The New Limited Edition Sun and Moon Watch from Mr. Jones.

The new Sun and Moon watch from Mr. Jones shows the time based on the position of the Sun or Moon in the sky on the watch face.



The crescent shaped sky on the dial represents 12 hours with the time running from left to right. At 6am the sun 'rises' on the left of the dial. The sun slowly climbs in the sky until it reaches the apex of the crescent midday. The sun gradually descends until it reaches the right hand marker at 6pm.



After 6pm the Sun ‘sets’ and disappears from view, meanwhile the Moon ‘rises’ on the left. The position of the Moon in the sky therefore shows the hours from 6pm until 6am.



Along with the image of the Sun and Moon, the hour disk features a revolving image with scenes of the natural world that gradually passes as the day progresses. The minutes are displayed in the centre dial and these run in the conventional way, so each marker on this dial corresponds to five minutes.




Sun and Moon is a revival of an very old watch design: "Sun and Moon" watches were first produced in Britain in the late 1600s during a period of experimentation with ways to represent the time. We really like this visualisation of the time - it's both logical and elegant.

Sun and Moon is produced in an edition of 100 pieces, each watch numbered on the case back and comes with a signed certificate from the designer.

The watch comes packed in an MJW box which features a newly commissioned artwork by illustrator Fanny Shorter. Inspired by the 24 hour display, Fanny's artwork shows the life cycle of the mayfly which takes just 24 hours:




Specifications:
Case: brushed stainless steel
Strap: black leather with ecru stitching
Mechanism: Ronda 515-24H single jewel quartz mechanism
Width (3 o'clock to 9 o'clock): 37mm
Height (from lug to lug): 46mm
Waterproof: 5ATM
Guarantee: 12 months
Smallest strap diameter:150mm
Largest strap diameter: 205mm

Sun and Moon
£145 (approx $190/€164) Buy it here.

Introducing Clomm Watches Terra Firma Collection - Modern Unisex Timepieces With Seven Unique Faces.

Clomm is a relatively new boutique watch brand established last year by founder and creative director Gary Fidele. Their first collection, TERRA FIRMA (which translates to "on solid ground"), consists of seven modern and minimalist unisex watches whose faces feature materials such as cork, rosewood, oak, and black or white ceramic. The newest and most expensive addition to the collection is a Malachite face watch priced at $630 USD. Other watches in the Terra Firma Collection range from $450-$490.



The line of watches has Swiss Made Ronda movements, sapphire crystals, Aerospace grade stainless steel bezels and cases and real Italian leather bands. All the models have sweep second hands and luminous dials. No numbers and spec lines only on the ceramic faced watches add to the clean and modern design. Each watch weighs 110kg and measures a generous 60.0 x 52.0 x 15.0 mm and is 47mm in diameter.



Each Clomm watch comes in a nice wooden box:


The Watches
Rosewood, $490:

White Ceramic, $450:

Black Ceramic, $450:

Cork, $490:

Oak, $490:

Rosegold, $490:

Malachite, $630:



About Clomm
Specialized in creating minimalist and distinctive design with timeless appeal, the brand takes inspiration from the 12th century Anglo-Saxon word “Clomm” meaning "to grasp", reflecting the founders' English roots. Clomm products are made from materials of premium quality, embracing design, engineering and craftsmanship. The philosophy of the brand has been very clear from the beginning- To combine minimalist design with uncompromised quality.

The Designer

As a product designer from the UK, Gary has worked across a wide range of disciplines, designing everything from furniture and household items, to surfboards and wetsuits for clients around the globe. In 2011, with his broad experience and the desire to develop unique products, he created his first timepiece collection "Terra Firma", which is now available on the Clomm website and at our selected retailers.


Clomm watches

More Space Invaders Watches With A Price Tag That Is Outta This World from Romain Jerome.

The watchmaker Romain Jerome is best known for his luxury watches that incorporate the DNA of legendary things and landmarks. Inspired and paying tribute to historical events of the last century, each watch integrates the DNA of a legend such as the Titanic (made with rusted steel from the wreckage), The Moon (made with actual moondust), The Statue of Liberty (a bronze bezel which recalls the Statue of Liberty's crown) and EYJAFJALLAJÖKULL (made with Volcanic ash and black lava rock). Each timepiece comes with a certificate of authenticity issued by a third party. As one would expect, these are very highly priced.

Now, he has collaborated with legendary video game maker, TAITO, to release his second round of limited edition SPACE INVADERS watches. Last year he introduced a white and multi-colored version (shown below).


above: Romain Jerome's first Space Invaders watches were available in multi-colored and an all white version coated with Superluminova so it glows in the dark


Now, the new SPACE INVADERS WATCHES come in four colors with a special blue one for Paris store Colette. The price is over $15,000 for the watch. Why? Read on.

Having inherited the highly distinctive case of the Moon Invader collection (a round shape inside a cambered 46 mm square), the SPACE INVADERS watches have kept the same steel coalesced with fragments of Apollo 11. The four functional ball-and-socket joints on the corners of the case are shaped like the legs of the lunar landing modules of the American lunar missions. These extremely sophisticated components mounted on axles anchored in the case hold the lugs of the rubber straps and enable the watch to adjust to all kinds of wrist sizes.



Embodying another tangible token of the space age symbolised by the SPACE INVADERS collection, a dedicated plate made of Moon Silver RJ – a silver alloy with an extremely low oxidation rate incorporating moon rocks – appears on the stellar-patterned back of the watch and reproduces the lunar surface.




The dial is very complex and consists of three layers: the first two are beadblasted and the "straight graining" gives a pixelated aspect to the third layer. Measuring around 3.5 mm each, the SPACE INVADERS are meticulously machined one by one, applied by hand and lacquered in various colours. These pixel invaders are a playful nod that transforms watches into inspired "talking pieces" capable of creating a distinct sense of affinity with those who wear them, and who revel in the chance to thumb their noses at classic watchmaking conventions.

The first release of the new collection is especially made for Colette, the über hip store and gallery in Paris.




The pixelated figures (aliens) are the emblematic blue color of the store for a limited edition of eight pieces, only available in the trendy boutique. Buy it here

The SPACE INVADERS are available in four other colours (red, green, purple and yellow) and have started their incursion in all RJ-Romain Jerome points of sale worldwide. Limited editions of eight pieces per color, five new colorful legends have made their entrance at RJ-Romain Jerome.






Check out the two-part video of the watch being made:



The price? $15,368.43 (£11,753.12) (€14,900)
Maison Romain Jerome

The "ish" Watch For The Perpetually Casual. Clarification On The Designs And Pricing.

You might have seen this watch on various 'creative' sites and blog in the past week. A new watch by HYPHEN, The Indian Stretchable Time' / 'ish' watch, allows for some leeway when it comes to time. In lieu of your typical quarter hour markings, the "ish" watch has 12ish, 3ish, 6ish and 9ish printed askew on the white face.



Despite getting lots of recent press on sites such as Designboom, Comm Arts and other creative design blogs and e-mags, no one seems to have pointed out that the watch details seem to be inconsistent in terms of the hands, the second hand, the bezels and the straps shown in the images that have been posted.







The Actual "Ish" Watches Styles:
So, I wrote to Filter, the company for whom the watch was made, in hopes of getting both clarification on the design and price and I have. The watch is available in the following three designs.

BLACK/RED:

BLACK/WHITE:

BROWN/WHITE:


Note the following, despite the numerous photos in this post:
• All three straps have stitching in either red or white
• All three watches have different bezels.
• The Black/Red version has a red secondhand and red stitching on the band.
• The Black/ White Version has different hands on the face than the other two.
• The hands on the Black/Red and Brown/White version are pointed at the ends (not flat as in several of the photos) and despite the photos they sent me, I am not certain if they are black or chromed.

I do not know a thing about the crystal on the face, nor do I know if the bezels are stainless steel or chromed metal (given the price, I am guessing they are chromed metal). Other than the product shots and price, I received no more detail.

Each "Ish" watch costs $50 USD (excluding shipping charges).

Regardless of the face and bezel details, the beautiful packaging expresses the attitude and philosophy behind the wristwatch in text:





The designer, Prasanna Sankhe, describes the "Ish" watch in the following words:
In India, 'fashionably late' is safely replaced with 'predictably late'. Cow blockades, politician escorts, and cratered roads, compound the problem and offer a valid excuse. So when you reach half-an-hour after the appointed time, you don't explain yourself. You wait for the other person to arrive. We used this life insight, and added some dark humour to it.



We simply added a suffix to time periods. And moved the numerals from their classic perpendicular positions, tilting them to an approximate point on the dial. Hence six was not six. Eight was not eight. It was 'six-ish' and 'eight-ish'. Thus was born the 'ish Watch'.

The audience instantly connected with the watch, as it reminded them of the times they had been either the victim or culprit of tardiness. However, as a 'non-punctual' attitude is almost part of the Indian ethos, they bought into the idea and the watch, without delay.



Available at Filter, Kala Ghoda, Mumbai.
Contact them here to purchase the watch

Creative Director: Prasanna Sankhe
Designer: Prasanna Sankhe
Writer: Cyrus Daruwala
Photographer: Ashish Vaidya
Music: Ferzad Variyava
Producer: Fabian Fernandes
Editor: Basu
Fabricator: Suresh
Agency coordinator: Jennifer Fernandes

About HYPHEN:

Started in 2011, by Alok Nanda, founder of Alok Nanda & company, and Prasanna Sankhe, ex National Creative Director of Publicis Ambience India, HYPHEN is the first brand engagement product agency in India.

The QLOCKTWO W. Biegert & Funk's Beautiful Wall Clock Is Now A Wristwatch.

above composite image © If It's Hip, It's Here



I blogged about Biegert & Funk's QLOCKTWO wall clock some years back. A beautiful wall clock that literally spells out the time in words in several different available languages and colors. Since launching the QLOCKTWO, Biegert & Funk turned it into a tabletop alarm clock version and now, a wristwatch.



above: the original QLOCKTWO wall clock and QLOCKTWO Touch Me tabletop alarm clock by Biegert&Funk.


The new QLOCKTWO W:


In a square there is a grid of 110 letters. When the stainless steel button or black button on the bezel is pressed, words light up in unexpected places which describe the time.



The high-quality brushed stainless steel case (or black) measures 35 x 35 mm. The watch is available with a 24 mm rubber or leather strap. QLOCKTWO W shows next to the time also the calendar date or even the seconds.

QLOCKTWO W is available from autumn 2012 in the versions polished, brushed or black stainless steel respectively in the languages German, English and French.






the press release:
Biegert & Funk presents the world‘s first wristwatch in words at Baselworld

For the first time, Biegert & Funk is exhibiting a completely new kind of wristwatch, the QLOCKTWO W, at Baselworld. QLOCKTWO W does not show the time with hands or digits. Time is indicated on this purist watch as readable text, turning it into a statement: “It is half past nine”. The square watch face has a uniform grid of 110 letters. When the stainless steel button is pressed, words light up in unexpected places which describe the time. The initially random order of the characters lends this wristwatch a mysterious aesthetic. “QLOCKTWO W makes you aware of the moment. Showing the time becomes an interesting experience for the owner,” explains Andreas Funk from the design duo Biegert & Funk.

The basic shape of the QLOCKTWO W is, like all QLOCKTWO® variations, a square. The design is minimalist and precision crafted, its form reduced to the essentials. The high quality brushed stainless steel casing measures 35 x 35 mm. The watch comes with either a rubber or leather strap.

Together with the time, QLOCKTWO W also displays the calendar day or seconds. “It is operated by a single push button and could not be more simple: one push to display the time, two for the calendar day and three for the seconds,” says designer Marco Biegert. QLOCKTWO W will be available from autumn 2012 in two variants, natural stainless steel or black, at a cost of approx. 550 euros.

You can purchase QLOCKTWO wall and alarm clocks here.

Don't forget to check out Biegert & Funk's original QlockTwo and other beautiful wall clocks.