I’ve been doing a lot of looking back lately, thinking about the history and the family influences that shaped the maker I am today. It often surprises people to learn that the blueprint for what I do was drawn up long before I ever picked up a soldering iron or launched Spanky Spangler Design.
The truth is, I come from a long line of engineers, crafters, and thrifters. In my family, making, fixing, and reinventing things isn't just a hobby - it’s pretty much written into our DNA.
Magic at the Workbench
It all started when I was tiny, sitting at a workbench with my grandad. He was the man who first sparked my lifelong fascination with clocks and all things mechanical. I used to sit right beside him, completely mesmerised by the tiny gears turning and the rhythmic ticking sounds of the clocks he worked on.
To a child, his workshop felt like pure magic. But to my grandad, it was a lifetime of honed skill. He was a true engineer at heart. Having served as an engineer in the RAF, he possessed that rare, old-school brilliance: he could fix absolutely anything, make anything from scratch, and he even built a fully working miniature steam engine!
From Childhood Curiosity to Modern Upcycling
That early childhood curiosity never truly left me. It laid the foundation for everything I create today.
Whenever I sit down at my workspace to take watch movements apart to be upcycled, I am instantly transported back to those moments at my grandad's side. Every vintage cog, tiny spring, and mechanical casing I use carries a piece of that memory. I’m not just building modern designs; I'm keeping a family legacy of engineering and reinvention alive, one tiny gear at a time.
