For those familiar with the watches that Michael Graves designed for Projects Watches, you might be wondering why we are talking about a watch that was designed and first released back in 1998. Simply put, the brand is re-releasing the watch (in two limited-edition variants) in a tribute to Graves. Let’s have a look at what this new Projects Watches Newark Museum Watch is all about.
What do you do if you are bored with the same old way of showing time, with the hands spinning about, pointing out at numbers? You could go with a Tokyo Flash design, with their (usually) cryptic digital display. Or maybe a Mr. Jones, with a rotating skyline or the time showing up in a toothy smile on the dial? Or you could head over to Kickstarter and check out the Mykonos Design Visus, Where the lone red “hand” stays still and the numbers rotate around the dial.
“Driver” watches fill out an interesting style for me. Many of them look like divers, without the rotating bezel, or maybe aviators without some of the classic handset or marker cues. They are frequently loud, and they often times have racing stripes, for whatever reason (how many of us have cars with racing stripes?). But maybe because of the blend of styles, they do get my attention. On Kickstarter, the Straton Vintage Driver has already picked up a lot of attention, getting funded and blowing past their first two stretch goals in just their first weekend on line (with a Friday launch no less).
It was not all that long ago that a dive watch from the Netherlands seemed like a rarity. As it turns out, there is a new brand starting up that also wants to offer you a Dutch dive watch. While the previous one we wrote about was firmly in the realm of luxury watches, the Van Speyk Dutch Diver is definitely of the more affordable variety.
We just received word the other day from our pals over at Lew & Huey about a handful of updates, so we thought we’d share the news out here as well, as it is likely of interest to our readers. This roundup contains information on the Lew & Huey Phantom pre-order, a handful of replacement dials, and some new strap options.
When it comes to the watches coming from London-based Mr Jones, we have seen quite a variety of designs, mostly centered around interesting visual ideas and cues. Their latest, the Mr Jones Chatterbox, is certainly in that vein, with a variety of colorful characters decorating the dial. Oh, and telling the time.
Wait a minute, wait a minute – this is a post on a Kickstarter watch that is not written by Matt? That’s right, folks! Not to worry, he is still on the crowdfunding beat, this is just one that I took a particular shine to, so I jumped in to write it up. And yes, this is a project that cropped up before. That earlier project was trying to be a philanthropic effort, but Kickstarter does not allow those. Due to that, Azula Watch took a step back, rebranded and refocused, and came back with their watches. Without any further pre-amble, let’s jump in to see what the Azula Watch is all about.
The Mako lineup from Orient has been a popular one for a long time, due to its diver styling (and capabilities, one assumes) combined with a very attractive pricepoint. It has been so popular that there have actually been three iterations so far – the original, the Ray, and the Mako XL. While I am not intimately familiar with those three prior models, it seems that this latest – the Orient Mako USA – takes bits and pieces from the earlier models and comes up with a sort of superteam of styling.
Pop quiz, hotshot – who is my favorite Icelandic watch brand? That’s right, it’s Michelsen Watchmakers. While some of our prior writeups have focused on their back catalog, today, we are going to talk about something new that recently was released, the Michelsen Tradition, in both his and hers sizing.
For all you fledgling watchmakers out there who want to get their project off the ground, you could save yourself a little work and study what Redux & Co. have done with their first watch offering. First off, make an attractive watch. Second, make it a good value. Third, engage the press and build up supporters ready to jump as soon as the gun goes off. In less than 24 hours on Kickstarter, the Redux & Co Courg titanium watch already has over 400 backers and is over triple their funding goal of $30,000.
