Where does Wabi-Sabi end and “will you look at the alignment on that” start?

 

Very subjective. Depends on each person's take. Seiko has their own criteria, I guess, which are too wide for some people's liking.

Personally, if alignment is off by a hair's width (e.g. quartz seconds hand to minute markers), I learned not to be bothered. Or I see inaccurate mechanical timekeeping as just the way it is, it's a toy, not a serious timekeeper like quartz or cell phone. YMMV.

 

Just an excuse for sloppy workmanship. You must a, not act a, dis hon or ably.

 

Seiko is such a baka.

 

I think I get the whole Wabi Sabi thing but to me it should only be applicable to hand made things. In a former life I was a wood worker and furniture maker who made mid-four figure pieces and although I strived for perfection I never achieved it, but in doing so the “imperfections” were somehow endearing and indicative of the work and skill involved with making it. A non-woodworker could look at my pieces and KNOW it was all handmade even if they weren’t knowledgeable enough to point out my “mistakes”.

 

Seiko........never a dull moment, good or bad......

 

I really like the Zen Garden line. They've got a great vibe.

 

I feel you’re misunderstanding wabi-sabi if you you think it means shoddy workmanship.

 

Wabi sabi is about beauty or acceptance of imperfection? Seiko certainly accepts some degree of imperfections in watches that leave the factory, and I suspect some customers could accept some degree of imperfections as well... e.g. Mechanical timekeeping is inherently imperfect, and almost everyone here accept it to differing degrees.

As alluded to in post #6 above, and in my work experience as well, imperfections are just part of what we do.

 

Wabi sabi could be rather deliberate in the thing that's made. Quality standards and accuracy specifications are chosen and deliberate as well, I'd argue.

 

“Wabi Sabi: The Japanese Art of Impermanence

Taken from the Japanese words wabi, which translates to less is more, and sabi, which means attentive melancholy, wabi-sabi refers to an awareness of the transient nature of earthly things and a corresponding pleasure in the things that bear the mark of this impermanence.”

It’s really about decay and impermanence, not about imperfect craftsmanship.

 

Have to say I've always thought of Wabi Sabi as something that is gained over time and usage eg patina rather than something that is part of a brand new object

 

Since things decay and are impermanent, I feel misalignments and inaccuracies are just one step closer to the inevitable... e.g. A scratched up exterior and misaligned interior kind of go together. haha I see a lot of coherence in design from Seiko, so that pairing doesn't feel out of place for me.

At work, the stuff I do are always imperfect, that's the nature of it. Time spent trying to perfect things might be time wasted, if it doesn't contribute to the end goal.

For Seiko, I think accepting things within certain standards is a business decision. There are diminishing returns. "Good enough" is not necessarily a bad thing. Extra time/effort spent might not be necessary, noticed, or appreciated. Mostly it's WUS people that notice with a loupe and timegrapher? I find imperfections kind of encourage going towards normalcy and away from obsessions with loupe and timegrapher. A more normal approach (like non-watch people's) to watches is not necessarily a bad thing; it's more relaxed, less anxious. To me, Seiko's characteristic of imperfections is kind of interesting. YMMV.