Buckets & Spades - Men's Fashion, Design and Lifestyle Blog: watches

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26 Nov 2018

Three Small Businesses to Visit in Manchester

street style photo wearing orange ymc sweatshirt with arket gilet, a days march chore jacket and skagen falster 2 smartwatch

close up detail shot of the skagen falster 2 smartwatch

This post is in partnership with SKAGEN Denmark

Anyone who grew up in a small town will tell you that it's either beautiful and quaint, or dreadfully dull with not a lot going on. My town falls in between the two - beautiful in parts, with a lot of personality, but if it's well-designed restaurants, non-chain coffee shops + small retailers you're after then you'll have to travel to a local city for it. For me that city is Manchester.

As part of my on-going partnership with SKAGEN Denmark the brand encouraged me to explore some of my favourite places in my local area. For the past few months I've been using the Falster ll Smartwatch and sharing my progress with the individual features via Instagram. Overall I've found the watch most useful on the days I want to feel a little less reliant on my phone. I do sometimes have to remind myself that my phone plays a huge role in my job - but becoming more hands-free when I'm with friends seems to stimulate the part of my brain that loves to connect with the world around me. The Faster ll's notification system lets me filter out messages so I'm only receiving the most important updates.

As someone who sees Manchester as their second city I've become accustom to many of the friendly faces around town, so it's a pleasure of mine to share a little bit more about some of those places I like to call my favourites.

trove foods cafe and coffee shop in ancoats manchester

Trove, Ancoats

Trove is one of those places that got me like, "man, I didn't think it could get much better". From humble beginnings selling chutneys + jams down at Manchester Market, to opening their second cafe in Manchester, the husband & wife team of Marcus and Katy Saide collaborated with Leeds-based design workshop Plaey to create a unique space which raises the bar even higher for the city.

Part bakery, part cafe, Trove has all the right moves in all the right places. From the large modular panel wall system behind the counter, and HAY chairs from the IKEA collection, to the granite-based jesmonite work surfaces which have been mixed with terracotta pigments to create subtle pink tones. If I had the opportunity to work on a space it would probably end up a lot like this. Let's not forget the food though, an ideal spot for breakfast and lunch.

Visit for: Freshly baked almond cruffins (a cross between a croissant and a muffin) or their poached eggs on molasses bread. Serving Allpress Coffee. 5 Murray St, Manchester M4 6HS

form lifestyle and homeweare design store in manchester

Form Lifestyle, Northern Quarter

You reach a point in your life where you start to become a little bit obsessed with homeware, and less full-throttle on the fashion stuff. Pinterest has a lot to answer for, but I'd say design stores built around a passion for product knowledge and curation - take Form Lifestyle as the perfect example - are excellent examples as to why the homeware market is thriving.

No visit to the city is complete without a trip to see Elly & Harry at Form Lifesftyle store. The converted Victorian terrace - with that instantly recognisable spiral staircase - carries a well-considered range of glassware, ceramics, stationery, small home goods and all-year round gifts ideas. Both the upstairs and basement doubles up as workshop and exhibition space, which is currently showcasing work by artist James Wilson.

Visit for: Really, I want one of everything, but the concrete planters by Studio Noah are beauts. We have two of them in our living room. 6 Bradley St, Manchester M1 1EH

atkinsons coffee shop at mackie mayor in manchester northern quarter

Atkinson's at Mackie Mayor, Northern Quarter

This place has been a firm 5-star of mine ever since it first opened back in late 2017. Atkinsons' roots go back to their hometown of Lancaster, but since setting up shop in the back corner of the converted fruit + veg market of Mackie Mayor these guys have gained a whole new following. Damn, have you ever seen another interior like this one in the UK? I can almost see Jeff Goldblum busting out some of his smooth ditties in the corner. From the brass shelves with individual block lettered menu and the perfect shade of blue on the walls and counter, to the help-ya-self tea apothecary and timeless jazz oozing out of the speakers. With endless roasts on offer, if you're looking for a real coffee experience in Manchester then this is the place.

Visit for: Their Soa Fransicso house roast as an Americano, the old New York-inspired interior + super friendly baristas (who never seem to get bored of my pointing cameras at them!). 1 Eagle Street, Manchester M4 5BU

To learn more about the Skagen Falster ll Smartwatch visit here.

This post is in partnership with Skagen Denmark. Your support of the brands + businesses we work with helps make this blog happen.

26 Sept 2018

36 Hours in Berlin

mat buckets wearing universal works denim trousers with jigsaw menswear resort collar shirt in berlin

mat buckets wearing the new skagen falster 2 smartwatch

interior of the visit coffee shop in berlin

mat buckets wearing universal works denim trousers with jigsaw menswear resort collar shirt in berlin with uk blogger brittany bathgate

Glasses by Moscot

This summer has been unforgettable. The past four months have been some of the most rewarding of my life, and if I could exchange air-miles for beers I'd be set up for life. Something that is niggling me though, I'm getting worse at catching up on things that I've said I need to. A blog post here, a month's worth of admin there, and, well, let's not even mention the blog re-design...

I feel pretty content with most other things, especially when it comes to this summer's opportunities. Being able to travel for work given be chance to strengthen friendships – something that would normally be missed due to being elsewhere. In a weird kind of way I feel like I've had plenty time for my friends – for photography, creative support and even the +1 perks for trips I always reach out to my buddies.

Earlier this month I was invited to Berlin with Skagen for the launch of their new smartwatch, the Falster ll. Jake Millers came along as my photography support, and it turned out that my old mate Brittany Bathgate was also visiting for the event. We haven't spent much time together since earlier this year - both of us busy with things across opposite sides of the UK - but then BAM, there we are together in a different country.

The next day only left us with a few hours to hang, but it was good to hear about Brittany's home DIY progress and chat through the issues that come with owning your own place, as well as being self-employed.

At the fear of this post sounding like it doesn't have a purpose, it's purely a life update. But hey, that's what my space is all about – I'm just pleased I still have the passion to share my journey with you.

Photography by Jake Millers.

15 Dec 2017

Time Well Spent

Time well spent - Moments in Atkinson's Coffee at Mackie Mayor, with VOID Watches

If I was to look back over my diary from 2017 it would quickly become clear that my time has been spread evenly between being at home and on the move. Sometimes the trips away become tiring, and I'll long for a few days at home to collect my thoughts, but being in the position to travel so frequently has contributed hugely to why this year has been so fulfilling.

The train ride from Blackpool to Manchester has been a route which I've become more than accustomed to. The same seat, on the same train leads to the same walk into the city's Northern Quarter. I visit to catch up with friends, meet new clients, brainstorm ideas with regular collaborators, or to spend time on my own, catching up with work. This change of scenery gives me chance to focus on current tasks, and helps me fill my notepad up with new ideas. It's all time well spent - nothing is wasted if you're leading yourself towards something productive.

This post is in partnership with VOID Watches.

Which brings to the title of this post, "Time Well Spent". When I'm working from home I battle with time management issues (too many attractive distractions), so, I see the days in which I set up in a coffee shop or cafe as just that: time well spent. This time my camp was the newly opened Atkinson's coffee shop, inside Mackie Mayor. I'm sure this place was made for me; the stunning rich blue wood, against the marble countertop + copper fixtures, topped off with genuinely friendly batistas, puts Atkinson's high on my list.

Checking in at the newly opened The Patron bar + restaurant

VOID Watches was started as a side project by Swedish designer David Ericsson, in 2008, with the simple concept of creating a product that represents something greater than the hands on a clock face. How we can use our time to create meaningful ideas and improve ourselves is a message the Hong Kong-based team live by. VOID's design message certainly resonates with my feelings towards time, and has given me ideas with how I can improve my productivity while I'm working from home.

Filling the void of those long journeys between cities has never been a tough task for me. It gives me a chance to step away from my work - to catch up with new podcasts, push through a few more pages in a book, or simply to process my thoughts from the day. The urge to clear my inbox is strong, but on these occasions time away from work is a positive thing.

My second visit to Manchester this month led me to visiting the newly opened bar + restaurant, The Patron. These guys are on to a good thing here - I'll be back to try out their own beer soon. By choosing to step out of the "same-old-same-old" routine, it can give you a different outlook on your city; sparking conversation with fresh faces and reaffirm your love for the community.

Are you happy with how you've used your time this year, and how do you plan to move forward in 2018?

Photography by Jake Millers.

This post is brought to you in partnership with Void Watches. Your support of the brands + businesses we work with helps make this blog happen.

24 Sept 2017

Giving Time to Explore Edinburgh, with Timex

Jacket by Paul Smith (similar) | Shirt + Denim Trousers by Weekday | Sneakers by Converse | Easy Reader Watch by Timex | Sunglasses by Moscot

13:00 – Hyde & Son's on George Street is one of the city's newest + most exciting spaces. From the team behind Leman Locke, Hyde & Son's offered a relaxing environment for coffee, drinks + food.

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A venture across the Scottish boarder is always a welcomed one. Having had the opportunity to explore some of Scotland's most beautiful landscapes and its vibrant cities, I can safely say that I'm a member of the fan club. I'll try to organise a trip as frequently as possible, and I'll take any excuse to further install my love for its history, people and landscape.

To celebrate the 40th anniversary of Timex's best-selling Easy Reader collection, we wanted to visit a city within the British Isles that mirrored the brand's core values and heritage, while still having a firm grasp on progression and willingness to evolve. For us, Edinburgh was the perfect place.

10:00 – The borough of Stockbridge is full of independent restaurants, coffee shops and retailers. You could easily spend hours shooting the breeze with locals + getting lost in the side streets. Aesop and the newly opened The Method stores are setting a high standard.

For many of us, a Timex evokes a certain childhood memory of receiving our very first watch. In 1977 the first Timex Easy Reader pootled off the production line, and since went on to sell 25 million+ worldwide. Fast forward to its 40th anniversary and we see the new collection being brought up to date with some sweet new additions; the iconic INDIGLO® night-light still features, but this time the face reveals a back-lit "40". New life is carried over into the strap design too, with American Horween leather, along with complimenting stitched edges, being used for its durability and comfort – a natural patina will begin to form over time.

The city is full of hidden treasures; from the independent community in the borough of Stockbridge coming together to support the notion of thinking smaller to create something bigger, the city's ever-changing entertainment scene to the recent renovation of the Quartermile – an area which seems to be obsessed with Swedish bakeries!

For me, a travel experience has a lot about those details that you don't first see at first glace; a tiled staircase which leads to a restaurant's bathrooms, the smell of freshly baked cherry brownies, an unassuming cobbled street which serves as a cut-through towards something more tourist-friendly.

Everything is down to detail. I feel that same passion towards design.

12:00 – Making time out to explore the city's much-loved botanical gardens + its surrounding area. Feeling ready for food, we took to Instagram for recommendations.

15:00 – Taking recommendations from the Edinburgh locals. Photographer Murray Orr took us to one of his favourite lunch spots, Checkpoint, just off the Royal Mile.

Adapting To A New Routine

It's fair to say that over the past few months this blog has been neglected a little. With a couple of huge life events – buying our first house + getting married in a foreign country within the same year was never going to be easy – I knew something had to give. Blogging has always required consistency and patience, I had plenty of this. Taking time to immerse myself within the community is extremely rewarding – daily visits to blogs, joining conversations and offering something (hopefully) inspiring was always the top priority for me.

This post is in partnership with Rotary's brand new Oxford Collection.

As events started to creep closer this summer I assessed the way I handled time, making a conscious decision to dedicate more effort to concentrating on platform that could track my progress in real time. Instagram became my main creative outlet while we were on our West Coast road trip, and since then I've settled into a routine of creating daily Stories, and taking more care with the images + the message I was sharing.

I've struggled with time management in the past – starting the day off with the best intentions, but often failing to complete due to the fact that I try to do so many tasks at once. Things have improved, but I can feel those bad habits creeping back in.

Travelling frequently has had a positive affect on my drive to "always be doing something", but the thought of arriving home to a maxed-out inbox and an even longer to-do list (both work and personal) is always a daunting one.

My current daily freelance routine just doesn't feel productive anymore. I need to adapt it into something more suitable for my current workload, travel commitments + creative projects. This will hopefully help with my well-being, work anxieties and productivity.

For me, time holds a lot of value; it reminds me if I'm on track, when I need to be somewhere and when I need to rest. I'm a creature of habit, someone who relies on doing things in a certain order, at a certain time. And once those times go out of whack I can feel the stress start to build.

Photography by Jake Millers

The Oxford Collection by Rotary acts as that simple reminder to keep on going. Nothing about the watch lights up, beeps or buzzes – its architectural-inspired design sticks to theory of form follows function, nothing extra is needed. Maybe I should think about applying this theory to the way I approach my work?

"Having relocated our headquarters to Great Britain in 1946, Rotary watches are conceived, designed and developed in-house in the heart of London, one of the world’s most iconic and creative hubs. The natural choice was to pick a place name that exudes the same characteristics as the inspiration behind the product and, with its young collegiate nature and traditional architecture, Oxford had it all."

Head of Design at Rotary Watches, Matthew O’Neill

As it stands I'm not 100% sure how many routine will change, but I aim to try out a few different methods over the next month. Maybe I'll start work earlier, mix up the locations I work from, prioritise jobs more efficiently, or simply turn my phone off...but what I can guarantee is I'll still put all my time and efforts into meeting up with more new people + start to make things happen.

The Oxford Collection by Rotary is available here.

This post is brought to you in partnership with Rotary. Thank you for taking the time to support the brands + businesses that make this blog happen.