SY901: a 40cm square mirrored clock, and where that size fits

The SY901 is a square mirrored clock listed at 40 x 40cm, with a mirrored face and a crushed diamond border. It is the smaller of the two squares among four related clocks in the clocks range, and the one to reach for when the wall is tight.

The four sizes, as the listing gives them

Worth knowing when you compare the square with the round: a 40cm square covers noticeably more wall than a 40cm circle, because the corners reach out to a diagonal of roughly 57cm. If you have a narrow space measured to the centimetre, that diagonal is the figure to check against, not the 40cm.

Where a 40cm square works

• A narrow pier of wall between two doors or either side of a window, where a 50cm piece would leave no margin.
• Above a bedside table or a console, where the clock should relate to one piece of furniture rather than to the whole wall.
• In a kitchen or a utility room, where the clock is read at a glance from a few feet away and a larger face is unnecessary.
• As part of a group, hung with mirrors or frames rather than alone. A square sits more easily in a grid arrangement than a circle does, because the edges line up with everything else.

Mirrored and sparkling: how to light it

The listing describes a reflective mirrored face with a crushed diamond border that adds sparkle and dimension, and both of those depend entirely on the light the wall receives. The border needs a point source to glint, so a lamp, a spotlight or a window to one side does far more for it than flat overhead light. The mirrored face, meanwhile, shows whatever is opposite it, so take a look at what will be reflected before you choose the wall. Facing a bright window, a mirrored dial can be harder to read at certain times of day.

What the listing does not state

• The type of movement, and whether it is battery powered.
• The weight and the fixing supplied. Ask us, then choose the right hardware for plasterboard or masonry rather than guessing.
• What the crushed diamond border is actually made from. The phrase describes the look; the listing does not give the material, so ask if that matters to you.
• How the hours are marked on the face. The listing does not describe the dial, so go by the photographs on the product page.

Choosing between the four

If the wall will take it, the SY906 is the same square in 50 x 50cm and makes more of a statement over a sideboard. The SY902 is the 40cm round if the room already has a lot of straight lines, and the SY905 is the 50cm round. All four belong with the mirrored pieces in mirrors and accessories, so a clock can be matched to a mirror on the same wall.

Delivery is free within 50 miles of our Glasgow store and £50 beyond that.

Photographs and the full listing are on the SY901 page, and you can ask us a question about it from there.