Shark Tank Star, Kevin O'Leary Raves About Vortic
A few months ago a friend of ours received a deal on Shark Tank from Mr. Wonderful. He decided to buy Kevin a Vortic watch as a thank you gift. We were honored and obviously stoked to ship a watch to one of our favorite TV stars.
The watch arrived just in time for the filming of Season 12 of Shark Tank, but we hadn't heard anything from Kevin or his team, so we figured... well, he's a billionaire Entrepreneur, he can buy anything he wants, maybe he just wasn't excited about our little watch company.
We were wrong. Kevin made a video with his friend Producer Michael, and they broke our website. Watch the video below starting at the 18-minute mark, for a love story about Vortic from Mr. Wonderful!
As you might imagine, our website traffic spiked, and now we're sold out and back-ordered for what might be months. We're making them as fast as we can over here! Sorry!
The Weekly Roundup
We build a new, one of a kind wristwatch every single day. We call it the Watch of the Day! Here's the last seven watches in your weekly round up. Click the images to see that watch on the website, and to learn more.
As always, everything inside these watches is from an antique American pocket watch including the dial (face), hands, and movement (the entire mechanical mechanism). Feel free to respond to this email with questions or to request a custom project!
The Springfield 355
This dial caught our eye with its exceptional shine! Maybe it's the gold numerals or the distinguished gold hands, we couldn't help but put this dial in a machined titanium case with a gold knurled crown. Our rye strap with gold buckle and tang rounds out this exceptional watch. With the unique numeral style, this dial offers a subtle international essence - perfect for The Traveler in your life. On this 17jewel movement produced by the Elgin National Watch Company in 1926, you can see the inscription on the back under the "U.S.A." insignia with the word "Artistic". Though not deeply engraved, you can see subtle design all around the movement that is absolutely artistic! Speaking of artists, 1926 was the year escape artist and famous entertainer Harry Houdini died at the age of 52.
The Chicago 394
The Lancaster 076 is one of our more unique creations. This movement features dark purple metallic hands, instead of the more common blue steel. The sparkly stone texture of the dial face and Roman numerals make this watch reminiscent of ancient sundials. All characteristics join together for an aesthetic that is simultaneously classic and modern. The Hamilton movement was manufactured in 1925, which is the same year the Chrysler Corporation was founded by Walter Percy Chrysler.
The Springfield 338
This watch offers a certain level of class. The Illinois dial has a pinstripe style in the very center with a delicately ornate engraved ring surrounding that. We love the style of these numerals, they have a seemingly oriental air to them but are still clear and easy to read. Our machined titanium case and knurled crown emphasize the silver dial while our black Cordovan strap pulls out the black numerals. This watch would be a great dress piece or purchase a second strap to swap out for more casual outings! This is a Double Roller, 17jewel movement that was manufactured by the Illinois Watch Company in 1927. We thought it was a fun nod to the strips on the center of the dial, the back of the movement also has a striped engraving. 1927 was actually the year The Holland Tunnel under the Hudson River opened connecting New York City with Jersey.
The Springfield 357
This is one of the older movements we have seen and although we can't be sure if this dial has always lived on this movement we hope it has! The black detail on the dial is exquisite, a maze-like pattern lining the inside of the numerals and a vine-like design around the outside. The numeral style matches the whimsy of the rest of the dial. We chose our DLC machined black case paired with our round nickel crown and stout strap to frame the decor of the dial. The slightest pop of color can be found in the classic blue steel hands! This Springfield Watch Company movement has 17jewels and was produced in 1890, the same year Wyoming and Idaho are admitted as the 43rd and 44th states.
The Springfield 337
This watch is a great example of the spectrum of movements we have in our inventory. There is a subtle, distressed look from whatever exposure the dial received in the almost 100 years before it arrived in our shop. We especially love the unique, gothic style hands and the line "Majestic" under the traditional Illinois on the dial. Again, we appreciate the pinstripe in the center of the dial and the nod to it on the back of the movement as well. Produced in 1924 by the Illinois Watch Company with 17jewels, this is also a Double Roller movement. Staying with the silver tones in the dial, we chose our machined titanium case, knurled nickel crown and a coal strap. Did you know... the year this movement was produced was the same year MGM was founded in Los Angeles, California?
The Boston 203
Looking for a watch with a warmer, more delicate feel? This is the watch for you. This Waltham dial has a porcelain-like white face, detailed with gold arches around the outside and a very simple arrow and flower combination in the center. Not overly ornate but with softer accents, this watch radiates a warm, gentlemanly style. Our machined titanium case allows the dial to be the focus with our round gold crown and natural strap as a nod to the gold accents. You might notice the slight fractures in the dial, this movement was actually produced around 1904, nearly 100 years ago! Boasting 23jewels and a beautifully engraved back of the movement, this Conversation Piece is absolutely a one of a kind.
The Springfield 358
This watch definitely gives us a harvest-y October feel! The long skinny numbers paired with the speckled background of the dial with just a splash of gold around the center has a very fall essence, we can almost smell the pumpkin! We chose our machined titanium case and of course the round raw crown to round out this fall feature. Our tobacco strap adds a warm, worn feeling to the overall watch. We can also see this watch being a great fit with a crimson strap to make it pop a little more! The Illinois watch company produced the movement we used for this watch in 1921 and it has 19jewels and a striped pattern on the movement. We often see a pinstripe look on the Illinois movements but this pattern is a little different and looks almost angled, creating a bit of an optical allusion.
