This Swedish watchmaker recycles materials from illegal firearms to create stunning watch bands and cases

• TRIWA watches are designed in Stockholm, Sweden and informed by an elegant simplicity that makes them the perfect complement to business attire, evening wear, or casual clothing alike.
• The company offers several products with global-minded missions, including watch bands made entirely from recycled ocean plastics.
• TRIWA has just launched a limited-release run of wristwatches fabricated using Humanium Metal, which is created by melting down illegal firearms.

What do you really ask of your wristwatch? If you're like me and most other people I know, there are really just two demands you place on the thing, these being to reliably keep time and to look good while doing it. A watch is a single or at least limited-function device that tells you the time and perhaps the date and day of the week while dressing up your outfit with a dash of color, style, and interest. If you can find a watch that not only looks good and works well but that also sells for a decent price, then you've pretty much got things covered in the timepiece department.

As you might have guessed, based on the fact that I've chosen to cover them, TRIWA watches have definitely got you covered when it comes to form and function.

Designed in Stockholm, Sweden, these chronometers feature relatively clean, simple faces with stylish bands that are never flashy or overwrought. Their movements are reliable and the prices are no big deal, with their standard catalog models ranging from around $160 to $300 (though a few are in the $650-plus range).

Why do I mention the standard catalog models?

Because TRIWA also offers a limited selection of watches that are anything but standard in design, though their aesthetics maintain the same crisp Scandinavian styling.

For example, TRIWA offers two watches, the Loch Nevil and Slate Nevil, that feature vinyl bands made entirely from recycled plastic. While each recycled plastic watch band might remove only a bit of would-be waste from the planet, these watches are intended to raise awareness of global pollution issues and to raise funds to combat them.

If that's the only civic-minded thing TRIWA did, I'd still be a fan. But what truly drew me to this company was the watch I'm proud to be wearing as I write these very words, the TRIWA Humanium Metal wristwatch.

Starting this summer, TRIWA will be selling a limited run of watches fabricated almost entirely out of metal sourced from recovered and melted down illegal firearms. Experts on global violence estimate that there are more than 500 million illegal guns on the planet right now, so a relatively small run of wristwatches isn't going to account for much of the gun violence problem in physical terms. But the funds raised by sales of TRIWA watches made with Humanium Metal will be dedicated to the cause, and the campaigns supporting the watches will elevate awareness.

The fact that these Humanium watches look good and works well is a plus, too. And I'm not complaining about their recycled material wrist straps, either.

The bottom line

Whether you buy a TRIWA watch through their Humanium Metal initiative, or if you go with a recycled band, or you stick with one of their standard models, you'll be getting a great watch from a company that supports good causes. And you won't be paying all that much, either, which is good news for you.

Shop humanium metal watches at TRIWA or on Amazon.

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