Wednesday, August 26, 2015

Birthday Guest: Heather Manning: Decorative Clocks



Heather Manning

Hey, Stitches Thru Time Peeps! It’s Heather Manning, author of Carried Home and Swept to Sea.

I think that most authors tend to be very creative people, so naturally they might like some types of art. I am one of those authors. Whether it’s painting or coloring or cross-stitching, I find making art soothing. So lately, I have been trying to do a little bit of painting. However, I decided I wanted to do something different than traditional painting on canvas. What did I decide to paint on? The face of a clock!

How does one paint on a clock, you ask? Well, I picked up an old clock at a garage sale that I thought would be perfect for my project. I decided I wanted to paint Cinderella’s castle, because I love Disney, and I mean, Cinderella and clocks go hand in hand, right? (Get it? The clock striking midnight?) 

After I found the perfect clock, I pried the glass face off so I could paint on the surface behind it. I sketched out my design (I had previously done this design for a painting I did a few months ago), which you can see here. 

 

After I had my sketch set, I got to work with the painting. I went for cool, shiny tones and of course a little bit of glitter. Because the shimmering paint is thin, I will need to go add a few more layers of paint before I can add some more detail work.



But anyway, you can get an idea of the finished project from that picture. I was not able to complete the painting yet, because I had to leave for college. But I’ll finish it in a while and make sure to post a picture on my Facebook page for you all to see once it is ready. 

If you’re scared of the idea of using paint, or you just don’t want to go out and buy paint that you might never use again, another option is permanent markers. With permanent markers, you can either draw a design on the glass part of the clock (which gives a really cool stained glass effect) or on the actual face of the clock. If you use the marker on the glass and make a mistake, it’s easy to “erase” with a little bit of rubbing alcohol, so if you’re not comfortable with your drawing skills, you don’t have to worry about messing up. Here’s a design I made a while back.



So, now you know how to make a boring clock interesting again and tailored to your personal style! Think you might try this project sometime in the future? It would also totally be fun for a kid’s or grandkid’s room.  They’d love it and have a fun memory of making it with you!

About the Author: Heather Manning is a young lady who loves to read—and write. She has won multiple competitions for her writing with “Nextgen Writers” and placed first in some writing contests with the “Go Teen Writers” blog and is a proud member of ACFW. She lives in Kansas City, Missouri and goes to college, acts in community theatre, eats donuts, and reads every Inspirational Historical Romance she can get her hands on.

13 comments:

  1. Hello, Heather. I love creative ideas that change everyday items. I would love to see an updated post when you finish your "Cinderella" clock. Congrats on the success of your first two published books. I'm curious, now that you are in college, if you have shared with any of your professors that you are a published author? I feel like it could work both for and against your efforts there.

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    1. Hello, Terrill!
      Thanks so much! I have shared it with a few professors, only if a conversation has come up related to it. I definitely agree that it could work for and against me. :) It's an interesting situation!

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  2. What a clever idea. Another creative outlet.

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  3. I have to admit I'm more of a crochet and yarn girl ;)

    I think that if I was to try a similar project I'd go with transparent paint for glass and paint on the inside of the glass part :) But you're right, it's the kind of craft that kids would love!

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    1. Haha :) I love cross-stitching, but that's the extent of that kind of stuff for me. I always get yarn alllll tangled up. :)
      That sounds great! That would be super pretty!

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  4. I like those ideas.. I have tole painted on a used CD's and used them for the background :)
    Wishing you much success in your writing!

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    1. Oh, that sounds so cool! I love it! Thank you. :)

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  5. I love this clock idea. I think I'll have to make one for my new musical room. :) Thanks for sharing, Heather!

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  6. Love the Cinderella clock. But theta rally beautiful. I love arts and crafts. I also love historical romance books

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  7. I am happy to see another clock craft post in the blogging world! They're all lovely. The first one I saw was this:
    http://infarrantlycreative.blogspot.com/2009/01/project-14-clock-makeover.html?m=1

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