We have finally been getting around to decorating our master bedroom (the most neglected room in the apartment.) For the past two years, our mattress has been sitting on the floor. And with no night stands, my alarm clock and all bedside necessities have just been left on the floor next to the mattress.  Not exactly the most inspiring situation.  A few months ago, the bed frame I had been eying finally went on sale, and we had two night stands custom made.  So much decorating excitement to be had! I’ll definitely be getting around to showing more of that progress soon, but for now, here’s just a little tidbit.

I’ve had this alarm clock since college… probably about 11 years.  I put absolutely no thought into it when I bought it.  It was just the cheapest radio alarm clock at the school store that day. Its ugly, and now that everything in the bedroom is coming together, it just did not fit in.  But with money being tight right now, buying a new alarm clock just for the sake of looks seems really unnecessary.  But spray paint can fix almost anything!

I’ve been obsessed with gold and black lately and I happened to have both types of spray paint in my closet, so those are the colors I went with.  Gold spray paint tends to have a more rosy pinkish tint to it.  If you want more of a yellow gold, I suggest going with the “brass” colored spray paint instead.

The important first step is to clean all surfaces thoroughly.

I decided to paint the buttons before painting the body, so I masked them off.  In the photo you can see that I used washi tape.  I don’t prefer this. Washi tape doesn’t stick as well as masking tape. It also doesn’t conform to a rounded surface as well ask masking tape either. But I was too excited about my project and didn’t want to wait till I got a chance to buy masking tape, so I used what I had on hand. Then I spray painted black.

Next I masked off the rest of the alarm clock when the buttons had fully dried.  You should wait at least an hour, but I waited a few days for it to dry. And this time, I had real masking tape for the masking! I masked off every little button, dial, and even the power cord.

Other than the washi tape thing, I believe in doing things the right way and not taking short cuts.  So when I do a painting project, I always prime my surface first.  With spray painting, I don’t mind using a clear top coat too, so that’s what I used.

First I primed, using a big box as a spray booth.  Remember, spray paint has a way of getting EVERYWHERE! Keep it contained.

I allowed that to dry for about an hour, made sure there were no dust particles stuck to it, then painted my first coat of gold. I found that the bundled up power cord made for a nice handle that allowed me to rotate the clock for spraying without messing up the painted areas.

After another hour, I lightly buffed away any unevenness or dust globs with an extremely fine sanding sponge and cleaned away the dust.  I also slid over the little…what do you call it, setting slider?? so that gold paint could get under the other side during the second coat.

Then I sprayed the second coat of gold paint.  After another hour, I sprayed a clear glossy top coat to give it a nice, shiny, smooth finish.

And here’s how it turned out!  Joe says he thinks it looks retro. It does kind of remind me of something from Star Trek the original series. Maybe someday I’ll spurge and get one of those fancy iphone alarm clock docks, but for now, I’m very happy with this. Hopefully I’ll update with more bedroom progress soon!