May 3, 2012

▫Ballard & RH▫ "Quad" Clock Knock Off

Hey cute friends!  I hope you're not tired of all my copy cat knock offs- cause I have yet another one to share today! I've had this guy saved on my "to do" list for months and months now. It's a retro clock that sells at both Ballard Designs and Restoration Hardware! 
Newgate is an English company- and they seem to specialize in vintage looking clocks, that mimic the look of London railway station clocks. Sweet, right?

My knock off is of their "Quad" model- at RH is measures 22 in square and is on "sale" for $279.Isn't she a beaut? I love the old-school charm.





Here's what I did- my mind automatically thought of Ikea's Ribba square frame- to recreate the shape of the clock. It comes in at 20 in square, and also has the deep profile. Similar to the width of the Newgate clock- but also VERY IMPORTANTLY deep enough to house the clock gears.You could use whatever frame you want, but keep that in mind.





Materials: Picture Frame {I used the 20x20 Ikea Ribba Frame} $15
2 Sheets of poster board- $1
2 sheet of Foam Board- $2
Glue- {I used Rubber Cement}
Paintable Caulk
 Primer, Silver Paint, Dark Silver Glaze, Rub n Buff
Rag
Ruler & Carpenter's Triangle
Black Marker
Number Stencils- $4
Clock Mechanics Kit - $8
Decorative Nails
Total:  $ 30

This will seem like a lot of steps- but none of them are hard {I promise.}

[1] Prime: You want a good primer if you're using the same frames I did. I wish I would have mixed some chalk paint instead, since Ikea frames are MDF coated in that shiny plastic-y paper. I used some leftover plastic primer- and just in case you were wondering...Kilz will not work and force you to peel all your paint off and start over- not that that happened.  :-(  Make sure to prime the frame and the square spacer insert that comes int he Ribba frame behind the glass.
[2] Cut: Start by recreating the look of the "top" of the clock. To do this, cut a piece of poster board the same size as the top of the frame. Mine was 20 x 20- just like the frame. This will mimic the look of the metal sheet on top of the clock. Cut a piece of foam board two inches smaller in width and height.

[3] Glue & Cut: Center the foam core on the poster board, with the shiny side of the poster board facing the foam board and glue them together. {This way the poster board will absorb less paint.}
Now cut out an opening for both pieces. You want this to be the size you'd like the clock to be. I cut my opening 16 in square.
[4] Caulk: Use the caulk to fill in the gap between the foam core and the poster board- to mimic the look of smooth metal. Try to make the caulk as smooth as possible! It really helps to have a wet finger when dragging it to smooth out the caulk- this also keeps ugly fingerprint lines away.
 [5] Paint: Use some silver acrylic paint, then using white and black paint mix a few slightly different shades. Use a rag to paint them onto the frame, mixing the colors a bit when you apply them. Try to blend them but still allow for different levels of saturation in different areas. 
Paint the inside of the square spacer that came with your frame. 
Then give the poster board/foam board combo the same paint treatment. {More about the paint treatment here.}
*Be very careful not to bend or crease the foam board! This would make your project kinda suck- not that I did this part twice or anything!*

[6] {Optional} Silver Finishes: I use Rub n Buff in spots to give the clock extra sheen and shine. {You can find this info in depth here.} 
Then I finish up with little spots of dark silver glaze {the same silver paint mixed with more black paint and 1:1 ratio of glaze.}




 I think this step helps create the look of imperfections and really mimics the look of metal super well. I like to paint the pieces individually, before they are all put together so the final clock will look like different pieces of metal with scattered imperfections.

[7] Glue: Use rubber cement {or some other multi-surface adhesive} to glue the poster board/ foam board combo to the top of the frame.
And this is what happens when your camera is on the wrong mode- and you only take 1 pic- while you stencil with one hand...
[8] Clock Face: Cut the other piece of poster board to fit inside of the frame. You can use the backer board as a size guide. Using a ruler, a carpenter's triangle, and a black marker start to draw out the face of the clock. I made the outside borders around the face each an inch wide. The carpenter's triangle is perfection to recreating the hash marks found in the inner boarder. 

[9] Stencil: Use number stencils to make the clock face. I filled them in with marker- not paint; it was super easy. Mine are 2 inch numbers and, though I paid for them, you could print some off and cut them out and glue them on or even make your own stencil.

[9] Add Gears: Create a slit in the center of the clock face and insert the clock kit, per the kit's directions. 
Cut the last piece of foam board to the same size as the backer board/ hard board that came on the frame. Then remove a portion of the foam board to allow the clock gears a bit more breathing room.
[10] Compile: Put your frame together in this order: frame, glass, square spacer, poster board clock face, original picture mat, foam board with space removed for clock gears. I used a little spray adhesive to hold the "clock face" to the picture- that way it provides more support to keep the clock working well.












[11] {Optional} Nails: Hammer in a few nails, for purely decorative purposes. We're trying to make it look like these nails hold on the metal sheet {aka poster board} not glue! The inspiration piece has three on each side.

Now hang her up, sit back and admire you work!
Wow! That seems like a lot of steps- but they're easy and fast...just not fast to write them all down!
All in all, coming up with this plan and determining the better way to do it- took me the afternoon. 

Which was nowhere near 300 bucks! In fact, mine came in at 1/10 the cost- 30 dollars!! Shewee- that sure is sweet! This is one of those projects that I just wanted to see IF I could do it, ya know? I feel pretty good about its new home, too. It's hard to decorate with vaulted ceilings; hard to find items the right scale.
I was worried it would look cheap, you know, like poster board and markers or something. But even my critical eye is happy with the finished look.
 I am sure there are a million typos in this post- but it's three in the am- hello! And I want to get this finished before the hubs and I take off for a few well deserved days away! I'll miss you!


37 comments:

  1. You're so darn talented. I don't know how you do it. You seem to have a new project every day. When do you get anything else done?

    ReplyDelete
  2. Looks great Becca, you are so good at knock offs! Have a fabulous day!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Gorgeous! as all your projects are...
    xox

    ReplyDelete
  4. you have the knack for knock! knock offs that is but it sounds cooler to say knack for knock. :)

    ReplyDelete
  5. This is one of the best knock-offs I've seen in a long time! :)

    ReplyDelete
  6. Girl, this is so awesome! I would have never guessed that you made it! Totally gorgeous! Beautiful job, friend!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Becca, seriously! You need to bottle your creativity and sell it. Love you projects!! I'm attempting your faux zinc letters...wish me luck that they turn out as cute as yours! :)

    ReplyDelete
  8. Gal you are so good at the 'knock off' and putting everything together! I wish you could come to my house and knock the heck out of everything!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Becca,

    Can you just write all my tutorials for me? Or can you write an e-book on how to write tutorials and then I will purchase it and read it from cover to cover.

    *sigh*

    You are the best tutorial writer ever!

    blessings,
    karianne

    ReplyDelete
  10. You are great with tutorials - you must be a very patient person. The clock turned out terrific!

    ReplyDelete
  11. I totally love it and it looks amazing...you are one very talented woman and it's lovely that you share all your "how to's". Regards Kathy A, Brisbane, Australia

    ReplyDelete
  12. Are you kidding me right now? When I first looked at your project, I thought you had bought a different clock and just painted the frame...had no idea that you literally MADE the entire thing! So good...so good.

    ReplyDelete
  13. GIRLFRIEND! LOVE THIS! Wow you are amazing.... xoxo

    ReplyDelete
  14. That is awesome! I really like it!

    Another fab knock-off! I think you should be titled, "the Knock-off Queen!"

    --Katie

    ReplyDelete
  15. You are so clever to figure out how to mimic the expensive clock so convincingly. It turned out great.

    ReplyDelete
  16. You are so clever to figure out how to mimic the expensive clock so convincingly. It turned out great.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Love how it turned out! Would never know the difference ~ enjoy your time off.

    ReplyDelete
  18. This is gorgeous! We would love for you to come share this at our weekly link party and enter to win a $50 gift card to Mikarose Clothing!

    http://www.sixsistersstuff.com/2012/05/strut-your-stuff-saturday-link-party_11.html

    Love,
    The Sisters

    ReplyDelete
  19. Girl-you have MAD skills. So glad we are friends.

    Cheri

    ReplyDelete
  20. Wow, I'm impressed! You are rocking the knock-offs like nobody's business! I can't believe I missed this one:)

    Jessica
    stayathomeista.com

    ReplyDelete
  21. Becca, you are the DIY knock-off super hero with your amazing talent for creating beautiful replicas of all of my favorite things! This is yet another awesome DIY! I'm going to include a link in this week's highlights! ;) Thank you for taking the time to share your creativity...you're such an inspiration!

    ReplyDelete
  22. WOW!!! It looks Amazing! Thanks for the tutorial I'm pinning it now:)

    ReplyDelete
  23. That's amazing. I never would have thought you could do that and have it look so good! You are talented! Great job.

    ReplyDelete
  24. WOW WOW WOW!!! FANTASTIC....

    HOW I LONG FOR A WORK AREA WITH A FLAT SURFACE.

    WHAT A GREAT RESULT!

    ReplyDelete
  25. Love your clock! I enjoy all of your knock off's keep them coming.:) Megan

    ReplyDelete
  26. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  27. Hi, Becca

    Awesome knock off!

    Vanessa

    ReplyDelete
  28. Well Becca, you deserve a rest after that. So many steps and you documented them all. So sweet. And it turned out so cool. I love how you took on the challenge and were so successful with it.
    Liz

    ReplyDelete
  29. You are so creative! I love it!

    ReplyDelete
  30. Oh wow this is AWESOME!!! What a great project, so creative, and the end product looks amazing!

    ReplyDelete
  31. Again...you rocked it...this is amazing.

    ReplyDelete
  32. Hi! I just found you thru Imparting Grace and am now a follower-LOVE this clock, and love your blog! Please stop by and say 'hello' :)
    Susan

    ReplyDelete
  33. LOVE this! Your clock looks wonderful--great job using inspiration from these retailers and making your own version that's really special!

    ReplyDelete
  34. Your so talented! Great job! Thank you for joining me at Home Sweet Home!
    Sherry

    ReplyDelete
  35. Well done! Looks great :)
    Grete, Norway

    ReplyDelete

Thoughts? Questions? Opinions? Let's talk about it!