Hello again!     Last Thursday we had the privilege of being a part of the first ever Hunger-Free Holiday Bazaar hosted by Gleaners Community Food Bank. The event was able to raise enough money to fund over 258,600 meals for hungry families this holiday season. Thank you to those who came out and visited us and even purchased watches for the holiday. You've helped an incredible amount of families this season. And the giving isn't over yet. We're still donating $50 of very watch purchased till the end of this month to Gleaners! There has never been a better time to buy your own limited edition watch before they all sell out.

    We love meeting our fellow watch lovers face to face which is why we’re continuously looking for ways to join other local companies in bringing our products directly to you. This weekend we will be headed out to The Rust Belt Market in Ferndale, watches on hand, ready for you to purchase for the holiday season. Friday through Sunday we’ll be there to chat, answer questions, show off our watches, and support the other small business there along side us. With Small-Business Saturday falling right into the center of our visit to Rust Belt we couldn't think of a better time to show our faces. Stop in and say hi, or tweet us when you get there! We would love to meet you.

    We’ve got a lot of exciting things planned for this upcoming year and we cannot wait to share them with you. Don’t forget to check back on our website for new designs that are uploaded every day, and vote for your favorite. We want you to continually be a active part of the rapidly growing Canvas community. Like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter and Instagram, and share this newsletter with your friends so they can keep updated on the great things we have going on at Canvas.   

November!

Henry Ford created the Quadricycle in 1896. The Model T was introduced 12 years later in 1908.

Building a 100 Year Company:

Creating a successful business is one of the most challenging and rewarding things some of us will ever choose to pursue. When the majority of businesses fail, it make sense that many entrepreneurs look for the path of least resistance. Not to say they take the easy way out (that would be not starting the business at all), but they choose the path that allows them to grow most quickly in the short term. Just like public companies maximizing for the next quarter, if difficult to stick to a long term plan when a small business is worried about staying afloat for the next few months.

At Canvas our view is a little different. We don't just want to build another watch brand, we want to build a 100 year company. Not because it's easy, but because it is hard. It's hard for a new watch company to find customers without relying on retailers. It's hard to make a complex physical product in limited run batches. It's hard finding the resources we need in a city that's just getting back on it's feet. But these difficult challenges are worth the struggle when looking beyond the horizon. 

Our mission with Canvas is to focus on the intangibles that make a watch special. While important, it's not the functionally that makes a watch worth wearing, it's the story attached to it. Most watches have a story of the brand, but we desired something more. So we set out to create watches that tell you more than what's on the dial. Each watch we make tells story of the entrepreneurial spirit in Detroit, the story of the person who created it's design, and the story of how the community came together to be a part of it's creation.

They're not one in a several million. They're one of 250. That's it. Unlike our phones or computers, people don't want to wear what everyone else is wearing. What we choose to wear is an expression of who we are and we don't want to express that we are exactly like everyone else. And we believe 250 is the prefect number.

The Watch Art of Sunflowerman:

Matthew Miller (aka Sunflowerman) was new to the world of watches when he set out on his project of illustration 100 watches in 100 days. Primarily focusing on men’s fashion illustration he paints everything from the clothes on your back to the places you live.

But why start illustrating watches? In an interview with Hodinkee he elaborated on what drove this endeavor. 

“Admittedly I know little about watches (I know a little more now) and I hoped to expand my knowledge with the project. I had done a few watch illustrations for an Instagram user and was amazed at the horological community. When people love watches they LOVE watches. It seems such a humble object but it really contains its own ecosystem. There is the bezel and the dial, the manufacturer and designer, the history, the straps, the patina and the stories. The history is so dense and so rich. All of that to say that creating an illustrative project on watches seemed the best way for me to learn."

It’s incredible to see how he has used watch design as an inspiration for an entirely different medium. We are so used to seeing people inspired by art when designing a watch, we love seeing this dynamic flipped on its head. To learn more, check out the rest of Hodinkee’s interview. Then watch him action illustrating a watch in the video below.

Wristi by Sunflowerman - Youtube Link

This story shows that everything can be a canvas ( even a page of Sherlock Holmes) and that people appreciate interesting art.

Since the launch of the new canvaswatch.com we have begun posting new designs submitted by the community. Seeing your votes for your favorite new designs is an exciting next step for us and it means that batch #2 is right around the corner. We have been patiently waiting to get to this next chapter and to help get new submissions we'd like to talk to designers about how and why they should become a Canvas watch designer: 

After downloading our design template and creating your design, the next step is to upload it to the community so the voting can begin. At this stage there is no promise that your watch is going to be produced, but you are guaranteed feedback on your design.

If your design receives positive support and is chosen for production, you'll receive your watch free of charge. For batch #2, we will also be giving $2,500 to each of the designers selected. This is our way of jumpstarting the growth of the Canvas design community, as well as, to show our appreciation to the designers for their work. 

Why Do You Need a Watch?

About a week ago we shared the 1st part in HypeBeast‘s Guide to Watches titled, “Why Do You Need a Watch?”. They echoed many of our beliefs how a wristwatch can be an “expression of character” and we couldn’t pass up the opportunity to blog about something that fuels our passion.

 A watch can carry so much meaning and create a statement about who you, so shouldn’t you have control over the design on your wrist? Choosing a watch shouldn't be like answering a multiple choice exam, deciding between different brands, colors, and styles. Everyone should be a part of the creative process, so that expression is a true representation of who they are.

 In the center of their article they talk about using a watch as a "a medium of expression". We couldn’t agree more and that is the foundation for how we look at watch design. It should be treated as a blank canvas to express the creativity of you as an individual, creating a connection between you and your watch.

Finally they end by talking about what’s beneath the design,  "Appreciating the story and complementary style that the right watch pairing can bring is always important, but of equal importance is in the guts of the watch itself." This is exactly why we worked with a Ronda movement for the first designs. It provides the reliability someone expects with a high quality watch but keeps our cost low. The purpose of a watch is to become part of the things that describe the wearer, not cause them to miss a rent payment.

Piece by Piece - Chapter 4 : Case Back

The case back is radial brushed and has six slots to screw and unscrew it from the case.

Starting with the outer ring, the four reversed etched phases are; Assembled in U.S.A., Swiss Movement, Water Resistance 330 Feet, and Sapphire Crystal. The purpose of these phases are to describe the watch's level of quality. We display Assembled in U.S.A. because it is an important value to our company. The components come from different countries, and we have partnered with a watchmaker near Cleveland, Ohio to assemble the first batch.  This approach also allows us to lower the batch sizes without increasing the price of the watch, which is a win-win. Our goal is to open our own facility and assemble the watches in Michigan.

Next is Swiss Movement. As we talked about in Piece by Piece Chapter 2, this series will use a Ronda Caliber 513 quartz movement. Water Resistance 330 Feet is fairly self explanatory. The watches are pressure tested and both the screw down case back and crown ensure that you can take our watches with you in the water worry free.

Last, but not least is Sapphire Crystal. Most similarly priced watches include a mineral crystal lens, which is less expensive but more prone to scratches. Sapphire is one of the hardest materials in the world, second only to diamond.

Piece by Piece - Chapter 3 : The Crown

Embossing a capital 'C' on the end of the crown would have been a nice touch on it's own, but it felt like a missed opportunity to do something unique. When you look closer, the engraving actually is a clockwise spinning arrow. It's a little different, but let me explain the meaning behind it.

First, it's a subtle reminder to securely tighten down the crown. On many high-end watches, especially divers, the crown is threaded and screws downward into the watch case to guarantee the water resistance rating. This is referred to as a 'screw-down crown', and gives the person wearing it peace of mind that the watch won't be damaged in water. On the other hand, leaving the crown unscrewed decreases the water resistance from 330 feet to roughly zero. This is rarely an issue, but it shows we went the extra mile if you happen to take your watch with you on your next scuba diving expedition.

Piece by Piece - Chapter 2 : The Movement

For our first series, we've decided to use a swiss quartz movement made by Ronda AG. If you're not familiar with Ronda, they are the largest independent swiss manufacturer of quartz movements and they have been making watch components for over 60 years. Ronda (as well as ETA and Miyota) are regarded as the highest quality quartz movements and we chose Ronda's Caliber 513 for its durability and long term reliability.

If you're new to the world of watch movements, you may be surprised to hear that there are only a handful of quartz manufacturers supplying movements to all the different watch brands. It does take away some of the mystery around watches, but it's the first step to branching out from the large retail brands and hopefully finding a watch that is more fitting to your taste. Similar to beer or wine, it's usually not the high volume products that give you the most personal enjoyment. Finding what is right for you is part of the process to becoming an enthusiast in any field.

For those of you who are already watch enthusiasts, Sellita and Miyota mechanical movements were also considered, but we decided to keep the first series at a more reasonable price point, and we plan to reconsider a more high-end mechanical line in the future. For non-collectors, the quality of the materials and the attention to detail will definitely be a refreshing change.

If you're interested in the technical details, you can click here to download the data sheet for the 513. 

Extra tip: If the company doesn't disclose the movement's caliber, there's a high chance it's not the quality level you're looking for.

As a follow up to last week's post, here are some of the first drawings I made around this time last year. It's nice to reflect and see how far things have come.

Prototyping : From Idea to Production

For someone without experience in advanced manufacturing, the process of turning an idea into a physical reality can appear from the outside to be near impossible. Not to say that it's easy, but it can be done. What makes it possible is the process of prototyping. Similar to building a fire, the idea is the spark and prototyping is the kindling that turns that spark to a roaring blaze. To use the same metaphor, the Maker Movement is helping to act as a starter log to make this process faster and easier than ever before. Have you heard of 3D printing, but don't know who's using them? It's the Makers. By connecting and collaborating with other people in the community, prototyping an idea is becoming more and more approachable for everyone.

Similar to a gym membership, there's are a few member-based workshops popping up around the country that let people of all skill levels come in and use industrial tools and equipment to build their own projects. I spent many days and nights at TechShop in Allen Park, Michigan taking classes and teaching myself how to use the software and equipment before stumbling into the world of watchmaking. The photo above is an aluminum watch bezel I was machining to test the size and shape of an early case design. It's great to visualize a component using their 3D software, but holding a physical object changes your prospective. Without these resources, taking the leap to start a watch company would have been extremely daunting, but once I was able to create prototypes, manufacturing became the next logical step. 

Piece by Piece - Chapter 1 : Case Design

The case design is one of the important elements when creating a new watch, and with this being the company's first timepiece, it was even more important to make sure that the first case was perfect.

After carefully reviewing thousands of different cases for design inspiration, IWC's Mark XVII (bottom left) and the Patek Phillippe Ref. 5127 (bottom right) were the largest influencers on the final case design. The Mark XVII has a stainless steel case, rugged aesthetic, and follows in the foot steps of the Mark 11 of the 1940s. It's military inspired style makes it great for everyday use. Patek's 5127 is the ideal dress watch with it's smooth edges and white gold polished surfaces, but at roughly $29,000, it's more of a Rolls-Royce than a daily driver. We agree that it's a little extravagant to spend that much on a watch, but if you're going to draw inspiration for other designs, why not look to the best?

By incorporating both causal and dress watch design elements, our first case falls somewhere in between the two ends of the spectrum. The bezel is hand polished and the rest of the case has a brushed finish, which is radical across the top and bottom surfaces and horizontally brushed along the sides. The material is 316L stainless steel with a diameter of 42mm and a lug width of 22mm. Making it an average size watch by today's standards.