Before shaping the basic concept,the main contextual drives were laid out in order to have the right influences.The basic points were that: it was a first/main piece a brand, it was a newbrand, perceptions of toughness and longevity were required. I was also lookingfor a sense of unorthodox view within the given limits and last but not leastto the mix, went the timeless appeal, expressed as a retro-futuristic drive onthe principal geometry lines, achieved by stretching these lines into bothdirections of time. This was also a good commercial element that would make iteasily stand out among the competition offers. As Apple company and itsproducts are today the very example of the ultimate functionality expressedthrough distinctive design, one of my frequent thoughts during the designprocess and it’s inevitable dilemmas was “How would Steve Jobs do it?”.

It looks 100 years old and 100years into the future, but does not belong anywhere; a timekeeper outside timeframes, an alien, an outlander, and that is where the idea of Outtimer camefrom. The whole geometry of the case resembles a flying alien disk from asci-fi movie and is also designed to mimic wrapped space-time, aided by thesector divisions that start from the bezel and are mirrored on the back of thedisk. Some lines from the dial are extended to the bezel to increase theperceived size of the elements by making them overlap, but also subliminallysuggest unbound timelessness. The layout of the date, day and sub-dial elementswas thought basically simple with a futuristic touch, giving priority to thebest visibility of the elements, making them large enough and marked by wellcontrasting colors.

Continuing with the strapattachment arms, functionality and context were once again the main drives; thecase was a statement of time and its power on people’s life, so the pieceresponsible for securing it to the strap was designed and held in place withultimate simplicity. To balance the expressive power of the case, the arms aremade of two precut titanium pieces, bent to the shape of the disk and securedwith 4 screws on each side. The strap attachments are also powerfullyexpressive of the job they carry, with oversized nuts.

The strap is black rubber style andthe clasp was again designed with simplicity and comfort in mind, so it’sbasically standard, but with an extra movable part to hold the strap on theother side in place. The two parts are hinged by screws similar to theattachments of the case and give a unique look to the whole design.