Upcycled Birdhouse from a Decorative Table Clock

During one of my many Junkin’ Journeys, I stumbled upon a decorative desktop clock that was perfect for upcycling. It wasn’t particularly well-made and battery inside the clock mechanism had corroded over. So, I decided that it was ideal for transforming into an upcycled birdhouse.

Why an upcycled birdhouse? I wish I could explain why that’s what came to mind. 

Maybe it was the round clock face that reminded me of an entrance hole on a birdhouse. Or maybe I just had Spring on the brain. Either way, that was my plan and it was an inexpensive experiment to try!

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Transforming a Clock into an Upcycled Birdhouse

First, I needed to to de-construct the clock by removing the mechanism and back panel.

Once the clock was removed, I realized the entry/exit hole was too big for a birdhouse. I appreciated the roundness of it, but it was big enough to let predators in.

So, Jon made a “reducer” out of basswood and a jigsaw. In retrospect, a hole saw set would have been perhaps a little easier to work with.

I sanded the edges down and painted the reducer. Then, I glued it to the inside of the house, effectively creating a smaller front door for my smallest songbirds.

Next, I brushed the entire exterior with water sealant. It IS going outside, after all.

Once the sealant had completely dried, I needed to “build up” the nest area. Birds like to enter a birdhouse and effectively hop right into their nest.

So I used some old wine corks (y’all know I have tons of those) to fill up the bottom of the clock. I then re-attached the back panel and brushed it with water sealant.

I also added a large screw-in eye to the very top (secured with a nut inside) for hanging purposes.

Finally, I was ready to hang it in our backyard!

Upcycled Birdhouse from a Decorative Table Clock

I also glued a wooden spool (previously waterproofed) to the bottom of the entrance hole. Not sure if my birds would want a perch or not, but…

Would you look at that? Someone has already started to move in!

I can’t believe how quickly that happened! I guess the birds knew it was “time” to move into my upcycled birdhouse.

Ha, get it? Time to move in because it was made from a clock!

Crafters make birdhouses out of all sorts of things: old leather boots, ceramic teapots, aluminum canisters, you name it. I’m totally going to make more upcycled birdhouses, too.

Such as this one, that worked like a charm! Can you guess what it originally started out as?

If you enjoyed this repurposing idea for an upcycled birdhouse, then you may also want to make one of these suet feeders from a coffee mug, too!

Craft on!

S

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