Recently I was on the hunt for a military style watch. Oh sure I started with the IWC Pilot’s Watch Mark XVI, but who wants to be that ostentatious. So I set my sights to modest and noticed J.Crew’s custom Timex reproduction. Not bad, not bad.
But then something hit me. Wouldn’t it be cool to have a watch faced in Helvetica? Or Futura? Or some other beloved typeface. (Not Verdana. Ok, sorry I couldn’t help it.) An intensive internet search was begun and I found…
…so little.
Enter my new Chronotype series of watches. You know the Swiss are known for their timepieces, yet I find so few that combine their love of precision time and precision type design.
Yes, I did a Futura one too.
Each of these designs are loosely based on existing styles I admit, but isn’t it high time we designers had timepieces that turned the hours to minutes and the watch face typeface to Helvetica.
What a delightful little sideline this was. I’ve never designed a watch before and I have to say I have enjoyed giving it a try. I’m sure to the well-trained, watchful eye there’s oodles of glaring errors I’ve made but I sure did enjoy the exercise.
[EDIT: My good friend Misha has opened my eyes with these German works of art. Drools.]
P.S. In the end, I opted for a Timex T Series Perpetual Calendar Watch (T2M453) from eBay.
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