We’ve come to the gloaming of holiday shopping opportunities. If you haven’t bought all your gifts yet, you’ll probably have to settle for some belated Christmas day giving. And that isn’t the worst thing, so long as you make sure that whatever you do get is well worth the wait.
Enter Bagel-O-Clock, a nifty customizable novelty gift conceived by two 25-year-old Canadian artists, Charlotte Ficek and Max Silverbrook. It’s a clock that’s made-to-order, just like your morning bagel: you pick your favorite dough flavor, have it open-faced or closed, top it with lox and schmear or what-have-you, and voilà! Within a week or two, you’ll be the proud owner (or giver) of a truly artisanal bagel that tells the time.
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Silverbrook, who does the woodcutting, told us a little about the project’s inception. “I found a tacky still-life painting at Goodwill, and thought the gaudy frame really needed a good bagel in it instead,” he said. “After I mentioned it to Charlotte, I got a beautiful bagel watercolor for my birthday. I instantly realized its potential as a clock.”
The bagel clocks are made in and shipped from Toronto, Canada (which works out great money-wise, since the exchange rate is so good right now). After shipping and taxes, this time-telling breakfast item runs shy of $60 USD. There’s an estimated two-week turnaround on the art, but the shipping is done by overnight courier.
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Bagel-O-Clock officially launched on Monday, so the selection on their website is still a little lacking; you won’t yet see everything bagels, for example, and their toppings (up to 3 per clock) don’t include tomato—a travesty if your order is usually BLT. “We’ll be adding an ‘other’ option soon, but for now just shoot us an e-mail if your perfect toppings aren’t currently available,” Silverbrook offered. “We’ll make it happen. Everyone deserves to get their dream bagel.”
You can pile the toppings in any order. And for once, ordering smoked salmon won’t cost you any extra. So, if there’s a special someone in your life who loves bagels as much as you do, this could make for a perfect—and very personal—belated holiday or New Years’ housewarming gift. Don’t waste any more precious time (get it?) staring at the thing. Order your dream bagel clock today.