Meet John “Juan” Velarde-Brandt, New Mexico’s Premier Watchmaker.
John Velarde-Brandt is a New Mexico artist, tinsmith, leather craftsman, and self-trained watchmaker. He established Watchmaker Velarde in January 2023 as a place for those different forms of making—and the histories behind them—to come together.
A Life in Materials
Before watches, John worked with tin and leather. Both materials require attention. Tin records every cut and strike. Leather changes under the hand and develops character through use. Working with them taught John to slow down, understand the material, and accept that the maker’s hand will remain visible in the finished object.
That experience follows him to the watchmaking bench. A watch asks for a different degree of precision, but the underlying discipline is familiar: observe closely, work patiently, and do not rush what needs time.
Learning the Watch
John’s watchmaking education has been self-directed and practical. His studies have included WatchFX training, bench work, and the servicing of mechanical movements such as the Unitas 6407. He approaches watchmaking as an active practice—one that rewards curiosity, humility, and continued study.
The work is not hidden behind claims of effortless mastery. It happens through repetition: taking a movement apart, understanding how its pieces depend on one another, and learning to return it to working order.
Designing From New Mexico
John’s watches draw from the place he knows: the colors of red chile and open sky; ranching, leather, wool, tin, and metal; the Zia sun; family meals; and the practical objects used in everyday life. These references are not added to make a watch look Southwestern. They are part of the visual memory from which John works.
Each Velarde design begins with something specific—a person, a place, a material, or a memory—and finds a form that can live on the wrist. The result is a watch made with a sense of place: built to be worn and made to carry a story.
The goal is not to turn New Mexico into decoration. It is to make work that could not have come from anywhere else.
