Watches, Stories, and Gear: National Park Alternatives, Navigating the Studio Ghibli Collection, and a Fantastic Example of Bauhaus Architecture

“Watches, Stories, and Gear” is a roundup of some of our favorite watch content on Worn & Wound, great stories from around the web, and cool gear that we’ve got our eye on.

This installment of “Watches, Stories, and Gear” is brought to you by the Windup Watch Shop.

Worn & Wound
The C0-Axial Escapement: An Horological Hit

This week we thought we’d take a look back at Allen Farmelo’s dive into the co-axial escapement from December 2018. The history of the co-axial escapement, from an idea in the mind of George Daniels to near ubiquity among modern Omega watches, is fascinating, and makes you appreciate just how rare it is to create genuinely new innovations in watchmaking. Also included here is a video of Daniels himself explaining his creation, which is just about worth the price of admission alone.

Read it here

The Ringer
Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Mission to Mars

This story from the Ringer is a must if you grew up on Arnold Schwarzenegger’s action movies and miss the golden age of mega-star driven, explosive laden, spectacularly violent, and wildly creative blockbusters. While Total Recall is fondly remembered by many fans of the action and sci-fi genres, the story of just how much control Schwarzenegger himself wielded over the project isn’t as widely known. This piece makes you realize that Arnie, at one time, may have truly been the biggest Hollywood star ever.

Read it here

The Verge
Where to Start with Studio Ghibli

If you’re a new HBO Max customer (or an old HBO Now customer who was recently upgraded) you have a lot of new content to sift through. A huge Warner Bros. archive, all the great HBO programming from years past, and Friends (if that’s your thing) are just the beginning. One of the most exciting parts of the new streaming service for fans of international film is the streaming debut of the Studio Ghibli animated films. Many of these movies are true classics and have become breakout hits here in America, but if you’re dipping into this collection for the first time, be sure to check out this crash course from The Verge on the history of the studio, and the best titles to check out if you’re just getting your feet wet.

Read it here

Dwell
A Giant in the Bauhaus Movement Hits the Market For the First Time for $1.5M

You may not be fortunate enough to be in the market for a million dollar home in Weinheim, Germany, but you can still enjoy the stunning photos of this home, a genuine product of the Bauhaus movement. The four bedroom home is unassuming from the outside, but the spacious and light filled interior is truly beautiful, and has been filled with complementary decor that highlights the unique characteristics of the architecture.

Read it here

New York Times
11 Great Alternatives to the Top National Parks 

Summer vacation season is fast approaching, and for many Americans that means escaping to the peace and quiet of a national park. This year’s summer, however, promises to be unlike any other. Will millions of Americans, tired of being cooped up for months, flock to the most popular national parks, crowding them beyond all recognition? The truth is that many parks are already incredibly busy during a normal tourism season, making the prospect of isolation in the great outdoors that much more unlikely. In this article in the New York Times, Jon Waterman highlights a compelling list of  less frequently visited alternatives to the parks that he expects will be extremely busy over the coming months, so you and your family can get away and feel like you’re actually getting away.

Read it here

Cool Material 
Nanopresso Portable Espresso Maker

If you find yourself in one of the 11 national park alternatives listed in the linked story above (or anywhere else in the great outdoors), it doesn’t mean you have to go without coffee. If espresso is your drink of choice, there’s an increasing range of portable options that allow you to get your fix without electricity. The new Nanopresso Portable Espresso Maker is a portable, hand powered espresso maker that can be used with ground coffee or Nespresso pods, making it a truly convenient option for coffee lovers on the go. While it might not be able to reproduce the rich and full flavor of espresso made in a higher end machine, there’s something appealing and fun about hand pulled shots in the middle of nowhere. 

Shop Nanopresso here