01 — How this started
I broke my back, and fell for watches.
Well, technically I didn't break my back, but I did have a serious back injury that kept me laid up for weeks. During that time I was introduced to watches, and what started as curiousity, became infatuation, became a passion.
What got me was never the logos. It was the trifecta of the mechanical ingenuity that captivated the 'lego kid' in me, the consequential history attached at the hip to innovation in timekeeping, and the opportunity for self expression that truly combined art and function.
02 — Learning the bench
So I built a collection. Literally.
From almost the beginning I ran parallel paths in my growing watch hobby. Half my time was spent researching, collecting, learning about and appreciating the work of others, and half of the time I taught myself to build my own. Sourcing movements, cases, dials and hands, learning what fits what, ruining a few parts and learning exactly why.
Eventually someone saw one of my pieces and asked whether I'd build them one. That first commission paid for the next set of tools, and those paid for the build after it. That's still how this works — the bench funds the hobby, funds the brand.
Correction - the bench funds a small part of the hobby...
03 — Why Delali
A name worth building toward.
While nearly no one knows me by it, Delali is actually my first name. In my father's West African tribal tongue, Delali translates most literally as deliverer. Culturally, though, it's often used to say 'the redeemer has come' or 'the savior lives'.
I have a deep respect for the craftmanship and true excellence in watchmaking and horology, both before me and by others today. With that in mind, my hope is that should Delali Watch Company exist, it not only be meaningfully additive to what's already here, but also a redemptive influence to the world around it - local, and perhaps, beyond.
Follow the journey
I write when something actually happens — a dial that worked, a part that didn't, a new build. Not often, and never filler.
04 — Delali linen dials
My first real contribution.
Most of the watch components I've built to date have been entirely sourced. These linen dials will be the first components I actually make and hand-finish myself, for use in my own builds. They're still in development, so they aren't yet an option on every commission.
They start with raw material, specifically blank brass, and end as a beautiful, lacquered linen dial. Each one unique, a fingerprint of its own. Modern watchmaking has gotten very good at perfect: enamel, lacquer, sunray brushing. I'm focusing first on the different register, a dial that still carries the grain of the hands that made it. My hands.
Creme Linen
Solid brass, satin creme over linen texture
The most restrained of the three. A warm, chalky creme that reads quietly against a dress shirt or a field jacket alike.
05 — The long game
Rooted somewhere, and useful to it.
I want DELALI to be a redemptive presence in the place it comes from, not just a brand that happens to be based here. That means building something that lifts up the community and the land around it.