Check out the attention to detail in Apple’s watch faces 🤯

An illustrated header image showing three stickers on a green background. The stickers show a coffee cup with a rainbow holder band, an Apple Watch face, and a camera icon. The bottom-right corner of the image is being pulled up by a cursor revealing scribbles on a black background

Issue 10

“While Apple’s latest watch face, Metropolitan, references timepieces from the past, there is no single dial design or wristwatch archetype it points to. Instead, there are subtle connections to nearly a century of fine watchmaking.”

Arun Venkatesan, arun.is

We love a bit of historical inspiration in design — especially when it comes to something as considered as a watch face. This month, Arun Venkatesan has dived into the history behind Apple’s latest watch addition, the Metropolitan face, on his blog, allowing us to marvel at the fine details that make it unique.

Down in the Resources section, we’ve got a tool that can take an app and turn its screens into layered, interactive Artboards in Sketch that you can then edit. Color us impressed — this could save a lot of time for a lot of people.

Finally, the latest Sketch Session is happening at the end of this month — Joseph Todaro will show how to make the most of dozens of new Sketch features. Scroll down to the Events section to sign up.

See you next month 👋 (How is it nearly December already?!)

Stephen Ashby

Editor, Beyond the Canvas

On our radar

An Apple watch with a red band and the Metropolitan watch face on a red background

Blog

A historical view on the Metropolitan Apple Watch face

We love Arun’s deep dives into the history behind Apple’s watch faces, and this one is no different. See how classic designs of the past inspired its Metropolitan design.

A compilation image showing designs from Basic Apple Guy, including a Mac wallpaper on a MacBook, an iPhone wallpaper, an Apple Watch screen and a coffee cup, all on a black background with a rainbow

Interview

How Basic Apple Guy turned a hobby into a thriving social media community

This month, we chatted to Basic Apple Guy about how his hobby has given him a global following — and about how he creates his Apple-inspired designs.

A YouTube Thumbnail showing the host in front of a Nintendo Switch on a black background. The thumbnail sits in a blue frame.

Video

Tips and techniques to recreate real-world objects in Sketch

Join Mike as he walks you through some tips and tricks to help recreate real-world objects in Sketch — perfect practice ahead of your next skeuomorphic project.

Blog

How to set up your UX copy ecosystem

“A well-managed UX copy ecosystem will show you how your copy works across a brand-wide spectrum that goes beyond a single feature, product or even platform.”