Nomad Watches Debuts With the Samuel Wilkinson-Designed Mòltair

After debuting last month at the London Design Festival, Nomad Watches — which started as watch store Twisted Time back in 2010 — has tapped renowned industrial designer Samuel Wilkinson for its very first timepiece. Dubbed the Mòltair and taking its named from the Gaelic word for a cast, Nomad’s introductory watch adopts a case that mimics the look of a cast iron pot, pairing textured steel with a smooth hexagonal crown and Japanese Miyota movement. Overlaid block hands highlight the otherwise marker-free dial as crystal clear beveled glass showcases the minimalist look. Said Wilkinson of the piece:

I wanted to design a watch that I would like to wear; something that was expressive and a bit avant garde but still functional. Watches, like chairs, have been overdone and the market is saturated, so the challenge is harder to find a design with its own signature or unique identity, which I hope I have achieved… Every part is bespoke and has been thought through in great detail. The hands are made from lightweight aluminium so that we could achieve the desired size, as they would not be possible in brass, which is the industry-standard material for hands. The crystal is 2mm thick, so it is really protective, with a wide bevelled edge that blends out to the fine metal rim. This magnifies and distorts the crisp geometric hands when viewed from the side.

Finished with a vegetable-tanned organic Swedish leather strap, Nomad’s Mòltair is available online now.