Production of thin metal oxide films was recently explored as part of an outreach program with a goal of producing nanoscale structures with household items. Household items coated with various metals or titanium compounds can be heated to produce colorful films with nanoscale thicknesses. As part of a materials chemistry laboratory experiment series, students used a visible-light reflectance spectrometer to examine colorful oxide coatings on the torch-heated nickel-plated binder clips. (Contains 3 figures.)