Do you know someone that works with stone, maybe a contractor, or mason? Do you know a Freemason in need of a gift? The Lexell Stone Watch may be just what you need. For $109, or $197 for 2, this Kickstarter project will provide you with a fairly unique twist on a standard looking three hand quartz.
Now, before I get into the specifics, I have to make my usual gripes about the hype these guys put into the project. I don’t know how they define their steel and stone watch to make it a first of its kind, but my extensive research (5 minutes on Google) came up with other designs that mix stone and steel. And I really doubt that before you guys came along, this mix and match of materials. Romane Jerome with their watch made with moon dust, that would be something others consider impossible, a stone bezel and markers, not so much.
Ok, my rant is over. Regardless of the difficulty in putting the watch together, it is an attractive and unique package. There are four options for stone, black or white quartzite, granite, and my favorite, slate. Apart from the stone, the cases are stainless or (I assume) PVD and come it at a beefy 51mm.
They are rated for 50m water resistance, have a Japanese quartz movement (I suppose that using quartz is to be expected in a watch with stone, but I can’t find out which movement they are using), a sapphire crystal, and the steel band has matching stone inlays and a butterfly clasp.
The project reached the funding goal fairly quickly, and as of this write up, is on the cusp of $90,000 pledged, which is where they will reveal their first stretch goal. So maybe they will add another type of stone, or maybe they will give you a second strap, or something else. That is one of the nice things about backing a kickstarter project, in general, as the project zooms past the initial funding level, the makers will sweeten the deals as a thank you to all the adopters out there. Editor’s note: they’ve hit the milestone, and revealed the reward as a founders caseback plus a travel case.
Which brings me to a final point, this is a crowd funded project from a fledgling company. I like these projects, but they are not without risk. The stated delivery date is the end of February, but that can slip, sometimes by a lot. Other things can go wrong as well. I you have seen my other posts, then you probably know that I own, and am very happy with, a Kickstarter watch, but the project execution was harder than the maker envisioned. –Matt Himmelstein
