How to Create a Faux Mora Clock 

I must confess, I have a bad habit, one that I need to break. I second guess myself a lot, and I need to learn to trust my instincts. Sometimes I will see something while out antiquing that I know could be fabulous with a little work or repurposing.  But something will happen and I will talk myself out of it. I will usually walk away and then later on regretting it, which is what happened with this clock. You see, I have a weakness for Swedish Mora clocks.  

I love their curvy lines, round faces, and timeworn painted finishes.  

An original antique Mora clock can be quite pricey, ranging between $1500-$4000, so they aren’t in everyone’s budget. But if you keep an eye out, sometimes you will come across a clock with similar lines and characteristics that can be transformed into a faux Mora clock.  

Years ago, my hubby and I were out of town doing a little antiquing.  

We stopped in a flea market that was nice and large, an old closed nursing home in Arkansas. We went in hoping to find that one of a kind treasure!

Once we stepped through the door, I quickly realized that we wouldn’t be finding any treasures there! It was filled with so much junk, and I don’t mean the good kind of junk. And to be honest, it was a little creepy!  Everything was set up exactly as it was when it was operating as a nursing home, only now all the rooms were filled with junk.

There was also a weird energy, which I probably wouldn’t have noticed if it had been filled with gorgeous antiques! Sadly, it wasn’t.

  We decided to not waste time and move on to someplace else. On our way out the door, I spotted this clock.

 

At first glance I only saw the top peeking out over some random items, and my heart skipped a beat, thinking it was a Mora clock.  

Unfortunately, as I got closer, I realized that it was a newer table top clock made out of lightweight wood.  

But it did have the same curvy lines, round face and style as a Mora clock. I mentioned to hubby that with a little paint magic, it would be a great faux Mora clock!  He didn’t respond with “Yippee”, so I started second guessing myself.  I ended up walking away and leaving it behind. 

We came home and over the next few days, it haunted me that I didn’t go with my initial instinct and buy it.

 I imagined it painted and distressed and standing next to the other reproduction Mora that I have.  

I couldn’t sleep for thinking about it’s makeover. This went on for a week. I hinted to hubby that I wish I had bought it, hoping he would suggest jumping right back in the car and driving the 2 hours back to buy it, but that didn’t work!

 Suddenly it hit me that my newly married niece was living in this very town! I quickly contacted her, and asked (ok, maybe I begged) if she would please, please, please go to the creepy nursing home flea market and buy the clock for me!

She took pity on me  and went and bought the clock (thank goodness it was still there!) and I met with her later on to pick the little beauty up.  

The little knockoff Mora clock turned out gorgeous after it’s makeover!

I painted her in Annie Sloan Duck Egg and Old White with lots of crackling and distressing, waxed in clear and dark wax.

I found an old vintage brass laurel leaf garniture to add to the top.

And I replaced the face with an antique porcelain clock dial from France.

I gave the finish lots of distressing so that it reflected a very timeworn look. 

I also used a crackle medium to get the crazing in the finish.  I love the end result, and the clock even keeps the right time!  

 I wonder, is it possible to have too many “Mora” clocks? I don’t think so! I think they are like chandeliers, or French chairs, one can never have too many!

Blessings,

        Cindy

If you love Mora clocks, you might also love these posts as well:

Where Can I find a Mora Clock?

Mora Clock Transformation