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I shared a button clock a few weeks back – and it inspired me to make my own! So I thought I’d do a quick tute today showing you how easy it is to do 🙂

First – find a daggy old clock that you can pull apart.

Here are the bits that make up the mechanism – make sure you remember which parts go where!

Second – get an embroidery hoop, some thrifted fabric (I used an old pillowcase, I used a double-layer of fabric because it’s quite brittle), and find some sweet vintage buttons.

Third – put the fabric into the frame, cut it off and glue it in.

Fourth – select your buttons and sew them on! Make sure to use a ruler to mark at least the 4 cardinal points – otherwise you clock might end up looking a bit wonky!

Fifth – if you’re lazy like me, you’ll make a neat hole in the middle and put your clock mechanism through from the back. You’ll need to support the mechanism in some way, because the fabric won’t be enough.

If you’re a bit more of a perfectionist, the best way is to get some old thick cardboard or some sort of thin wood, cut it to shape, and put it into the back of your clock frame. I cheated by using a ribbon – attached to the top of the mechanism, then the top of the frame, and I use the same ribbon to hang the clock!

These buttons are from an old tin – my great-grandmother apparently used to cut the buttons off all sorts of things and hoard them – so now they’re being put to good use!

This only took me an hour or two, max, and I love looking at it every day!

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