Production

Těla hodinek a krytkyWatch bodies and coversWood watches, like our other wood products, go through many manufacturing processes before we are satisfied with it and can ship it to customers. In today’s complex world, one loses track of what is being made how, and finds it hard to appreciate things properly. He can’t relate to them in a relevant way. We would like this not to be true of our products. That’s why we want to share the story of their creation.

3D návrh dřevěných hodinke model AladinDesign

Naturally, the first step to making anything at all is design. Or rather, an intangible idea. We are not very skilled at drawing with pencil on paper. That’s why we don’t sketch designs much. It’s more like we create an idea of the model in our heads. We try to take inspiration from various fields of art, architecture, furniture or industrial design. We are influenced by the study of art history, especially the development of photography. Therefore, we do not deny our fascination with the avant-garde of the First Republic and subsequent modernist influences. However, we are also no strangers to older styles. An invaluable, in fact necessary, tool for materializing our ideas is 3d modeling software. Here we prepare the data for rough machining. This is how we prepare only some parts of the production. And until the final assembly, no one knows what the watch will actually look like except the imagination in the designer’s head.

Vyfrézované tělo hodinek Aladin (Túje)Milling

Our whole production started with the acquisition of one tiny machining centre, which is perhaps a rather exaggerated term. We knew from the beginning that our products would be made mainly by hand. But it’s pointless to resist the advances of the digital age. We strive to combine craftsmanship with modern technology to achieve maximum production quality in unique products. That’s why today we have a more or less customized CNC milling machine, which produces the rough workpiece of the watch body and case. But also several other invaluable helpers.

Finishing the workpiece

Vybroušené tělo hodinek Aladin (Ořech)Aladin (Walnut)The watch body, when it falls out of the cutter, is an unsightly hairy piece of wood. It needs to be properly caressed to be able to say that in a few days it will be a beautiful watch. Various foam grinders, sanding plates, belt sanders, specially treated sanding discs, abrasive wool all take a piece of wood for this. This is probably the most joyful part of the job. Turning an ugly duckling into a beautiful swan. We progress from high grit abrasive tools to increasingly finer tools. The drawing of the wood becomes more pronounced. About halfway through this refinement work, when it is clear that this piece of wood will make a nice watch, a few holes need to be drilled. For example, holes for the crown shaft, holes for the screws for the back cover and so on. This is the final step in the refinishing process. In the case of the cap, we also laser burn our brand with the unique serial number.

Povrchově ošetřené tělo hodinek Aladin (Ořech)Surface treatment

While the pre-polished semi-finished piece is beautiful, this condition would be very unstable without further treatment. Wood is a porous material and sucks up all moisture, dust and dirt like a sponge. In addition, it is very working and would not last long when worn on the wrist. In order to prevent this process, the wood needs to be both stabilized and protected from external influences as much as possible. For this we use staining in special natural oils from renowned Czech manufacturers. This is done in many layers. Between each application we polish all wooden parts. The result is a pleasant silky semi-matt finish.

Production of the strap

The strap will greatly influence the feel of the watch. It is not only a design element, but especially the wearing comfort. A lot of wooden watch manufacturers rely on wooden folded straps, which looks beautiful but has its drawbacks. We went for natural leather right from the start. The strap adapts to your hand very quickly. And it’s much more variable, you can fasten it a hole further or closer depending on your mood. That’s practically impossible with a wooden strap. Of course, we make the leather straps for our watches ourselves. This gives us freedom in their shapes and colours. Most of our models are fitted with a fairly simple strap. But we also offer watches for which you probably cannot buy a replacement strap anywhere else but from us. We try to make bands in a minimalist way. The double layer of leather is glued all over. Only at the ends, where the spokes are, the strap is sewn with waxed thread. As a rule, we use 100% natural but dyed leather. Which doesn’t mean it’s always inconspicuous. We are not afraid to experiment with bold, one could say contrasting colours. In short, leather straps add significantly to the overall look of a watch.

Completion

When the wooden parts are sufficiently treated and have reached the desired surface, we proceed to the final assembly. If the dial is decorated with stones, we set them before the last coat of oil and final polishing. The movement with the shaft and crown is then inserted into the body of the watch. After screwing in the case back, the hands are fitted. At this point, the watch comes to life for the first time and starts ticking. Only after all the basic positions have been tested, the cover glass can be placed over the dial. The watch is now left to run for at least a week to check its precision. Sometimes we are impatient, and we want to see the new model complete as soon as possible. Only then can we compare reality with what we dreamed up. Every detail affects the final impression. The choice of wood, the choice of colour and shape of the hands, the crown or the appropriate buckle on the strap, the colour, texture and workmanship of the leather strap not excluded. We have already produced many pieces. But the moment when the watch is finally complete is a moment of joy for us.

Box

Krabičky na dřevěné hodinkyWooden watch boxesWatches are not finished until they have a dignified place to rest in the moments when they are sad because no one is wearing them. In our case, the choice was clear and the box had to be wooden. But we didn’t settle for just anything and made the boxes ourselves. We make the watch box out of two materials. The outer shell is glued from oak planks. On the bottom removable wall of the box, a beech stand is attached. The watch is attached to it so that it can safely set off on its journey through the world to its new owners, perhaps to you. Each box contains a card which briefly describes the story of that particular watch with a few technical parameters.