Well my blogger friends (all two or three of you)…I’m about to take on a very strange DIY idea I came up with…It could either be the most genius fix ever, or it could be a complete disaster. But I’ll be darned if I don’t try!!!
So here’s the issue: I bought a FABULOUS old clock the other weekend from our favorite thrift store downtown, it turned out it was one of those awesome grandfather clocks, it’s one of those 1970’s clocks with the long, wooden “spokes” coming off of it (I’m delaying the pictorial reveal until further down). Only problem was that it was missing some of it’s spokes…3 of them to be exact – Out of a possible 12.
Cocky little me thought to myself (and spouted off to anyone around me including John, the guy at the cash register, my sister, etc.) that I would just unscrew some of the spokes and rearrange them in a more intentional way – Like 3:00, 6:00 and 9:00 all stay empty. The arms for the spokes were attached by a little nut and bolt, so I knew it wouldn’t be too difficult (as you can see here):
Then an even EASIER solution to the rearranging revealed itself! Upon closer inspection, I realized that the wooden spokes slid on and off of their metal arms quite easily just by lifting a little metal tab – WithOUT having to unscrew things!
So I did a little spoke-moving and came up with this final product:
Good! But not perfect…Unfortunately, I wasn’t quite as thrilled and jubilant as I was expecting…I’m stating the obvious here, but it just looked like it was missing something in those empty spaces – But not in a good/intentional way as I had hoped.
So then I tried this little maneuver…
Still not right. Now it looks less “1970’s” and more marine/antique-y (am I the only one getting “Pirates-of-the Caribbean ship wheel” from this arrangement?). So I put the 12:00 spoke back on.
I decided to give it a couple of days to get used to. It’s hung over the TV in the living room, so I knew it would get a lot of visual attention. Over the next week though, I just kept looking at it and feeling the urge to break out a sketchpad for ideas or calling up my dad for help. This is when I know my subconscious is telling me that “it ain’t over yet”…
Then I started to seriously consider calling my father, who is a VERY skilled carpenter/wood worker. I was thinking maybe he could build some new spokes for it, but I knew getting the shape and stain just right was going to be a nightmare…
That’s when the lightbulb moment happened. Seriously one of the most insane ideas I’ve had to date.
So here’s the plan. I will pick up some $1 foamcore board and cut the board to the same shape as the real spokes. Then I would make 3 COLOR PHOTO COPIES of one of the real spokes to glue onto the foam core, making a “faux-spoke”!!!! I know initially it sounds ludicrous…But let it sink in for a second until you start to feel the “Well that MIGHT just work” intuition coming on.
So far, I’ve got 8 color copies (I made several extra just in case):
I’ll cut them out as carefully as possible and then use rubber cement to attach the copy to the top of the “faux-spoke”. I looooooveee rubber cement when it comes to gluing paper. It somehow NEVER curls the paper or makes it wavy as it dries, and you can gently peel it back (even after it’s been on for DAYS) if the placement isn’t right without ripping it! The rubber cement even rubs off completely clean without damaging the surface it was adhered it. LOVE it.
So that’s my wild and crazy plan! I hope it works because I just adore this find…Here’s a couple more details to make you fall for it too 🙂
You may not be able to see it, but there’s a small engraving under the 12:00 that says “Elgin” – Trust me, I’ve scoured the internet for replacement Elgin clock parts to no avail…
Lookin’ goooood in some blue 🙂
Oh and did I mention the cost?? $12.50! It was marked for $22, which I was MORE than willing to spend, but the guy at the shop gave me a discount without even having to ask! I love being a thrift store shopaholic regular – So much so that I get instant unspoken discounts…
John’s been stuck in jury duty ALL week, so I bet he’ll be more than happy to get out-of-doors and hop on over to Michael’s for my supplies tonight. Hopefully I’ll have some “after” shots for you soon!
Keep your fingers crossed for us that this actually works…
