About the 'Works
From Humble Beginnings.
California ClockWorks and Restoration has been a lifetime in the making for its founder Dimitri.
Born into a blue-collar family in the town of Zeist in the Netherlands, there was always a sense of pride whenever a household item or appliance was repaired, rather than replaced (and with three hungry siblings, necessity was often the mother of invention in the home). This meant that from a very young age, he was the kind of child to take apart just about everything in sight, only to learn to put it back together. Sometimes through shame and embarrassment of having to come clean and ask dad for help/ forgiveness. Naturally, this lead to an education and career in mechanical/ aerospace engineering that has spanned almost three decades. As an engineer, challenges tend to come on a daily basis and often involve very intricate and well-documented solutions, this skillset has proven invaluable when working on sensitive, fragile and sometimes irreplaceable heirloom items.
To indulge in artistic endeavors and satisfy a creative itch, the tinkering has always been a wonderful hobby and a way to destress from the ever-hectic aerospace industry.
Over the years, skills grew, results improved, and so did the joy in restoring things. This passion, this drive to make something old, new again has been the main motivation behind starting California ClockWorks and Restoration.
In the very beginning we restored every antique clock our extended family has to offer, to prove out tools, processes and techniques, then came the occasional watch, furniture and vintage appliance. Once the neighborhood kids discovered our skills at fixing things, there was an endless stream of toys, RC cars, drones and fishing reels to practice and improvise repairs. All this has lead to ever-increasing work in the now-growing shop at which point the decision was made to "make it official", hang out our shingle and pronounce ourselves open for business.
Today, we take great pride in the repair and restoration of primarily clocks, but absolutely welcome vintage toys, appliances or anything you may have that has personal value to you and that you wish to see restored to its former glory.
A popular saying around here is :"Nothing is ever dead until it is buried, and even then..."