlights it and makes the color more saturated. Well, the details become a little matte. I like oil better than varnish. 
Blocks for hanging loads.
If the weight is attached directly to the clock, then the winding will last for 12 hours. But this is not enough and the table under the clock interfered with this design. I let the rope go to the ceiling and into a corner where the load wouldn’t bother anyone. I used a chain hoist). As a result, the plant lasts for a couple of days. When the load is near the floor, the little one likes to kick it and tug at it))). I scold you. 
The material is striped - I took scraps from blanks at the factory. This type of material - walnut and maple plywood - is called laminate. Butts are made from it, and they turn out very beautiful. But this is kind of exclusive. Usually it is walnut for oiling or beech for painting. 
After covering it with oil, it turned out that the watch did not want to run. The sanded ones just walked without problems, and then they started to stop. I had to grind all the axes into the holes and lubricate them with graphite. In general, on the next watch I will install bearings everywhere, well, well... such problems. 
The anchor is closer.
While I was adjusting, I got carried away and cut off the excess. I had to glue a little meat onto one of the teeth of the anchor. 
Escape wheel
In general, a watch is a thing that requires precision and care in its manufacture. If you haven’t cleaned a tooth somewhere or left a burr, they will stop. 
Final assembly
The author had to make changes to the design regarding the plant mechanism. Brian suggested making the plant with a key. Initially, I did just that, but after a month of use I realized that if I don’t change it, the clock will eventually stop working. Imagine, to start it for a day you need to make 24 revolutions of the wheel on which the thread is wound. 24 revolutions are 48 half-turn hand movements.
Taking into account the fact that the watch is hung high, the hand simply gets tired. I changed it so that when you pull the black cord, the watch starts. Fast and easy. 
Preparing the location for wall mounting 
Wall installation. The wall turned out to be uneven; the upper attachment point had to be moved a few millimeters from the wall, otherwise the pendulum would touch the bottom of the wall. 
Installing blocks, passing the cord through the blocks 
Preparation for cargo. So far the pipe is dirty and there isn't enough lead inside to finish it. In general, a load of one and a half kilograms is enough to operate the watch. I plan to hang the load on a triple chain hoist so that the plant will last for three days, so the load will need to be about 4 kg. The pipe will need to be shortened a little, but not by much. As a result, the length will be somewhere around 330 mm. 
Well, what happened in the end, a few photos. 
Many people think that wooden watches are not accurate watches. No, that's not true. This is a mechanism, everything is tied to the movement of the pendulum, and therefore to the force of gravity. I stopped adjusting them when the accuracy became about 30 seconds per day. I did not build a threaded metal rod into the pendulum, and the weight simply moves along the wood with tension. If you integrate a threaded rod, you can adjust it to precision in seconds.
The goal in production was to make a beautiful and useful thing, and not make a chronometer))). 
What was unexpected is that the watch is quite loud. Those. they hang in the kitchen and at night you can hear them in the room)). This is the reason why they hang in the kitchen. Jaune cursed. She didn't like them at all
But I like. And I like the way they tick.
They create comfort with their measured pace. 
The video can be viewed on the page in my world.