Work in progress

Circa
Studio.

From screen to wrist.

An iOS companion app, a physical wearable, and an ongoing exploration of what happens when the interface becomes something you can hold.

A project by: Casey Childs
The work: iOS · Interface design · Wearables

A round black Circa prototype with a red watch strap, showing the time and local weather on a wooden desk. — Circa / Physical prototypeOn the workbench

01 / THE EXPLORATION

A new surface
to design for.

Circa is my step into designing for physical wearable devices. Alongside the watch interface, I’m building Circa Studio: an iOS companion for previewing the face, exploring its style, and connecting the experience across two screens.

The interesting part is the space between them. The phone gives me room to configure and explore. The round display asks for something more focused: a few useful details, readable at a glance.

This is a working study of that relationship, with the prototypes, rough edges, and open questions still visible.

The design question

What belongs on the phone, and what earns a place on your wrist?

02 / THE iOS COMPANION

A studio for
a smaller screen.

Circa Studio puts the watch face at the center of the app. A large circular preview keeps the device in view while the controls below handle the details: style, the boot sequence, and syncing time and weather.

The current style exploration includes accent colors and different treatments for the seconds indicator. The aim is to make those choices easy to see before they become part of the wearable experience.

Circa Studio on iPhone, with a circular face preview and controls for style, boot sequence, and sync. Bluetooth is unavailable in this capture. — The companion / Current directioniOS

Style exploration / Accent and seconds indicatorPlay study · 0:40

Keep the face in view.

The circular preview is the reference point. Styling decisions can be judged in the shape they are being designed for.

Give each screen a role.

The phone has room for configuration. The wearable can stay focused on time, weather, and small moments of feedback.

Make connection visible.

Connected, unavailable, and waiting to sync are all part of the experience. The interface needs to explain the state of the device.

03 / OFF THE CANVAS

Pixels, meet
the physical world.

A circular display changes the composition. The edges fall away, the center carries more weight, and every label competes with the time. Seeing the interface on the actual device brings scale, reflections, and legibility into the design process.

The workbench studies span an earlier, denser component exploration and a quieter face built around time and local weather. These are experiments in finding the right amount of interface for a very small surface.

A handheld round display showing an early orange-accented interface with a score, workout button, and compact activity card. — 01 / Exploring the surface

A Circa display connected by USB, showing 12:02 and a sync weather prompt. — 02 / Finding the focus

The round Circa prototype on a wooden desk showing 12:20 and local weather of 94 degrees. — 03 / Bringing it together

A WORKING CONNECTION

Two screens.
One experience.

An earlier companion capture shows the connected state, a synced weather reading, and live device diagnostics. Both screens bring time and local weather into view.

These process details are part of the work: getting the phone and device to agree, then deciding how much of that machinery belongs in the everyday interface.

An earlier companion app showing Connected, 12:19, 94 degrees, a Sync now button, and live diagnostics. — Earlier companion / Connected prototype

04 / A LITTLE CHARACTER

Even the first
few seconds matter.

The boot sequence is another small surface for the identity. A circle, an accent color, and the Circa name give the device an introduction. The companion makes that sequence easy to preview and replay.

On the physical display, the seconds indicator adds movement around the edge while the time stays anchored at the center. Both studies are still being refined.

Boot sequence / Previewed in Circa Studio0:02

On the device / Time, weather, and seconds0:06

WORK IN PROGRESS

Still on
the workbench.

Circa Studio and the wearable are both in progress. The app screens, motion studies, and device photos document the current exploration rather than a finished product.

The next questions are about the experience as a whole: refining what belongs on each screen, making connection and sync feel clear, and testing how the face reads away from the desk.

For me, the value is already in the shift: designing an interface, seeing it on a physical object, and bringing what I learn back into the next iteration.

Back to all work

CircaStudio.

A new surfaceto design for.

A studio fora smaller screen.

Keep the face in view.

Give each screen a role.

Make connection visible.

Pixels, meetthe physical world.

Two screens.One experience.

Even the firstfew seconds matter.

Still onthe workbench.

Photura —From idea to App Store.