ikea clock hack materials

Step 1

Begin by deconstructing the Ikea clock. First remove the plastic piece from the front. Take out each clock hand (second, minute, hour). They are sized to stack so don’t worry about mixing them up. Now click the clock mechanism (the battery pack) out by pressing on the front of the clock. You may have to pry it out using a blunt object.

ikea clock

Step 2

Using a chop saw or hand saw, cut the hemlock lattice into six 9 3/4" long pieces. This will be the face of your new clock. Cut the hemlock square into two 9" pieces for the side supports and a 3" piece to attach the picture hanger to.

Step 3

Before you purchase your clock face material, measure the width of your clock mechanism and choose a material that matches that width. We chose wooden lattice pieces that were ¼” thick. Even so we had to do some additional sanding to ensure that the hands fit snuggly back in place.

sanding ikea clock

Step 4

Before assembling the pieces, sand the edges. Next glue along each edge, wiping off any excess glue, and press each piece together.

glueing ikea clock

wood for ikea clock

Step 5

Lay the two 9” pieces of hemlock vertically along the back of your boards and the 3” piece horizontally at the top. Glue them in place. Carefully pre-drill your holes, being careful not to drill through to the front of your piece. It's important to pre drill because the hemlock can split easily at such a small size. Now you can drill in your screws. Again, go slow and be careful, as this is a very delicate process. We secured the side pieces in place using 6 screws on each side (one in each piece of trellis on either side) and two screws to secure the top piece.

Dunn-Lumber-Seattle-WA-Ikea-Clock-9.jpg#ikea clock hack

drilling ikea clock

drilling ikea click hack

Step 6

Turn your clock over. Find the center of your clock. Mark and carefully drill your hole for the clock mechanism using a large drill bit.

measuring ikea clock

hole ikea clock

Step 7

We needed to do some additional sanding so the clock hands would click into place. Our latice pieces were slightly too thick. We enlisted the help of this handy little sander to take off the littlest bit.

power sanding ikea clock

Step 8

Next put the mechanism on the back and glue it on. Make sure to use a glue that is compatible with both plastic and wood. Our mechanism had some plastic bumps that we cut off. If you’re using an Ikea clock mechanism you will need to do the same.

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Step 9

Then attach the Saw-Tooth Slotted Picture Hanger to the horizontal 3-inch piece to hang it on the wall.

saw tooth ikea clock

Step 10

We wanted a gold accent on this clock. Using gold spray paint we transformed the red second hand to a gold time keeping piece.

ikea clock hand

Step 11

Add the hands: hour, minute, second.

clock hand black

black clock hands ikea

Step 12

Now set your clock five minutes fast so you're never late. (We do this. It never really works, but it's a fun idea.)

ikea clock hack diy